Tiger

B Y
J O H N
G L E N E I C K I
Copyright 2005 - Stay Tooned, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.

This book, or portions of it, may not be duplicated, resold, or redistributed
in any way, without the expressed written consent of Stay Tooned, Inc.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
SUPPLIES YOULL NEED
WHAT TYPE OF PAINT TO USE
STEP 1: REMOVING OLD PARTS
STEP 2: REMOVING THE OLD FINISH
STEP 3: FILLING ANY HOLES
STEP 4: MASKING THE NECK CAVITY
STEP 5: CREATING THE BODY MASKS
STEP 6: ADDING THE STICK WITH HOOK
STEP 7: APPLYING THE SANDING SEALER
STEP 8: SPRAYING THE PRIMER
STEP 9: SPRAYING YOUR BASE COAT
STEP 10: APPLYING YOUR MASKS
STEP 11: SPRAYING THE SIDES
STEP 12: MASKING THE ENTIRE BODY
STEP 13: PIECING TOGETHER THE DESIGN
STEP 14: TRANSFERRING THE DESIGN
STEP 15: CUTTING OUT THE DESIGN
STEP 16: SPRAYING THE TIGER STRIPES
STEP 17: REMOVING THE MASKING
STEP 18: SPRAYING THE CLEAR COATS
STEP 19: LETTING THE PAINT SETTLE
STEP 20: REMOVING THE STICK
STEP 21: WETSANDING THE CLEAR COATS
STEP 22: BUFFING THE CLEAR COATS
BREAKDOWN OF EXPENSES
FINAL PHOTOS
2
3
4
8
9
10
13
14
15
16
17
18
22
24
25
27
29
30
31
33
34
36
38
39
40
43
45
46
NECK MODIFICATION
INTRODUCTION
WHERE TO BUY THE NECK
STEP 1: CUTTING OUT THE TEMPLATE
HEADSTOCK TEMPLATE
STEP 2: TRANSFERRING THE TEMPLATE
STEP 3: MAKING YOUR FIRST CUT
STEP 4: MAKING YOUR SECOND CUT
STEP 5: MAKING YOUR THIRD CUT
STEP 6: MAKING YOUR FOURTH CUT
STEP 7: POSITIONING THE EXTRA WOOD
STEP 8: CUTTING THE NOTCH, GLUING, AND CLAMPING
STEP 9: CUTTING OUT THE HEADSTOCK
STEP 10: SANDING THE HEADSTOCK
STEP 11: DRILLING THE TUNING PEG HOLES
STEP 12: ROUTING FOR A FLOYD ROSE NUT
STEP 13: CLEANING AND PREPPING
STEP 14: MASKING THE HEADSTOCK
STEP 15: SPRAYING THE PRIMER/BASE COAT
STEP 16: MASKING AND SPRAYING THE BLACK
STEP 17: MAKING A DECAL
STEP 18: SPRAYING YOUR CLEAR COATS
STEP 19: LETTING THE PAINT SETTLE
STEP 20: BUFFING THE CLEAR COATS
FINAL PHOTOS
47
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
65
67
68
69
70
72
73
74
75
76
PROJECT M1-TIGER: INTRODUCTION
Hello, fellow "axemen and axewomen, and thank you for purchasing my book,
HOW TO PAINT YOUR VERY OWN TIGER!
Since the mid-80s, George Lynch has been one of the premier rock guitarists, as well as my personal favorite.
Over the years, Lynch has continued to top himself - not only with his playing, but also with his original guitar designs. The Kamikazee(s), the M1Tiger(s)... very cool stuff. Thats why Ive chosen to show you how to paint
both of those guitars. (HOW TO Paint Your Very Own Kamikazee is also
available through the paintyourownguitar.com website.)
Actually, this project is more of a
loose replica of his M1-Tiger; Ive
swayed from the exact tiger pattern
that ESP used and just sort of did my
own. If you want to create an EXACT
replica of his, simply use the tigerstripe template that I have available in
the templates section - thats bang-on
to his design. Or, you can do what Ive
done here and just create your own.
No matter what pattern you decide
on, if you follow along with the steps
as Ive outlined for this project, the
guitar you paint will look killer when
its done.
One final note: For those of you who
are big George Lynch fans, Im sure
youll be able to appreciate this little
story Id like to share with you.
If youve been following George
throughout the 90s, you probably
noticed that at some point, he got
heavily into bodybuilding. Well, I happen to do a bodybuilding cartoon series called
MUSCLEHEDZ, which is seen monthly in FLEX magazine. (Ive been
doing the series since 1992.)
A few years ago, through a mutual acquaintence, I found out that George
is a big fan of MUSCLEHEDZ. So, after a few emails, I let him know that
I was a big fan of his, too, so we exchanged autographed merchandise!
Pretty cool, huh?... For me, that was a really big thrill.
Now, lets get down to business and paint us an M1-Tiger!
PROJECT M1-TIGER: SUPPLIES YOULL NEED

Before you start to paint, youre going to need
several supplies. Its best to have them on
hand before you begin. Itll make your job go a
lot more smoothly.
FIG 1
Heres a complete list of items I used to paint

my M1-Tiger.
1. Guitar Body - I found this body on eBay for
$40. Its an alder body, and its routed for one
pickup - perfect for this project. Notice it doesnt have any other holes routed except for the
pick-up and bridge cavities. I think it went for
the low price it did because most people dont
have the knowledge or experience to drill the
necessary holes. If you plan to paint guitars as
a permanent hobby or as a side business, and
you dont already know how to drill the proper
holes, invest the time to learn. Becoming as
self-sufficient as you can in assembling, repairing, and painting guitars should be your goal.
2. 3M Scouring Pad - For this project, I completely bypassed sanding the finish off and used
another technique that I use on occasion, i.e.,
scuff-sanding with 3M scouring pads. More on
this later in the book. These pads are available
at most hardware stores.
FIG 2
FIG 3
FIG 4
3. Wet/Dry Sandpaper - It doesnt matter the

brand you use, just make sure you have a least
2-3 sheets of each of the following grits: 220-grit,
320-grit, 400-grit, 600-grit, and 1200 or 1500-grit
(see FIG 2). Also, pick up 1-2 standard sheets of
sandpaper in: medium course, medium, and fine
grits. Most likely, youll be sanding down the finish
on your guitar to sealer or bare wood.
4. Masking Tape - Youll need some bigger tape
like the one pictured in FIG 4 to mask the body. I
recommend using the blue-colored 2 3M
Masking Tape. Its low-tack and can stay on a
surface for up to two weeks without leaving a
residue. If you bought any of my previous books,
youll see that I use it all the time.
FIG 5
5. Sanding Block(s) - Whether you buy one or

make your own, these come in handy when trying to get as flat a final job
as possible. Both of the blocks seen in FIG 5 are from the same wood I use

for my stick.
FIG 6
6. Primer/Paint - I use Krylon

Interior/Exterior aerosol paints for almost all of
my project guitars (see FIG 6). Its an acrylic
lacquer that is very easy to work with. It dries
fast and comes in lots of great colors. One of
the things I like most about using Krylon is
they have a non-yellowing clear that wont
turn your white guitar a cream color over time.
Ill talk more about paint in the next section.
FIG 7
For this project, youll also need a can of

white primer that will go on before your paint.
Make sure that your primer and paint are the
SAME BRAND, otherwise, you may get a
weird reaction with the paint and primer not
being compatible. If you end up using Krylon,
use Krylon through the entire job - primer,
paint, and clear.
7. Face Mask - Unless you love breathing in
toxic material, Id recommend picking up
some simple face masks like the one seen in
FIG 7. Youll still smell the paint, but at least
youll shield your nose and mouth from sucking in the particles of paint. If you plan to paint
more guitars in the future, Id recommend getting a NIOSH dual-loaded face mask.
8. 2 X 1 Wood - (see FIG 8) I use this to
hang the guitar during the painting process. I
cut it to about 20 long and bolt it to the guitar. I also take a file or sandpaper to all of the
edges of the wood to avoid splinters.
FIG 8
FIG 9
9. Hook - I mount a hook into the top of the

wood so that I can hang the guitar (see FIG
8). Available at pretty much every hardware
store, choose a large hook - something sturdy.
10. X-Acto Knife and Blades. Youll need an
X-acto knife (with several sharp blades) like
the one pictured in FIG 9 for cutting the tape.
Have at least 10 brand-new blades ready to go. As you cut through the
masking tape, the blades start to get dull. Change them regularly for more
accurate and precise cuts.

