My first kit, LTA-1

[wokkaboy]

Hi Eddy, yes I would drill the other 2 neck screw holes, take the neck plate out and make sure all 4 holes align, they should do if you can see where the 2 hidden/filled holes are.
These veneers are usually thin so don't sand the back much more. If it was my kit I'd probably get a darker colour timbermate and go over it again to hide the pink. For best grain popping effect go for ebony colour Timbermate is the darkest. Will suit the gold stain better than pink !
Wow the mahogany TM I'm surprised came out so pink

[ganna19]

Ok, I finished the first step, the stain coat. I applied the coat 5 times, until I was satisfied of the color.
Just a couple of noob questions:

Is it right that the pre-drilled hole below the bridge pickup doesn't align at all with any of the bridge holes? Is it just to let me know where the center of the body is?

Is it normal that the pick guard doesn't fit properly around the neck hole of the guitar, not even around the neck itself? Should I modify the pick guard? Sorry for the stupid questions...

[Dedman]

that hole near the bridge is for the earth wire from the bridge to the control cavity.
I think most people find they have to trim the pick guard a little, I used an aftermarket one and it actually fitted pretty well, only needed a little adjusting.

[wokkaboy]

looking great so far Ganna, as Dedman said the earth wire goes through the hole under the bridge, to the bridge pup cavity to the control cavity.
Just carefully file (not a rough rasp) the pickguard edges till it fits over the neck heel. Clean up the edges with some sandpaper when it fits. Also remove the pickguard and make sure the neck heel fits snug in the neck pocket, that may need a little sanding/re-shaping as well

[ganna19]

Understood. Thank you very much guys! No way that I can do this build without your help and support.
I'll wait a few more days for the stain to cure and then I will give you some updates.
Thanks!

[ganna19]

Ok guys, the stain coat is almost cured, just another couple of days. Before apply the intensify coat is better to scrap the body with 400 grid or just 0000 steel whool?
While I was waiting for the coat to cure I checked all the rest of the components and everything seems to be ok and fitting properly.

[wokkaboy]

Hi Ganna, you can use 400 grit paper or super fine steel wool. The steel wool works well for me. Make sure you wipe the body clean before the intensifying coat and try and apply thin layers. Best of luck.
Glad the rest of the hardware fits ok !

[ganna19]

Thank you Master! I am practically your young Padawan!

[ganna19]

Ok, the stain is finally cured but I am not completely satisfied of how the side of the body is. Shall I sand it back to 180 and reapply the stain? By the way I love how the front and the back came out!

[andrewdosborne]

Hello ganna, can you post some pictures? I've found that sometimes if the outside edges of a body are over sanded (to higher a grit) the stain cannot penetrate the wood. To fix this I have sanded back these areas to 180 grit then reapplied the stain. The tricky part is in blending these areas that are re-sanded with the rest of the concave inside edges to get an even coverage.