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Newb quesion here:

I have a tele shape guitar body, I plan to spray it black on the back and sides and put some sort of figured wood top on, probably stained/sprayed dark red. Is there anything I could do to protect it and keep it looking nice other than lacquer?

I'm really keen on building a guitar at some point, but I'm just dipping in with various jobs and small repairs at the moment. Any advice?

Well, if you want to spray paint, you have to be equiped to spray. So, you can spray lacquer too.

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Francis Richer, Montréal
Les Guitares F&M Guitars

I really don't mind - whatever looks good! I guess I quite like idea of satin if it isn't going to be lacquered and glossy.



I'm (probably) borrowing a spray gun, and the person in question doesn't want it used with lacquer, so I have to respect that.

I've used a lot of different finishes, and they all look good,
depending on what you're after.
Lacquer is the easiest to apply, and feels the best on the neck.
Oil based poly is the hardest, and has a slight yellow to it that I like.
Satin can be blown on, and looks good without polishing.
I haven't used varnish on a git yet, but plan too.
I've had good luck with ktm-9,
but folks here think ktm-6000 is better.
Water based, no fumes, dries quickly between coats.
Good luck.

I'm a big fan of low VOC water reducible urethanes. Rustoleum(previously Flecto) Diamond coat gloss (satin too)I caught on sale for about $35 a gallon. I use a cheap Harbor freight airbrush,the kind that blows over the top of the paint bottle and an airbrush compressor. I build about 3 coats a night and wetsand lightly the next day w/500 or 600 ,clean and repeat till the grain fills. Then its just a matter of building and sanding up to 2000 grit then polish on the wheel with some polishing compound and Meguires show car glaze. The stuff shoots nice over the top of automotive type acrylic paint.( or spray bomb) and hardens so nice I started using the stuff to coat rosewood fingerboards for fretless bass.
After 10 years theres barely any visible wear and I can polish that out when I get around to it. The trick is patiently building and sanding 30-50 coats (10 days - 2 weeks) For fretless fingerboards sand with a radius block and wait for a couple months after you've finished to let the coats reach maximum hardness. For general finishing you're good to go after polish. I seem to be able to patch any scratches or gouges with it reasonably well. More good news about it, is it's not flammable and although you should always wear a mask around urethanes to prevent coating your lungs in plastic, you can just hang and shoot a guitar in your shop w/ no booth if you absolutely have to.(booths come highly recommended)
The stuff is aimed at the hardwood floor market so it is engineered to take abuse. There just isn't anything really bad about this stuff. I don't think shooting it over lacquers is a good idea though.

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Anything too stupid to be said is sung. -Voltaire