diff --git a/BOOTSTRAP.adoc b/BOOTSTRAP.adoc
index 70db0d0ea859..dd57f95a6c49 100644
--- a/BOOTSTRAP.adoc
+++ b/BOOTSTRAP.adoc
@@ -97,6 +97,9 @@ There are five steps to renaming a primitive:
 It is desirable for bootstraps to be easily repeatable, so you should commit
 changes after step 4.
 
+To remove a primitive, start with a working build of the compiler eg `./configure && make`
+then and only then remove the primitive and repeat steps 4 and 5 above.
+
 = Bootstrap test script
 
 A script is provided (and used on Inria's continuous