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it would look like a backwards crafting table, and would take a small amount of Xp for each uncrafted item.

It would be crafted out of one crafting table surrounded by four redstone torches.

if the recipe made more than one of the item (e.g. Oak logs,) you would need four planks to uncraft it, so as not to create an easy dupe Method.

it would be usefull if you accidentaly Shift clicked and made more of an item than you intended.

it would be called the “Uncrafting Table”

Duh.

I think Mojang will not let this suggestion through.

1. Multiple recipes would be really odd to un-craft, especially tools and tool-blocks, which clearly need multiple construction blocks to pick the best pieces out of rather than use up entirely.

Or bread back into 3 wheat bunches.

2. Option of resmelting metal assets into nuggets is very inefficient, but was added for a reason. Conclusion, they want to make recycling already crafted assets inefficient if possible at all.

I have wanted an uncrafting table for years and when I see a mod for one, I add it. Smelting/particular block recipes aren't usually included which I don't mind as it can be tricky/not make a lot of sense or is intended design so you have to be careful with what you make. But brick blocks to bricks, slabs, cut/chiseled versions, tools/armour (wielding more than just a single nugget for iron and gold ones especially) and horse armour I think works, undying things I'm fine with so it's quicker but removing it in a cauldron works I guess for removing a dye with the water, and uncrafting bread is strange but if you don't need the food just like you don't need horse armour so you uncraft it works for me to use the wheat for something else like a haybale or other foods that use wheat (or making it a more 'magical' block like Equivalent Exchange's Condenser but using the Common/Rare like logic that the Beacon, Nether Star and others have with the Light Blue, Yellow and Purple/Pink text instead of some other value system, that or just a simple trade block to simplify it even more as we have trading already with villagers/the wandering trader).

I know they will never add it due to balancing recipes (or other ideas to implement such a feature, like even an undo/reverse button/command would be great to further simplify it for recipes or placing however many blocks in the world and retracting progress if we don't like the way it looks, just like you can reverse in racing games or with retro games on certain services) and considering the existing features like the cauldron one as an example of removing dyes I don't think they want to change things that much like they added the 1.14 blocks and kept the old crafting (not sure about the loom and if that's mandatory for banners now, but it made it more easy for me to understand how to make them) but it would be a nice feature.

We can wish though or just use mods that add one any chance we can.

Yeah it would also be helpful for if you accidentally made like 20 Diamond hoes like you sometimes see streamers do

@LordKittikat You don't seem to be thinking of the number of ways people could exploit this feature. If you had a nearly broken diamond pick axe, and an "uncrafting" table, you could simply uncraft the pick axe, get 3 diamonds and a stick and craft a new pickaxe with full durability for just some xp? It's not even like the "uncrafting table" is that hard to craft. Also it doesn't make ANY sense....if you uncrafted a cake woul you end up getting 3 buckets for free....and UNCRAFTING a cake? do you realise what that sounds like?

It's a terrible idea in my opinion.

Quote from Coolsugar»

@LordKittikat You don't seem to be thinking of the number of ways people could exploit this feature. If you had a nearly broken diamond pick axe, and an "uncrafting" table, you could simply uncraft the pick axe, get 3 diamonds and a stick and craft a new pickaxe with full durability for just some xp? It's not even like the "uncrafting table" is that hard to craft. Also it doesn't make ANY sense....if you uncrafted a cake woul you end up getting 3 buckets for free....and UNCRAFTING a cake? do you realise what that sounds like?

It's a terrible idea in my opinion.

This particular case might not be the problem, just make it an option only to uncraft things with 100% durability, just like only undamaged bows can be used to craft dispensers.
The problem with the feature is that Mojang adds alternative means of recycling like smelting metals out, burning wood and composting organic waste, and as such I presume they are not interested in direct un-crafting.

There are other spots where it could be problematic too, such as the following:

-The nether wart blocks of the crimson forest could be made into nether wart

-Gear sold by villagers could turn into infinite diamonds

-You could beat the game without a fortress by decrafting brewing stands from villages and igloos

-

Also, good luck decrafting monotype wooden items like beds, tools or sticks.
They can be made from different kinds of wood.
Same for campfires and torches with coal/charcoal and stone assets with cobble/blackstone.

Quote from tow4rzysz»

This particular case might not be the problem, just make it an option only to uncraft things with 100% durability, just like only undamaged bows can be used to craft dispensers.

The problem with the feature is that Mojang adds alternative means of recycling like smelting metals out, burning wood and composting organic waste, and as such I presume they are not interested in direct un-crafting.

