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I recently agreed to make a modification to a friend’s son’s super-cheap-o-caster. It involved cutting off the horns of this strat copy to form a teardrop shape, re-radius-ing the edge and refinishing. I need your opinion as to what kind of finish is usually used on these cheap guitars and what finishes are compatible, so I might be able to just rough up the surface of the original finish and spray over the top of it. Any ideas? This is a quick and dirty project doesn’t require a lot of finessing. I just need to make sure the new finish won’t crackle or peel.

Sounds like you have both bare wood and existing finish? One option would be to remove the remaining existing finish. Your options would be wide open to whatever finish you are comfortable with. Quick and easy would be a seal coat (or 2) of shellac and some sort of rattle can.

If it were me, I would buy a cheap bare wood strat body from a supplier, cut it in the desired shape, then finish from scratch. That feels like less work and hassle than matching finish.

It doesn’t even need to match the old color. I just need to blend the old with the new without a noticeable change in texture

Matching existing finishes is the hardest part of any repair. It was bad enough when all you were likely to run into was shellac on Classicals with the occasional oil varnish, and Nitro on production steel strings. These days I'd guess there are a dozen different finishes in more or less 'common' use, many of which are resistant to all the usual solvents, so a new finish won't 'bite' and can't be blended in. You might be able to get some guidance from the manufacturer, but it's likely enough that you won't have the wherewithal to do much about it if it was an 'industrial' finish. The other avenue that could pay off is finding a local auto body or finish shop. Even if they can't blend in with the old finish they might be able to overlay it and get a decent job. Good luck.

Thanks, but I don’t need to match the color, I just need to be able to spray the whole thing without it peeling or crackling. I’m thinking shellac is going to be best bet as a base for further coats of paint. I’ll degrease then sand it lightly then spray a couple of coats of shellac.

I think trying to match finishes is a fool's errand. Now that OP is where he is, I suggest masking off the rim, paint the entire rim with some complementary color, and making a neat job of it.

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Peter Havriluk