So two coats and some drying time later. I'm really happy with how the colour turned out. The timber primer seems to have done it's job too. One lesson I've learnt here is that you can't predict how a stain will look by testing it on a different type of wood. That's probably fairly obvious to most people but new to me. So far this has generally been a pretty good learning experience.
I'll leave this be for a bit and then move onto clear coat.
Oh, one other thing. Any thoughts or recommendations on soldering equipment? I'd also better do a bit of practice on something first before I let loose on the guitar bits.