11. Bondo - Bondo is an automotive product
used for prepping before painting. Its easy-touse and sands very nicely, which is why I prefer using it over Plastic Wood for filling in any
dings or unnecessary holes in a project body.
Its available at most auto parts stores and/or
hardware stores.(see FIG 10)
12. Sanding Sealer - Sanding sealer is used to
seal the grain of the wood. It goes on before
you spray your primer. Its available in spray or
can. If you can find it, buy the aerosol spray.
(see FIG 10)
13. Styrofoam Padding - I make sure that I
have my guitar body resting on some sort of
padding whenever Im working on it. This styrofoam padding is fairly cheap and does a good
job. You can probably pick some up from a
packing supply store. I use a sheet thats roughly 40 X 50 and fold it several times. Each time
a side gets a little dirty, I simply flip it to a new
side for a fresh section to rest the guitar on (see
FIG 11).
FIG 10
FIG 11
FIG 12
13. Spray Can Holder - (see FIG 12) Its not

essential that you have these, but they REALLY
make the painting part of the process much
easier. It REALLY is like using a spray gun. I
use two different brands: SPRAY GRIP by RustOleum (bought from Lowes) and The Original
CAN GUN (bought from ACE Hardware). I like
the CAN GUN model much better, so I recommend you use that one if you can find it.
FIG 13
14. White Bristleboard - (see FIG 13) In order
to create the white sides, youll need to cover
the body with masks made of bristleboard
when spraying to avoid getting the white paint
everywhere.
15. Graphite Paper - In order to transfer the
tiger template design to your body, youll need
some graphite paper to help with that. I bought
the package seen in FIG 14 from Aaron
Brothers Art Supplies for less than $2.00.
16. Rubbing/Finishing Compound - For a beautiful glossy finish, youll
need rubbing and finishing compounds at the very end of this project to

bring the shine back up on the guitar. The kind
I recommend is 3M Perfect-It ll Rubbing
Compound Fine Cut and 3M Perfect-It ll Swirl
Mark Remover - seen in FIG 15. They contain
no wax or silicone and are very easy to use.
Actually, I have yet to use anything that works
better when buffing a body by hand. Im not
saying there isnt a better product; there may
be. I just havent found it yet.
If you have a hard time finding 3M
Rubbing/Finishing Compounds, try
http://www.carcrazy.net. This is where I
bought my supply. Auto parts stores around me
dont carry it. All they seem to have is Turtle
Wax, which I dont recommend you use. Its not
clear-coat safe.
FIG 14
FIG 15
If you purchased all of the grits of wet/dry

sandpaper that I recommended, you only need
3M Perfect-It ll Swirl Mark Remover. You wont
need the 3M Perfect-It ll Rubbing Compound
Fine Cut.
And thats the list!
One thing Id like to mention is that a lot of the supplies you buy for your
initial project can be used for additional projects.
So, if youre planning to paint more guitars, look to spend a lot less on supplies for your next project(s).
PROJECT M1-TIGER: WHAT TYPE OF PAINT TO USE
There are several types of paint

available in cans these days: lacquer, enamel, acrylic lacquer,
acrylic enamel, urethane,
polyurethane, etc. Kind of confusing
trying to decide which one would
work on a guitar, huh?
Well, pretty much all of them will
work, but probably the best paint to
use would be a lacquer, or acrylic
lacquer. Lacquers dry fast and go
on very easily.
FIG 16
Personally, I like the Krylon brand;

its an acrylic lacquer, comes in lots of different colors, is very easy
to work with, and most importantly, dries very quickly.
I get several emails a week from people whove bought my books wondering why I dont use or recommend nitrocellulose lacquer. Heres why: All
lacquers (lacquer, acrylic lacquer, nitro lacquer) function the same way they go on nice, dry fast, cure slowly. Nitrocellulose is more expensive, has
limited availability in spray cans, and the clear coats yellow over time.
Based on that, Id rather use something thats more readily available,
cheaper, and WONT yellow over time. Thats why I use Krylon.
If you cant find Krylon in your area, or want to use something else like
Duplicolor, by all means, give it a shot. One thing to keep in mind: if you use
another brand other than Krylon, stay with that brand or line of paint throughout your project - dont mix and match brands. You want to do this for compatibility reasons. Even if they both say acrylic lacquer, dont mix them.
I recommend that you stay away from enamel if your paint job is going to
have more than one color in it. Enamels are very difficult to work with due
to delayed drying times and recoating options. For instance, if you miss the
window of opportunity for putting on an additional coat of enamel, youll
have to wait as long as 5 days to recoat. Definitely not ideal.
If you want to use Krylon, I buy my supply from Wal-Mart. Youll pay half the
price at Wal-Mart than you will at ACE, so you may as well save yourself
some $$$$. Unfortunately, you wont find it at LOWEs or HOME DEPOT.
For my M1-Tiger, the Krylon colors I used were:
Krylon
Krylon
Krylon
Krylon
- All Purpose Primer White #1315 (1 can)

- Glossy Black #1601 (1 can)
- Sun Yellow #1806 (1 can)
- Crystal Clear Gloss #1301 (3-4 cans)
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 1: REMOVING OLD PARTS
Once you have your project body, Step 1 involves removing all of the old
parts (if your body came with parts). Before you do that, though, you may
want to take a BEFORE photo, so you can compare it to an AFTER
photo once its done.
The body I purchased for this project came with no parts, so I was able to
jump directly to Step 2.
For the most part, removing old parts from a guitar is pretty straight-forward.
If your body has already been drilled for a Floyd Rose bridge, be aware
that not all of the stud holes for Floyd Rose licensed bridges line up. Just
something to keep in mind if youre buying a new bridge.
If you plan to use all of the parts youre removing once the guitar is painted
and reassembled, you should store the parts in a tupperware container or
a Ziploc bag for safe keeping.
IMPORTANT! If you are planning to buy all new parts for your project guitar, have
ALL of your parts FIRST before beginning the painting process.
You want to assemble the guitar with all of the new parts to make sure everything fits,
lines up, etc. before painting. If any new holes have to be drilled, you want to do that
in the old finish, not your new one. In fact, you want to do very little drilling or filing to
your new finish - thats why its crucial that you assemble the guitar first, get it working
properly, then disassemble, and start your project.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 2: REMOVING THE OLD FINISH
10
For this project, I didnt remove the old finish; I merely scuff-sanded it using
a 3M scouring pad (see Supplies Youll Need). That may or may not be
suitable for your project body, so Ill describe how to remove your old finish
in a sec.
FIG 17
I used a 3M scouring pad to
dull the entire finish. This is
when you merely remove the
shine from the existing finish
using a 3M scouring pad and
paint right over top of that.
The main drawback to doing
this is that theres always a
chance that the finish underneath could crack... for whatever reason. If that happens,
the finish you put over top
Ive used this black Les Paul body to show you what
scuff-sanding does to the finish. The light color on my
will crack, too - and will be
strat body did not adequately show how the finish gets
ruined.
dulled.
Normally, I recommend removing a guitars finish down to the sealer and
starting your paint work from there. This removes any and all flaws and
imperfections from the body and also eliminates any chance that the paint
you put over top will not be compatible with the paint underneath.
However, I know that this body had been painted with a catalyzed urethane, and it was brand new when I bought it; so, although theres always
a chance that the finish could crack, the likelihood that it would is minute.
So, to scuff-sand the finish, I used a 3M scouring pad - fine grit. I went over the
entire body using the pad just like sandpaper - for the most part, rubbing in
straight lines. The benefit to the pad is that it doesnt remove any finish/paint; it
just scuffs and dulls it. (Still, I wore my mask when doing this step.)
You dont have to apply a lot of pressure when doing this. You only have to
remove the shine, not the paint. I know this might seem like the easiest
way to prep a body - and it is; but its not necessarily the way youre going
to be able to prep ALL of your bodies. In fact, most times, I recommend
IMPORTANT! Urethane finishes utilize a catalyst (a hardener added to the clear
coats) that speeds up the curing time. Many guitar companies have gone to urethane
finishes rather than using lacquers because their guitars can be painted and shipped
within a couple of weeks, whereas painting with lacquers requires a curing time of at
least 2-6 months. Even then, the finish is not completely cured. Normally, it takes lacquers up to a year to completely cure and harden.
11

