Bit late catching up with this thread.

I tend to like the look of the grain in the timber and feel it may be wasted under a solid colour. Maybe a white limewash could keep some of the grain and still give a bit of white translucent finish?

With 2 stained timber explorer's in the house plus my eldest son having a genuine White one with an ebony fret board I can understand why you are considering white. Yes there is a lot of real estate that can be used as a blank canvas for some artwork on that rear upper wing but don't forget that is where you arm rests when playing one of these things.

Personally I am not a fan of the traditional scratch plate design but it does help with having the PUP selector switch located in a more useable position on that lower front horn.

Plenty of time to contemplate during your winter over there before it warms up enough to start applying any finish.