Or base the amount of materials returned on the number required to craft it times the durability left; in my own mod I've added the ability for furnaces to smelt iron and gold items and the amount you get back is (resources * 3 * durability); that is to say, an iron chestplate returns up to 24 iron nuggets, down to only one if it only has one durability left; the amount of XP you get is proportional to the number of nuggets returned (a chestplate gives up to 2.4 XP):

addSmelting(Item.helmetIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 15), 0.1F);
addSmelting(Item.plateIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 24), 0.1F);
addSmelting(Item.legsIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 21), 0.1F);
addSmelting(Item.bootsIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 12), 0.1F);
addSmelting(Item.swordIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 6), 0.1F);
addSmelting(Item.axeIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 9), 0.1F);
addSmelting(Item.pickaxeIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 9), 0.1F);
addSmelting(Item.shovelIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 3), 0.1F);
addSmelting(Item.hoeIron, new ItemStack(Item.ironNugget, 6), 0.1F);

if (item.isItemToolOrArmor() && item.isItemStackDamageable())
{
    // Prevents furnaces from smelting enchanted items
    if (item.getEnchantmentTagList() != null) return null;

    // Adjusts amount based on durability, rounded to the nearest unit with a minimum of 1
    if (damage > 0) result.stackSize = Math.max(1, Math.round((float)result.stackSize * (float)(item.getMaxDamage() - damage) / (float)item.getMaxDamage()));
}

Not only that, most blocks and items made with iron and gold can be smelted, even things like anvils, which return a number of ingots based on their damage state (of which I added a new state for a total of 4, each corresponding to 25%):

addSmelting(Block.anvil, new ItemStack(Item.ingotIron, 12), 0.7F);

else if (itemID == BlockStates.anvil)
{
    // Ingots returned by anvils depends on damage level (intact = 100%, very damaged = 25%)
    result.stackSize = result.stackSize * (4 - (damage & 3)) / 4;
}

All of this required relatively simple changes to the code for furnaces (vanilla furnaces, at least in 1.6.4, are not able to properly smelt items with multiple output items, which will overflow the output slot and be lost, I just had to check if there is enough room. They also don't check damage values, hence amethyst ore, which is a variant of obsidian, was unable to be smelted until I added metadata support):

private boolean canSmelt()
{
    if (this.furnaceItemStacks[0] == null) return false;
    ItemStack result = FurnaceRecipes.smelting().getSmeltingResult(this.furnaceItemStacks[0]);
    if (result == null) return false;
    ItemStack output = this.furnaceItemStacks[2];
    if (output == null) return true;
    if (!output.isItemEqual(result)) return false;

    // Ensures that furnaces do not attempt to smelt items that return more than the allowed stack size
    int stackSize = output.stackSize + result.stackSize;
    return (stackSize <= this.getInventoryStackLimit() && stackSize <= result.getMaxStackSize());
}

Also, I'm adding a new tool, hammers, which can effectively uncraft most blocks when you mine them; for example, chests will drop 2-4 planks, increased to up to 8 (random) with Fortune III; logs drop 4 planks, planks drop 2 sticks, polished granite drops rough granite, and so on (not all blocks will result in a loss, only "crafted" items like chests which cannot be uncrafted in any other way, while logs can be crafted into 4 planks). This also enables some blocks to be renewable; cobblestone drops gravel which in turn drops gravel sand (a new variant of gravel with the old Beta texture, which resembles sand and is functionally identical to normal gravel). Quartz blocks can also be broken down into 4 quartz, enabling them to be used as a storage block (not as conveniently as other minerals though since you must place and mine them). Some blocks also drop more than one type of item, such as jukeboxes (one diamond and up to 8 planks) and bookshelves (3 books and up to 6 planks, giving an intermediate option between other tools and Silk Touch, which respectively give you only the books and the whole block).

As far as the OP's suggestion to enable crafting planks into logs and such that makes absolutely no sense at all - uncrafting to the original materials should be limited to "man-made" items except where it makes sense, such as turning polished granite back into the raw form (much like how stone drops cobblestone) or stone into cobblestone (blocks which are unaffected, like stone, drop their default drop; otherwise, hammers are basically a slower pickaxe/axe/shovel which can't get Silk Touch). I'd also prefer a more unique way to uncraft items, as with my hammers, than yet another crafting station (I disagree with Mojang's move to add a bunch of new crafting stations; for example, anvils could have been used to upgrade diamond items to netherite).

well, think you should get the buckets back from a cake anyways (would you like some iron in your cake?)

but with the durability thing, yeah, I guess that would be a problem.

Buckets don't get consumed in cake recipes, though?

How would you make the uncrafting table handle recipes with items that are left untouched or are altered by the crafting recipe?

Quote from LordKittiKat»

well, think you should get the buckets back from a cake anyways (would you like some iron in your cake?)

but with the durability thing, yeah, I guess that would be a problem.

Durability wouldn't be an issue as long as only items in undamaged state are permitted to be uncrafted.
Items that can be produced from multiple materials for the same result would. Like a simple chest. The game doesn't "remember" whether it was made from oak or warped planks, or mix of both in 3:1 proportions.

Quote from Endermage77»

How would you make the uncrafting table handle recipes with items that are left untouched or are altered by the crafting recipe?

I do not understand.
Give me an example.

Example: The cake recipe takes buckets of milk. However, it leaves behind normal buckets in the place of buckets of milk.

I'd be up for this to be added if it only worked for things that would make sense. For example, a bow, I'd be fine with that being turned back into sticks and bow. Or I'd be fine turning fences back into planks. Or a diamond sword back into diamonds. But something like an ingot back into an ore or a plank back into a log wouldn't make sense and I don't think it should be a thing for certain recipes like that. Alternatively, because it can only be used for certain items/blocks, maybe it could turn other ones into unique items only obtainable via the table. Like, an oak plant could be turned into saw dust or something which could have it's own unique uses. That's just an idea though, it could anything, really.

Quote from Endermage77»

Example: The cake recipe takes buckets of milk. However, it leaves behind normal buckets in the place of buckets of milk.

Good point.