that you sand a finish down to the sealer coat. If you cant do that, then
sand down to bare wood. Youll reseal the body later.
Whats a sealer coat, you ask? Its a clear layer that seals/fills the grain of
the wood so the body feels smooth before painting.
There are two ways to strip a body of its finish - by using paint stripper or by
using sandpaper, sanding sponges, and/or an electric sander. Personally, I prefer sanding the finish off rather than using paint remover, so thats the method
Ill recommend. Using paint stripper is very messy (moreso than sanding); its
toxic stuff and will burn your skin if you accidently get it on you.
To strip your project guitar, have a good, clean, flat surface to work on. Lay
the guitar body on top of the styrofoam (or a big towel) to protect the body
from banging against the surface. When using an electric sander for the
top and bottom, begin with regular 120-grit sandpaper. Also, youll definitely
want to be wearing your face mask when sanding. The face mask will protect you from breathing in all of the old paint particles.
FIG 18 shows the typical layers on a guitar body. In almost all cases, a
professional guitar is finished with clear coating. Underneath the clear coating lies the paint; underneath the paint lies primer (in some cases); underneath the primer lies sanding sealer or some other sealer-type substance
that fills the grain of the wood.
As you begin to sand through
the clear coat and the paint, I
would suggest that you move
onto another area and do the
same, removing just the clear
coating and the paint.
FIG 18
If you can carefully keep the

sanding sealer thats already on
the body, this will save you a
considerable amount of time
later, as it will eliminate the step
where youll have to apply sanding sealer to seal the body and get rid of the grain of the wood.
If you dont feel confident that you can keep the sealer thats already there, then
dont worry about it - simply sand down to the bare wood on the entire body.
When sanding, theres no right way or wrong way to sand the finish off a
guitar; however, when using an electric sander, be very careful - theyre
powerful and can change angles of wood if youre not holding them at a
12
perfect horizontal position.

To remove the finish from the sides, youll have to do this by hand. This will
require a lot of elbow grease, so when you start to get tired, definitely take
a break. Theres no real hurry to get the finish off the body; just do as good
a job as you possibly can.
Remember, during this step, the
FIG 19
better the job you do, the better
the final outcome will be for
your finished guitar.
This step could take you anywhere from 2-3 hours.
Once sanding is done and
youve removed all of the old
paint, go back over the entire
body with a less-course grit of
sandpaper - lets say a 320-grit
- and just make it feel smoother
to the touch.
When youre satisfied with your
sanding job, well done! This
was a difficult step.
Heres a body I bought on eBay for $20. It was routed

for one humbucker which is why I bought it. The finish
was HORRENDOUS. It looked like someone brushed
on the clear coats.
FIG 20
Its now on to Step 3.
Heres the same body a couple hours later. Once the

Bondo gets sanded down, its ready for paint!
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 3: FILLING ANY HOLES
13
Its almost inevitable that when you buy an old guitar or an old guitar body,
youre going to get something with a few dings in it.
The body I used for this project was brand new and pretty much perfect, so
I didnt need to do any Bondo
FIG 21
work at all on it.
If youre looking at a body that
needs some fixing, I recommend this stuff over Plastic
Wood for filling holes and dings.
Bondo goes on nicely, sands
beautifully, and I think its much
easier to use than Plastic Wood.
To start, remove the lid from the
Bondo tube and, with either your
I didnt have to apply any Bondo to my project body,
finger or a plastic scraper, simso Ive included this photo for you to see it in action.
ply press it into the ding/hole. If
youre using a scraper, after pressing it down firmly into the hole, simply
slide the scraper across the body and over the Bondo to remove any
excess. Work on one part of the body at a time and allow the substance to
dry completely before proceeding. For instance, do all of the dings on the
top of the body first, then the sides, followed by the back. Follow the directions on the Bondo container for time you should allow for drying. (Most likely, youll have to wait 1 - 2 hours per section - top, sides, back - before
sanding).
Your goal is to try to fill the ding/hole as best as you can. It doesnt matter
whether its absolutely perfect; once the Bondo has dried, youre going to
block sand it to try to level, or even it out, so that it blends in with the rest
of the body.
Go slowly and pay careful attention to the height of the Bondo; you dont
want a hump where you placed the substance. You want to remove any
humps so that, as you rub your hand across the body, the Bondo has filled
the dings/holes and the area has been leveled.
If you happen to go too deep as you block sand and accidently remove all
of the Bondo from the hole, simply repeat the step again - fill in the ding,
allow it to dry, and then block sand it flat.
Take your time, and dont settle for a sloppy job!
When youre done, were ready to move on to Step 4.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 4: MASKING THE NECK CAVITY
14
Step 4 involves masking off the neck cavity. Its important that you do this
to prevent the sanding sealer and paint from getting into this area. When
the job is complete, you want your neck to sit in its cavity as well as it did
before you painted.
Keeping the area masked ensures that the area will be free of sealer and
paint.
Using your 3M blue or green masking tape, simply lay down strips of tape,
overlapping each strip slightly (see FIG 22). I also run a piece up the side
of the pocket - once again, to ensure that the neck will fit back in without a
problem.
Once the cavity has been completely
masked off, take your X-Acto knife and
cut the masking tape just inside the
neck cavity. Cutting slightly inside the
neck cavity will make it less likely that
youll pull up the finish as you remove
the tape.
Once the tape has been laid and cut, its
on to Step 5.
FIG 22
15
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 5: CREATING YOUR BODY MASKS

One of the cool things about this
design is the feathered white edges
on the sides. To accomplish this
look, youre going to have to make
some masks made out of bristleboard to cover the front and back.
Using the bristleboard rather than
masking it with tape will give you
those feathered edges.
I used a piece of bristleboard 48 X
36; by placing the body as far to
the edge as possible, I was able to
make both masks using just one
piece of bristleboard.
I didnt do anything special when
tracing my body; I just followed the
shape holding my pencil at a 90degree angle. Doing it this way
rather than angling my pencil in
adds about an extra 1/4 to the
shape, which is good. Once my
shapes were drawn, I cut them out
with scissors.
FIG 23
FIG 24
I was fairly accurate when cutting

out the shapes, but by no means
was I perfect with my cuts. As youll
see, the bristleboard pieces act as
masks to keep paint from getting on
the front and back.
For one of the pieces, I cut a notch
for the neck cavity. I did this so the
bristleboard wouldnt rest on the
wooden stick and create a gap; that
would make it very easy for paint to
get down onto the body.
FIG 25
Later, after your yellow base coat is done, youll place these masks into
place using masking tape. I had you make these masks before you added
your wooden stick and hook so youd be able to get your pencil around the
back without the obstruction.
When youre done making these masks, you can move on to Step 6.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 6: ADDING THE STICK AND HOOK
16
The purpose of adding this stick with the hook to your project guitar body is
so that youre able to hang it as it dries.
The wood also acts as a handle as youll see further in the book. I hold the
body with the stick and turn and flip
it as I paint.
To attach the stick to the body, simply hold the stick in place with one
hand while you pre-drill holes using
a drill with the other hand.
Normally, I put two screws into the
two holes for the neck plate to hold
the wooden stick in place, but this
body didnt have the holes for the
neck plate drilled. To compensate, I
used the hole in the center and
inserted a nut and bolt. I wedged
the stick into a position where it
couldnt move or wiggle.
FIG 26
FIG 27
Most likely, your body wont come

like this, so you can use the holes
that are already there for the neck
plate.
Make sure the screws you use are
long enough so that, when you
hold the body by the stick, it feels
very secure. The last thing you
want is for the screws to give while
youre painting.You want it to feel
nice and secure.
I dont recommend that you use the neck plate screws to hold this stick in
place. As youll see, you paint over the screws when spraying your body.
Obviously, thats not ideal for the screws you plan to use after the guitar is
reassembled.
Once the stick has been securely fastened to the body, its on to Step 7,
Applying the Sealer (if thats necessary).
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 7: APPLYING THE SEALER
17
Applying sealer to a body is most often necessary in order to produce a

