Paint removal and repainting

[danceswithwolves49]

 
  I'm new so if this type question has been asked please forgive me. I have a Strat clone that has a crack in the headstock so I got the idea to get a custom Tele neck cut to fit the Strat body. Since the body is black ( which I'm not fond of) I decided to paint it real green which I will have custom made in spray cans and will be nitrocellulose. I watched a few youtube videos on repainting guitars and to be honest I don't like the idea of using a heat gun and metal paint scraper to remove the paint for fear of gouging or nicking the body. This would make extra work in applying a filler and sanding. I am more in favor of a citrus based paint remover and plastic scrapers followed by a citrus based afterwash. I have been advised to sand the body with either 220 or 300 grit sandpaper. Should I use auto body sandpaper. How many coats of primer and do I sand after each coat and will any automotive primer work? For the teal green.....how many coats and should I sand the first coat? When I add the clear coat.....will any clear work or should I use nitrocellulose?  Lastly would it be best to buff the top color coat before the clear? I've repainted several cars but this is my first guitar so any tips and hints will be much appreciated.
                                                                                    Bob

 

[rgand]

I'm not an expert on finishes. There are some really good people on the forum for that. I did want to mention something about the neck, though.

When I got a new neck for my Strat, I wanted a Tele neck and the way Warmoth gets that to fit is to take a Strat neck with a CBS headstock and re-cutting it for you to the Tele shape. I think it looks good, too, although not everyone likes the Tele headstock. LOL, mine was black and I'm also not a fan of black, but with a cream pickguard it came out looking fine.

Welcome to the forum. Looking forward to seeing your re-finish.

 

[pabloman]

Your plan of action depends on what you're working with. If it's a poly finish it will just laugh at your citrus solvents and plastic scrapers. It'd be equally effective to just use orange juice. You would need a solvent that would turn your plastic scrapers to goo. A heat gun and a metal scraper is the way to go if you don't want to use the evil aircraft stripper. Your primer needs to be a nice uniform coat. Level sand it then go for your color coat. Again you want nice uniform coverage. Your clear should be nitro as well. It's not good practice to mix chemestries.

 

[Cagey]

Pablo's right. Stripping polyurethane (which is almost certainly what's on your body) is no fun at all. That stuff is tough, which is part of what makes it a good finish. But, for as much work as it is and as much as it's going to cost you for stripper, primer, paint, abrasives, etc., you might want to consider gifting the thing to someone who doesn't mind a black finish and buying something new that's already finished. Check out these Strat bodies from GFS. For $60 - $70, you could save yourself one helluva lotta time, work and money. Their XGP series are faithful to the Fender dimensional specs, so a proper neck will bolt on just fine.

If you're determined to refinish the body you have, you'll need a stripper that contains methylene chloride or you're just wasting your time. This stuff will work, but you only need a quart. Be sure to follow the safety instructions - it's wicked stuff.

 

[mayfly]

By the way, the stuff Cagey is talking about will certainly kill you.  You need to be very careful with stuff like that.

 

[Cagey]

Yeah. Definitely use nitrile gloves, eye protection and a respirator. On the plus side, it actually works, as opposed to just about anything else that poly will just shrug off.

 

[Slackjaw]

Yep. I've melted a screwdriver handle in MEK before...

 

[danceswithwolves49]

  OK guys ya convinced me lol. From all I can tell the safest method by far will be the heat gun. The idea of just replacing the body IS a darn good one BUT.....and there's always one of those.......I'm a lefty and they don't have a lefty body. That's OK cause if I take it slow and careful I should be OK. This guitar sounds good now even with a crack in the headstock and thick poly paint it should sound even better when finished.
                              Bob

 

[Nightclub Dwight]

A great resource for information on guitar refinishing is the Reranch forum.  Conveniently, Reranch is also a well regarded supplier of nitrocellulose lacquer paint.

The guys on the Reranch forum often advocate spraying nitrocellulose lacquer right over a poly finish.  It is already a nice hard and level surface.

http://www.reranch.com/reranch/