I recently built a Stratocaster replica from a kit. If you’re interested in building your own guitar, I highly recommend it - it’s a lot of fun, and it’s just so cool to play a guitar that you built with your own hands. And if I can do it, the level of expertise can’t be all that high!
I figured I’d start with the basic Strat, since this was my first build and I don’t really know what I’m doing. The first thing I did when I got the kit was put everything together, and it was a good thing I did. Not only was I missing some pieces (nothing major, a few screws and the string trees), but many of the guide holes were drilled in the wrong spots entirely. Nothing I couldn’t fix. Also, while doing the initial assembly, I noticed that the tuning machines were absolutely terrible - those were definitely going to need to be replaced.
Below is the process of the guitar from start to finish. If you’re interested in purchasing this guitar (or any others, I’ll gladly work with you on custom designs) please email me. I’m asking $250 but will accept reasonable offers.
I sanded down the first coat of stain so only the deeper stain stayed, to give it some “texture” visually. Added a second coat, let it cure for a few days and sprayed down with sanding sealer.
One thing I saw online while doing initial research was that pretty much everyone complained about the heavy coat of sealer these kits ship with. It was no joke - it took almost 4 hours of sanding and I still didn’t get it all off. That’s all right - the stain soaked in a little and I got a nice rich color. I apparently sanded deeper in a few spots and ended up with some darker patches, but I just figure they add character.