factory finish. The sealer acts as a filler and fills the grain of the wood so
that when your body is sanded flat prior to painting, the body will be perfectly smooth and all of the grain will have disappeared.
That is your goal during this step. For this project, I didnt have to do this.
However, theres a chance that you may have to do this, so follow along.
Using your sanding sealer, apply
five thin coats around the entire
body, allowing each coat to dry
before applying the next. I tend to
hold the guitar by the stick and flip
and turn it, covering the entire body
all at once. You should try to do the
same. If youre having a hard time
doing that, simply work on one side
at a time, as in Step 3 when you
applied the Bondo.
If you were able to get sanding
sealer in an aerosol can, your goal
is the same as if you were to have
FIG 28
brushed it on - five thin coats,
For this body, I didnt apply any sealer, so Ive
allowing each coat to dry in
included this photo as reference.
between. (For drying time between
coats, follow the recommendations on the product label.)
Once youve applied your five thin coats and allowed them to adequately
dry (at least 24 hours), its time to get out some 220-grit wet/dry sandpaper.
Using a sanding block, and the paper dry rather than wet, start sanding
back and forth over one side of the body at a time. What youre trying to do
during this step is to smooth out the sealer so that, in the end, your body
will be perfectly smooth and all of the grain will have disappeared.
Using the block will help you to create a flatter, more-perfect sanding job.
You want to remove all of the bumps and humps, so pay careful attention
while sanding.
When youve gotten it to a point where you think it looks pretty good,
youre ready to move on. However, if, after sanding, you can still feel the
grain of the wood, simply apply 2 or 3 more coats as you did earlier and
sand to a flat, smooth finish.
Ready to move on?... Step 8, here we come.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 8: SPRAYING THE PRIMER
18
Normally, I apply primer before putting on my base coat. For this project, I
didnt apply a primer coat because of the existing finish. The body was
already flat, smooth, and in excellent condition for painting, so I jumped
right to my base coat. Most likely, youll be spraying some primer coats.
Primer is good to use because it
allows you to see any flaws that
you mightve missed during the
sealing stage. The primer also acts
like a sealer because it fills any
leftover grain and/or any little dings
or holes that may still be there. It
can be sanded just like the sealer.
Youll see what I mean after youve
applied your first few coats and
theyve dried. Youll be able to see
first-hand whether your sealing job
was an excellent job or just an
okay job. If it appears your sealer
is uneven, sand the primer down
and reapply a few more coats to
help even it out.
FIG 29
Here I am applying primer to a previous project
guitar in an up-down, down-up direction. The
coat prior was applied in a left to right, right to
left direction.
Another benefit to using Krylons

primer is that its very forgiving.
What I mean by that is the primer doesnt really run (unless you hold the
can and spray in one area too long). Thats good whether youre a novice
painter or an experienced one. The paint seems to settle and flatten out
quite nicely.
It also dries very fast. You may find that, after spraying the entire body, its
already close to being dried. Still, you want to give yourself at least 20-30
minutes between coats to allow the primer to completely dry and settle.
So, now that thats out of the way, let me discuss my technique for spray
painting in general because youll be using this technique, or a similar one,
for ALL of your spray painting, not just while using the primer. (This explanation assumes that you have virtually no experience with spray painting. If
you have experience and want to do it your way, then, by all means, go
right ahead.)
The first thing you should know is, like guitar playing, technique is very
important. The better your spraying technique, the better the final results.
Thats not to say that your painting has to be absolutely flawless - it doesnt.
However, you should concentrate on trying to do as good a job as possible,
applying thin coats instead of thick coats at all times... This is A MUST.
19
Spraying thin coats allows the paint to dry faster, and its less likely to run.
When youre ready to start spraying the primer, youre going to be holding
the guitar in one hand while you spray with the other (see FIG 29).
I hold the guitar many different ways while spraying - upside down, right-side
up, sideways, etc. Hold it whichever way is comfortable for you. If you find
that the guitar body is a little heavy for you, try painting the body with the guitar upside down as in FIG 29. This way, the weight of the body is above your
hand rather than below. If this method is still too heavy for you, hang the guitar and spray sections at a time.
As I paint, I like to overlap each coat by about 50%. I start my first pass
across the body, half on the body and half off (see FIG 30). I also like to
start the spray off the body and run the spray past the body (see FIG 30).
Doing this makes for a much cleaner pass across and virtually eliminates
paint spatters (the paint shooting out in big drops). As in FIG 30, I run my
first pass across left to right, followed by the next pass right to left, the next
FIG 30
20
left to right, etc., overlapping each pass by roughly 50%. I zig-zag my way
up the entire body this way, both sides.
For the next coat, I always go in the opposite direction; for example, if I
went left to right, right to left for the
first coat, Ill go up and down, down
FIG 31
and up for the next coat; again,
always overlap each pass by
roughly 50%. I feel doing it this way
helps to even out any inconsistencies in my spraying technique.
When I apply each coat, I usually
do the sides of the guitar body first,
followed by the back, and then the
front. The reason I do this is that if
the paint is coming out of the can
in an inconsistent manner, then itll
be on areas of the guitar that arent
so visible. You can try it this way to
see if its comfortable for you.
When painting the sides, I paint
similarly to the rest of the body; I
start the spray half on the side and
half off the side, and I overlap all of the coats. For painting the bottom of
the guitar, I flip the body upside down and spray two to four passes, overlapping the coats by 50%.
Another important aspect to painting is your tempo. Each pass across the
body is roughly 1 - 1.5 full seconds. I definitely dont zip across the body
spraying on little bits of paint and neither should you. I allow for good coverage, and I always try to maintain a distance of about 10 from the body.
In case youre starting to worry that youre not going to do a good job, let
me let you in on an important fact: when a paint job has some sort of design
on it like this project, youll be putting on roughly 40-50 thin coats of paint. If
youre worried that one bad or uneven paint coat is going to ruin the job,
dont worry about it - it wont!
Alright, now lets discuss the primer coats. Youll be applying thin coats of
primer, allowing each coat to dry completely before applying another. In
between each coat, look for little surface bumps. If you find any, which most
likely, you will, sand them lightly with 400-grit wet/dry sandpaper not using
any water. Your goal is to cover the entire body with solid primer and to
keep the surface of the body relatively smooth. Expect to do roughly 5 coats
21
of primer over the entire body... possibly more.

When the body has been completely covered, give it one final light sanding
with 400-grit wet/dry sandpaper dry to remove any bumps or blemishes.
Congratulations! Your body is now ready for your first coat of color!
By the way, if youd like to watch me applying some paint coats, you can
access my video clips page here http://www.paintyourownguitar.com/v5i9d0.html
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 9: SPRAYING YOUR BASE COAT
22
Before we spray our first coat of paint, blow into the body cavities to
remove any debris that may still be in there. Take a damp paper towel and
wipe off the entire guitar body, removing any dust or debris that might still
be on there as well. When the bodys dried, were ready to go.
Since writing my first book, Ive received several emails from people wondering why I dont recommend the use of a tack cloth to try to remove
excess dust and debris from the bodys surface prior to painting. The reason is, I paint outside and in my garage... neither area is dust-free. So, no
matter how meticulous I am with the tack cloth, within seconds, there will
be more stuff on the bodys surface. So, to me, its an added expense with
no real benefit for me. If you spray in a relatively dust-free environment,
you may want to give a tack cloth a shot. Its tacky surface helps to remove
any debris that may be on the body.
For this guitar body, our first coat of paint is going to be Krylon Sun Yellow.
As a reminder, here are the paints that I used for this body:
Krylon
Krylon
Krylon
Krylon
- All Purpose Primer White #1315 (1 can)

- Glossy Black #1601 (1 can)
- Sun Yellow #1806 (1 can)
- Crystal Clear Gloss #1301 (3-4 cans)
Okay, as Ive mentioned several times already, youll be applying THIN

coats of paint rather than trying to cover the entire guitar in one application.
Dont expect your guitar to be a solid yellow until at least your third coat.
Remember - putting your paint on
in thin coats allows it to dry faster
with less runs, making it easier for
masking off the tiger-stripe design.
Now that youve already sprayed
the primer, you probably have a
better feel for how to spray the
sides and the bottom of the guitar.
As Ive said, I like to do all of the
sides and bottom first, followed by
the back, then the front. If youre
doing it this way, continue with that
order or whatever has been working for you.
FIG 32
Continue with the same painting

technique I described in the last chapter; go left to right, followed by right to
left, etc., zig-zagging up the entire body this way, overlapping each pass by
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 9: SPRAYING YOUR BASE COAT
23
roughly 50%. Your next coat should be up and down, down and up, etc.,
covering the entire sides, front, and back of the body this way; again,
always try to overlap each pass by roughly 50%.
Allow each coat to dry for at least an hour before applying the next coat.
(Check your container for exact time they recommend.) You wont have to
sand between coats unless you find a bad run. (see notes below on how to
deal with a run.)
When youve covered the entire body with a nice, solid yellow color, look it
over for any obvious flaws or runs and handle it with the method Ive laid
out below. Make sure that your color is solid and that you cant see any
white primer.
After youve done any sanding of runs or other touch-ups, allow the body
to dry for at least three days before proceeding to the next step. This will
give the paint ample time to dry and settle.
DEALING WITH RUNS: All runs should be removed as best as possible before
masking your body and applying additional paint. If you find a run that looks like it may
be a problem when you mask, start by taking a small piece of 400-grit wet/dry sandpaper with no water and, with a delicate touch, try to remove as much of it as you can,
rubbing in a circular motion with light pressure. Be very careful not to go down to primer
or wood. Proceed with caution, as the sign would say. It doesnt have to be absolutely
perfect; just try to level it out as best as you can.
As long as youve taken out the meat of the run, youll be okay to move on. Also, dont
worry that the paint will be dull in that area. That will be undetectable once we spray our
clear coats.
PAINTING OUTDOORS: If you live in an area of the country where you get rain
and snow, painting outdoors will be difficult. You DO NOT want to be painting when its
raining or drizzling. Water hitting the body while you paint will cause air bubbles and
imperfections, which may be difficult to fix. If youre scheduled to paint on a day when the
weather is bad, dont paint that day. Wait as long as you have to in order for it to be clear
and dry.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 10: APPLYING YOUR MASKS
24
Now that weve let the yellow sit for a few days, were ready to proceed
with spraying the sides white. Time to pull out your bristleboard masks!
As you can see in the photos, I
use 3M masking tape folded over,
and I place pieces roughly 5
apart around the entire body. I
place it roughly 1 in from the
edge. I do this so that the bristleboard is firmly in place, but not so
tight to the edge that it creates a
hard line of paint; you want a
feathered look to it.
FIG 33
Begin by placing your tape around

one side of the body - either the
front or the back, its up to you.
Remember that the mask that has
the cut out for the neck goes on
the front.
Once one side is taped and the
mask is in place, flip the body
over and do the other side.
Try to position the masks so that
they are perfectly positioned with
the same amount of overhang
around the entire body.
When both masks are in position,
place some tape on top of the
mask and tape it down to the
wooden stick so that no paint can
get underneath and ruin the top
(see FIG 35).
Excellent! Youre ready to spray
your sides white.
By the way - you would use this
same technique for other sunburst
finishes!
FIG 34
FIG 35
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 11: SPRAYING THE SIDES

Were now at the hardest part of this
job. You really only have one shot at it,
so Im going to explain the best way to
do this step and a few things to watch
out for.
First off, I used a Preval Spray Gun to
spray the sides. After doing it, I found
no benefit to using this gun. Shortly
after doing this body, I did a small
tiger-striped Epiphone Les Paul for my
son using just a can of Krylon spray
paint, and it worked perfectly. So, youll
be fine to use a can of spray paint to
do the sides... you dont need to use a
Preval Spray Gun.
25
FIG 36
FIG 37
When spraying the sides, you should

spray parallel to the body for most of it,
and you should be at least 12 away
from body. (There were times when I
was further than 15 away.) In the photos, Im closer than 12, but thats
because the Preval Gun doesnt have
the same type of spray pattern as an
aerosol can does.
Also, when spraying the sides, there
are two areas where youll need to pay
extra special attention: the arm contour
and the body contour.
I didnt use tape in those areas to hold
the masking tight to the body; rather, I
just let the masks sit flat, which left
open gaps. I was very careful not to
spray parallel in those areas. Had I
done so, I wouldve filled those entire
areas with white paint. To compensate,
I adjusted where I was holding my
spray gun, and I used the masking as
sort of a shield to keep the white paint
from spreading down further into those
areas.
FIG 38
26
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 11: SPRAYING THE SIDES

In FIG 36 (previous page), I am actually spraying behind the body and using
the mask as a shield to lessen the
amount of paint hitting the sides. Youll
probably want to do the same sort of
thing on your body.
FIG 39
As you can see in FIG 38, although the

white drapes a little further into the
body than elsewhere (as indicated by
the arrow), it wouldve been much
worse had I not compensated by
adjusting where I was holding my
spray gun.
As for my spraying technique, I used
long passes along the sides and
applied the paint in thin coats. I dont
know that I ever took a break and put
the guitar down; I just continued to
spray the sides, flipping the body and
working over other sections once I was
satisfied with what I was working on.
FIG 40
Once again, this is the most crucial

portion of this paint job, so dont rush
doing the sides. Also, dont be afraid to
move your spray can in close, then further away - to achieve the right feathered look on the edges, this is exactly
what I did. In effect, what youre sort of doing is adjusting the amount of
paint thats coming out of the gun. When you hold your spray can further
away, the paint is mistier, which helps to soften the edges.
When youve gotten your edges to where you think they look good, take a
break, put down your spray can, and have a look. But dont remove the
masks just yet; just lift up a section of one and have a peak to see what it
looks like. If youre satisfied with the look, let the guitar hang for an hour
before removing the masks and tape. If you want to do a little more, press
the mask back into place and continue.
When youre done, pat yourself on the back - that was challenging!
Give yourself three days to let the paint dry before moving on to Step 12.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 12: MASKING THE ENTIRE BODY

Before transferring the tiger-striped
design to the body, you have to
mask the entire body.
Using your blue 2 3M masking
tape, start at the top edge of your
body and lay a strip of tape, as Ive
done in FIG 41.
After your first piece of tape has
been laid, follow that piece with
another and overlap your first
piece by about 1/4.
FIG 41
Continue laying down the tape this

way, overlapping each piece by
about 1/4 until the top of the body
has been completely covered.
Once the top is covered, continue
with this same method and cover
the back as well. The entire body
has to be covered so that you dont
get any overspray on areas that
arent supposed to be painted.
Once the top and back were completely covered, I went back and
trimmed all of the excess tape off
of it so that, when I lay the masking down on the sides, I dont have
this big ball of messy tape getting
in the way when it comes time to
cut out the design (see FIG 42).
I left masking the sides until last. I
dont know if this is better than
doing the sides first. I know I prefer separating the masking of the
top and bottom, though. It makes
for a cleaner masking job. After
youve done a few project guitars,
you may find you prefer one way
of masking more than another.
FIG 42
FIG 43
FIG 44
One thing I recommend you do is NOT stretch the masking tape when
27
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 12: MASKING THE ENTIRE BODY
28
placing it on the sides - especially in the valleys. If you stretch the tape, it
will eventually lift from the tension. The best way to do these areas is to
simply let the tape fall into place using one hand to guide it while the other
hand presses it firmly down. Without the added tension, its not likely itll lift
doing it this way.
Once your body is entirely masked, go over the body and make sure that
all of the tape is down firmly and that there are no gaps.
When youre finished, were ready to move on to Step 13.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 13: PIECING TOGETHER THE DESIGN

When I wrote my first book, I created some templates that could be
used for other projects for the buyers of that book. One of the templates I created was the M1-Tiger
design.
29
FIG 45
Actually, the original template was

a loose replica of the M1-Tiger.
However, while finishing this book,
I put together a very accurate
replica template of the M1-Tiger
design so you could use that for this project. Simply download it from the
templates page - http://www.paintyourownguitar.com/t5e8mp2.html
There are a couple of ways to take
the template and piece it together.
If you have an image-editing program such as Photoshop or
Photoshop Elements, you could
open up each image (there are
two images per folder - 11X17
each), and simply use Photoshop
to print sections of the template at
a time. Thats what I did.
FIG 46
I printed four letter-sized pages,

each containing a section of the
design. I used the horizontal and
vertical guide lines and a light box
to help me line up the design.
Once it was lined up, I taped it
together using Scotch tape. As you
can see in FIG 45, I did trim the
pieces before taping them together.
If you dont have a light box, you
FIG 47
could use a window in your home.
To start, tape up one piece on a
window. Follow that up with another piece, using the guides to help you
position it correctly. Follow that up with the third, then the fourth piece.
If you dont have an image-editing program, your best bet is to copy the two
images within the template folder onto a Zip disk or CD and take it to any
copy center. The pages are tabloid-sized (11X17), so have them print each
of the pages for you. From there, simply use the guide lines to line up the
two pages and then tape them together with some Scotch tape.
Once thats done, youre ready to move on to Step 14.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 14: TRANSFERRING THE DESIGN

With your template all taped
together, go ahead and trim off
some of the excess so its easier
to position correctly on the body.
When its trimmed, start by using
the center line on the template to
help you to line it up with the center of your body. If it helps you,
you could use a ruler to draw a
center line on top of the masking
tape... or, you could just use your
eye to do this.
FIG 48
Once you feel youve got it in the

right position, take some masking
tape and put a couple of pieces to
hold it in place.
With your template now in position, take some of your graphite
paper and slip it under the template so it sits between the template and the masked body. Make
sure that the graphite side (shiny
side) is down. Test to make sure
its positioned correctly by just
drawing a small line with your
pencil (see FIG 50). Lift up the
graphite paper and peak underneath to make sure you see the
line transferred to the masking. If
alls good, proceed by tracing all
of the lines on the template with
your pencil.
FIG 49
FIG 50
Dont remove the template until

youre sure all of the lines have
been traced/transferred.
Once your design is complete,
you can remove the template.
Youre now ready for Step 15.
FIG 51
30
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 15: CUTTING OUT THE DESIGN
31
Now that your tiger-striped design

has been drawn onto the masking,
youre ready to cut out the portions thatll be sprayed black.
To start, make sure you have a
new blade in your X-Acto knife so
your cuts will be nice and crisp.
One thing youll have to keep in
mind - as you cut on an area of
masking thats overlapped, youll
have to press a little harder.
When cutting the masking, I try to
cut just hard enough to go through
the masking. When I come to an
area where the masking is overlapped, I do try to press a little
harder. Sometimes, I still dont
press quite hard enough, as Ive
done in FIG 52. When that happens, I just go back over the
remaining masking with my knife
and cut just hard enough to go
through the masking.
FIG 52
FIG 53
I then use my knifes blade to lift

the piece that needs to be
removed, as Im doing in FIG 53.
Try to cut only as deep as is necessary. The reason is, you could
loosen some of the paint thats
already down with a deep cut, and
it could pop off. So, you want to try
to avoid that as best you can.
FIG 54
When youve cut all of the lines
and removed the parts that need
to be sprayed black, your body should look something like the one in FIG
54, although this one has not been completed.
Once again, take your time with this step. The more precisely you cut your
lines, the more accurate your design will be. When youve completed all of
the cutting, I want you to do one more thing: Pay attention to the masking
thats still on the body. Look to make sure that none of it is lifting off in any
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 15: CUTTING OUT THE DESIGN
32
way. You want to eliminate any and all bleeding underneath the masking
tape, so go over all of the masking by simply pressing down on it to ensure
a very good bond. Doing this ensures that no paint can get under the
masking and ruin your prefect lines.
When youve completed this step, youre ready to move on to Step 16.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 16: SPRAYING THE TIGER STRIPES
33
By this point, youve probably got the applying thin coats down.
So, just continue to do that when applying your black.
And dont forget...
THIN COATS! THIN COATS! THIN COATS!
Heres why: paint in an aerosol
can is very thin (very watery) so
that it can spray nicely without
clogging the nozzle. Apply too
much paint per coat and the paint
WILL find gaps in the tape and
seep under...or run - neither of
which you want.
After 3-4 thin coats of paint, your
stripes should be a nice, solid
black. If theyre not, simply spray
additional coats until your black is
solid.
FIG 55
FIG 25
Allow at least an hour between

each coat before applying another
one.
After a full 24 hours, youll be
ready to remove the masking, so
on to Step 17 we go.
Heres the body after one thin coat of black. Dont

be in a rush when applying these coats. Thin coats
are always best. I applied three more thin coats,
which gave me a nice, solid black.
34
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 17: REMOVING THE MASKING
I let the body sit for a full 24 hours before I tried to remove the masking.
The paint needs to be adequately dry in order for the masking to come off
without any problems. If you were to remove the masking after an hour or
so, youd have problems. Even after 12 hours, the paint is still soft and,
most likely, when removing the
FIG 56
masking, youd lift some paint off.
When you do try to remove the
masking, if you find that the paint
on the body is pulling up with the
tape, just let the body sit for a few
more hours. Try it again in three
hours to see whether theres any
difference. Wait as long you have
to in order for the tape to come off
without pulling up any paint. Dont
worry about tape residue. The 3M
tape will not leave a residue on
the body - up to 14 days.
FIG 57
To begin removing the masking

tape on the top of the body, I
always use the edge of the X-Acto
blade to help me lift the tape as
Ive done in FIG 57.
Once lifted, I use my fingers to
hold the tape and gently pull it
back (see FIG 56), keeping it as parallel to the body as possible and
pulling slowly back.
Do not be in a rush to remove the tape - it could mean the difference
between nice crisp lines, and horrible, messy lines. Pull back slowly. Never
pull fast.
On my video clips page, I demonstrate how I remove the masking. If youre
interested in watching it, go to:
http://www.paintyourownguitar.com/v5i9d0.html
If, after all of the tape has been removed from the top, you notice that youll
need to touch up a couple of the lines, leave the masking tape on the sides
and back until all touch-ups on the top have been done.
For touching up, youll need a small paint brush and a steady hand. I didnt
mention the paint brush earlier as one of the supplies youll need because
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 17: REMOVING THE MASKING
35
you may not have to do any touch-ups at all.

If some are necessary, then begin by spraying some black paint into the lid
of the can and use that as your touch-up paint.
Dip your brush into the lid and take
little drops of paint at a time.
Proceed by filling in any small
areas that may need a touch-up.
When youre done with all of the
touch-ups, remove the rest of the
masking from the body.
There you have it - an M1-Tiger!
Now, all you have to do is clear
coat it!
On to Step 18 we go!
FIG 58
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 18: SPRAYING THE CLEAR COATS
36
As were closing in on the end of our project, hopefully youre happy with
what youve accomplished thus far. The good news is, this step is probably
the easiest of all of the steps.
All youll be doing for this
step is applying clear
coats - several coats... 25
thin coats to be exact. You
may be wondering, why
so many? Well, if you look
at your body, youll notice
that the black paint sits
higher than the yellow
base coat. To get rid of
that ridge, we need to
build up the clear coats so
that, when we sand the
body back down flat, the
ridge disappears.
FIG 59
Although it may sound complicated, its not. Once youve completed the guitar, youll understand just how important the 25 thin coats of clear actually
are.
Before you begin spraying
the clear, have a look at
the body to make sure
there are no bits of dust
or debris on the surface.
If you find anything, carefully remove it so that it
doesnt get trapped
underneath the clear.
Once you start spraying
on the clear, anything
thats on the body that
didnt get removed will
always be there.
FIG 60
Heres the body after 25 thin coats of clear. It has the standard
orange peel look. However, Step 21 and 22 will remove that
and give me a nice, flat, glossy finish.
In fact, before spraying

each coat of clear, always
inspect the body and remove any bits of debris that mayve settled on the
finish - that includes water, fingerprints, grease, etc.
As you begin spraying, I want you to make your first 4 coats dust coats.
What are dust coats, you ask? Dust coats are exactly that - a dusting.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 18: SPRAYING THE CLEAR COATS
37
What dust coats do is allow the clear to drop lightly onto the body and help
to lock in the colors. Lacquers actually loosen the coats that were applied
previously, causing the new coat to bind with the old ones. What can happen if you apply too much clear is that the colors could actually run.
Obviously, you dont want that. So, applying dust coats for your first four
coats are very beneficial. Once youve applied the dust coats, you can then
go ahead and apply a little heavier coat. It should still be a thin coat, but itll
be heavier than a dust coat.
To see me spraying a dust coat, check out my video clips page http://www.paintyourownguitar.com/v5i9d0.html
Once youve completed the dust coats, follow the same technique you
used earlier when spraying the primer and color coats. Begin by holding
the guitar in one hand while you spray with the other (see FIG 59).
Run your first pass across left to right, followed by the next pass right to
left, the next left to right, etc., overlapping each pass by roughly 50%. Zigzag your way up the entire body and over the entire guitar.
For the next coat, go in the opposite direction; up and down, down and up,
etc., again, always overlapping each pass by roughly 50%.
Allow ample time between each coat for proper drying. For these clear
coats, I usually wait 30 minutes between each coat - not a full hour.
When youve finished applying the 25 coats of clear (which should take you
a few days to do), youll probably notice that the finish has an orange peel
look/texture to it, like the guitar in FIG 60. Dont worry about that - thats not
how the guitar will look when youre done.
Also, dont be concerned with any coats that have clear overspray or that
dont have a consistent look to them. All of that will get fixed during Step 21,
eliminates the orange peel look and gets rid of all irregularities in the paint.
In case youre wondering what happens if you miss a bunch of days in
between spraying your clear coats, the answer is - nothing. Just make sure
that you inspect the body before proceeding to make sure than any dust
that mayve settled on it is removed. Otherwise, that dust is there to stay.
Finished your clear coats? Its time to move on to Step 19.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 19: LETTING THE PAINT SETTLE
38
Before you begin with the all-important step of wetsanding the clear coats,
youre going to have to do something even more important than that youre going to have to let your body sit for two months without doing anything to it.
I know, I know - I realize that youre anxious to get it done. But, heres what
you need to know: Lacquer takes time to settle and sink into the wood.
Although it dries really quickly, it takes time for it to settle and harden properly.
If you were to start with
the wetsanding right
away, in a matter of a
few weeks, you
wouldve noticed that
the perfect sanding and
buffing job you had
done is no longer perfect - thats because the
paint was still settling.
As much as I know its
going to drive you crazy
not being able to finish
the body, try to remain
strong and trust what Im
telling you. Ive ruined
several guitars simply
because I was not willing to be patient and let
the paint settle.
FIG 61
Here they are - one for Daddy and one for son. We patiently
wait for our two months to be up so we can move forward. Soon
enough, well be stringing them up and playing George Lynchs
Mr. Scary in harmony! HA!
If you can remain strong

and wait out the two months, your finish will be that much better because
of it. Ideally, you should let your body sit for at least six months. I know that
thats asking A LOT, so...
When youve passed the 2-month waiting period, move on to Step 20.
If you think youre going to want to paint more guitars, now would be a perfect time to start planning and working on your next project guitar.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 20: REMOVING THE STICK
39
Now that youve applied all of your coats of clear and let the paint settle,
you wont need to hang the body anymore, so its time to remove the stick.
If you look at the stick where it meets the body, you may notice that with
the amount of paint that youve applied, the stick is starting to blend in with
the body. Rather than have you try to yank the stick off and risk pulling off
some of the finish, I want you to score (cut finely) the corners where the
stick and body meet using your X-Acto knife, as Im doing in FIG 62.
Go over it a few times so that, when you remove the screws and stick, it
separates easily from the body.
If you find that youre
unable to do any
work on your body
for an extended period of time, I suggest
that you put the stick
back on and hang
the body. Dont rest it
against anything
when youre not
working on it.
FIG 62
This is just a precaution so that nothing

happens to the finish
while youre taking a
break.
The finish is still soft enough that leaving the body on a textured surface
can leave an imprint of the textured surface embedded in the finish, so be
aware of that.
When youre finished, lets move on to Step 21.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 21: WETSANDING THE CLEAR COATS
40
Just when you thought that spraying the clear coats was going to be crucial to the success of your paint job, along comes Step 21!
Yup - This is THE step that most novices have the hardest time understanding... that includes me when I first started painting guitars.
During this step, we are going to
sand the body back down to a
very dull, flat finish, eliminating all
bumps and ridges.
You may think that youre ruining
your paint job by doing this; actually, nothing could be further from
the truth!
FIG 63
If you do an excellent job with this

step, and with all of the prior steps, your body will end up having that factory guitar finish youve been waiting for... and the one I promised you!
When youre ready to begin, start by getting out your 320-grit wet sandpaper - the one with the green back. Also, make sure you have a dish of
clean water close by.
FIG 64
Using one of your sanding blocks
with a piece of the 320-grit sandpaper wrapped around it, like the
one in FIG 63, place some water
on your body and begin by sanding the finish in a circular motion.
Your objective is to sand down the
entire guitar and eliminate the
ridge created by the black paint.
As you sand, the surface should
resemble that of the surface in
FIG 64. (Try to avoid getting water
in the holes that hold the studs for the bridge.)
Work in small sections at a time. Every few minutes, stop and remove the
excess water and inspect the surface. Youll probably notice areas of the
finish that are still shiny (probably on the yellow base coat), while most of it
will appear dull. Your goal is to eliminate all shiny spots; these are the
areas that are sitting lower than the rest of the paint. As you sand, youre
removing excess clear coating to help even out the finish. This is why it
was important that you apply 25 coats of clear; its unlikely that youll sand
through to the paint with this many coats of clear on the body.
41
When you wipe the excess water from the surface, youll probably also
notice that the surface is rather scratched. Again, dont panic - as you
move up in numbers with your wetsanding - 320, 400, 600, 1200, 1500 this will eliminate most, if not all, of the scratches.
Continue doing small sections at a
time until the guitar has been
completely evened out and all
shiny spots have disappeared.
FIG 65
The back wont be nearly as much

work because youll have no ridge
of paint that needs to be evened
out like the top has/had, unless
you did the same pattern on the
back.
Be very careful when sanding on
the edges of the body. In fact, I recommend you dont sand them with anything heavier than the 600-grit. Its extremely easy to go through to the
paint and primer and right to the wood when sanding on the edges.
Because its an edge, paint just doesnt get built up the way it does on
other parts of the body.
When youve completed the 320-grit wet-sanding, move to the 400-grit
sandpaper, and wetsand the entire body with this grit. What youre trying to
do at this point is eliminate surface scratches and get as close to a perfectly flat surface as you can. Also,
continue to do this wetsanding
with water on the body. You can
either dip your block into your
water dish, or you can scoop
water with your hand and transfer
it to the body that way.
When youve completed the body
with the 400-grit, move to the 600grit and do the same thing again.
Once youve gone over the entire
FIG 66
body with the 600-grit, I recommend following that up with an
even finer grit to help reduce surface scratches. Using a 1200-grit and
1500-grit after the 600-grit will produce a nice, smooth surface with a dull
shine to it. When buffed, youll have a virtually scratch-free factory finish.
Once again, take your time with this - look to spend a good 2-3 hours
42
doing the wetsanding. Dont work in one area too long with any of the grits;
rather, move about the whole top
of the guitar in small sections.
Placing some water onto the surface as you sand will definitely
help you to see how good a sanding job youre doing.
When youve completed the wetsanding process, youre ready to
move on. Thankfully, theres no
two-month wait to move on to the
next step!
FIG 67
To watch some video clips of me wetsanding this body, visit my video

page: http://www.paintyourownguitar.com/v5i9d0.html
IMPORTANT POINT: When you begin wetsanding, if you find that the
320-grit is not evening out the paint as well as you want it to, you can
switch to a 220-grit, but be very careful; this WILL even out the paint
very quickly. However, itll also be easier to go through the clear to the
paint, so adjust the pressure as you use the 220-grit - you wont have to
press nearly as hard as with the 320-grit. Avoid using 220-grit on the
edges of the body - use it only on the top (and the back, if you continued the pattern on the back).
IMPORTANT POINT: Pay very close attention as youre doing this final
sanding. If you see color starting to appear on your sandpaper at any
time, stop immediately. Dry your guitar body off using some 100% cotton. When its completely dried, youll have to put more coats of clear
back on the body. Look to put another 5 - 8 coats on, just to be safe.
When the additional clear coats having been applied, wait at least two
weeks before resuming with the wetsanding.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 22: BUFFING THE CLEAR COATS
43
The beauty of this step is that, if you did an excellent job with all of the previous steps, this one will be a piece of cake!
During this step, were going to bring back the shine to our body by handbuffing it using the 3M Perfect-It ll Rubbing Compound Fine Cut. However,
during the wetsanding step, if you used a 1500-grit or higher to finish your
wetsanding, you can use 3Ms Perfect-It ll Finishing Compound (Swirl
Remover) and bypass the 3Ms Perfect-It ll Rubbing Compound (Fine Cut).
Youre going to buff the body in a similar fashion as wetsanding. Youre
going to work in small sections at a time, always trying to buff in a circular
motion. As the body starts to shine, I then start to work in straighter lines.
I always seem to start with the top of the guitar when buffing - probably
because Im anxious to see that shine come to life!
To start, apply some of the 3M Rubbing Compound or Swirl Remover onto
the body and, using some of the 100% cotton, begin rubbing in a circular
motion. Youll find that the harder you rub, the deeper the shine youll get.
Again, dont stay in one area too
long; as one area starts to shine,
move to another area and work
that one up, too.
Expect your hand to get tired, so
take as many breaks as possible. Again, theres no rush to get
this done. (Or is there?) If you
dont finish all of the buffing in
one day, put it aside until the
next day. Once again, attach
your stick and hang it again to
prevent anything happening to
the finish.
FIG 68
As you buff, the shine really starts to come out. Youll
still be able to see surface scratches, but those will
eventually disappear the longer you buff the area.
When working on the back, hold the body upright with one hand while you
buff with the other. You can also hold it in your lap as you buff; just dont rest
the top on anything, as youre likely to scuff up the buffing you just completed.
Same goes for the sides, too - hold the body firmly with one hand while
you buff with the other. If you wish, you can hold it on a firm surface as you
buff. Just pay attention to what youre resting it on - you do not want to
scuff up or damage areas that have already been buffed.
Also, when youre buffing the sides, its difficult to work in a circular motion,
so I tend to go lengthwise along the side in strokes of roughly 3 - 5.
44
Expect this step to take at least

1-3 hours. If it takes longer, dont
worry - its definitely going to be
worth it!
When youve buffed up the shine
to a point where you dont think it
could get any shinier (like the one
in FIG 70), congratulations on
completing your first professional
guitar paint job!
Give yourself a pat on the back
for a job well done!
You see?... That wasnt so difficult, now, was it?
FIG 69
With just a little bit of effort, I got part of this body
shining like crazy. You can expect the same results!
FIG 70
If youre interested in seeing

some video clips of me buffing
this body as well as other various
video clips, visit my video clips
page - http://www.paintyourownguitar.com/v5i9d0.html
It took me about 30 minutes to do the entire top and

sides. Not too bad, huh?
IMPORTANT POINT: Although you now have a beautiful finish on your

body, youre going to have to pay extra careful attention to where you
rest the body over the next few months after its all back together. As I
mentioned earlier, lacquers take time to cure, and although youve waited at least two months to wetsand and buff, some experts have told me
that lacquer can take as long as six months to a year to completely cure.
So, I would stress that you should not rest your guitar in a guitar stand
for a few months. If you do, you will notice that the weight of the body
pushing down on the foam holders will cause indents in your finish.
Certain rubbers and plastics can also SOFTEN a lacquered finish.
Personally, I just rest the body on the strap holder on the floor and rest
the neck against a wall or bookshelf... but not in a stand... at least, not
for the first six months.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: BREAKDOWN OF COSTS

Project M1-Tiger - All parts were purchased on eBay
Strat Body/Plate Covers - $40
Neck - $75
Pot/Knobs/Input Jack - $15
GFS Pickup - $45
Tuning Pegs - $20
Floyd Rose Bridge - $120
Strap Locks - $12
---------TOTAL $327
FIG 71
45
PROJECT M1-TIGER: FINAL PHOTOS
46
PROJECT M1-TIGER: NECK MODIFICATION: INTRODUCTION
47
If youre like me and scour the Necks and Kramer sections on eBay looking for a Kramer or Kramer-style neck with a banana headstock, you probably already know that they are hard to come by.
When you do come across one, youve also probably noticed that there are
always several bids on them. Thats because they are... HARD TO COME BY!
Of course, you could always place a bid and hope that you get it; chances are,
though, youre not going to get it for any less than $150. (I know that price is
accurate because Ive
watched almost every
Kramer-style neck with a
banana headstock thats been
up for auction over the last
year.) But remember - thats a
neck from the 80s; the frets
could all be worn down and in
need of some major work.
If you really want one of
these necks, your other
option is to have Warmoth
(www.warmoth.com) make
FIG 1
you a neck. True, Warmoth
makes great stuff, and it IS costly. That style of neck will run you close to
$250, if not more.
So, is there another option for getting a neck like this?... Yes, there is!
This guide will show you where to buy a brand-new, well-made, maple neck,
and, with just a little bit of woodworking skill, youll be able to convert it into
an ESP-style neck with a reverse banana headstock like the one in FIG 1.
The best part is, the neck will only cost you $75.
You may be wondering - Do I need anything special to finish this neck?
The answer is, yes. Youll need a few tools that will make this customizing
very easy to do. They are:
1. 12 Miter Saw (10 will do, but 12 is ideal)
2. Drill Press
3. Bar Clamp
4. Carpenters Glue
All of the above tools are must-haves for being able to customize this neck
properly. Youll also need access to a band saw, jig saw, or coping saw.
Finally, youll need to do some minor sanding when youre done. If you have
access to a drum sander, that would be ideal. If you dont, thats okay - you
can still do the sanding by hand.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: NECK MODIFICATION: INTRODUCTION
48
If you dont have access to any of this stuff but would still like to do this project, here is an option that Ive used in the past when I didnt have the right
tools for a specific project: if you open your Yellow Pages, you should be able
to find some sort of woodworking shop (that makes tables, chairs, bedroom
furniture, etc.) in your area
that would have all of these
FIG 2
tools (and more). Im sure if
you asked them, they wouldnt mind helping you do this
little project (for a small fee).
If you have ZERO woodworking skills and arent confident
you can do this on your own
but still really want this neck,
I would recommend that you
either: A. find someone who
does have the skills to help
you do this project, or B. do
as I did when I was younger - Here I am AGAIN - doing another neck mod!
do it and learn on the job! (Of
course, if you ruin the neck, its $75 down the drain.)
If youre an Eddie Van Halen fan, you probably know that he wrecked his
share of guitars when he was first learning how to make and fix guitars. I
wrecked several guitars in my early days, too. So, if you want to give this
project a shot, just try your best; itll definitely be an education for you.
Im definitely not trying to fool anyone with this project; this can be done
EASILY as youll soon see. The skill level involved for this project is, in my
opinion, average. Theres nothing really that tricky about it. I show you
exactly how to do everything. I also supply you with the headstock template,
so your headstock shape will be perfect. However, you DO need to have
woodworking tools and skills in order to do this project properly.
Are you ready?... Then, lets begin!
DISCLAIMER: Please be aware that altering this neck, as you will be

doing, will void the warranty. Any defects in the neck should be reported
BEFORE you begin this project so that it can be returned for a refund or for
a replacement.
Also, although weve done our best to show you how to get professional
results, we cannot guarantee those results due to factors beyond our control. Therefore, Stay Tooned, Inc. and PaintYourOwnGuitar.com assume
no responsibility or liability in the success or failure of this project.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: WHERE TO BUY THE NECK
49
When I originally found this neck (see FIG 3), the first thing I wondered was
whether it could be converted into a Kramer-style neck with banana headstock. I did my experimenting on it, and it was successful!
So, I spoke with the company about being a distributor. We worked out our
deal, and you can now buy this neck directly from me.
To buy, go here: http://www.paintyourownguitar.com/banananeck.html
The neck is a 21-fret neck and has a satin finish. It also has medium jumbo
frets.
I find it to be a really well-made neck, which is why I decided to be a distributor for them.
PLEASE NOTE: The banana headstock shape can either be created to

point upwards (reverse headstock), like the headstock were doing here,
or to point downwards, like EVHs 5150.
FIG 3
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 1: CUTTING OUT THE TEMPLATE
50
Your headstock template can be found on the next page. Print it and then
cut it out using an X-Acto knife, or scissors.
OR
Download the template from this URL http://www.paintyourownguitar.com/banana.html
There are two templates on this page. The first one is for a 5150; the second is for an ESP.
Pay close attention to being as accurate as possible when cutting it out.
This will be the template you use to transfer onto the neck.
This is the template I used for my Project 5150. The headstock shape is slightly different than the
ESP headstock shape. If you prefer this shape over the ESP version, simply flip it so the headstock
points up.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: HEADSTOCK TEMPLATE
51
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 2: TRANSFERRING THE TEMPLATE
52
With your template cut out, begin by lining up the nut area first.Tape the
template onto the fretboard (see FIG 5) once the nut lines are lined up.
Then, lay the template onto the headstock area and tape it into place. Two
small pieces of tape should do it.
Take a pencil and draw around your template so you transfer the shape
onto the paddle headstock (see FIG 6).
When youve drawn whatll
fit on the paddle area,
remove the template and
add the lines that were
obscurred by the tape holding the template in place.
FIG 5
You may be wondering,

This headstock design
doesnt fit on the paddle
area. What now?
As you can see, there is
plenty of wood thats not
being used. Were simply
going to make a couple of
cuts and glue some of that
excess wood onto the top
so that we can get this
exact headstock shape.
As you can see, Ive already made some cuts to the paddle
headstock. However, you should transfer the template art
first, then make the cuts
FIG 6
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 3: MAKING YOUR FIRST CUT
53
When you look at this neck (if you end up purchasing one), youll notice
that the sides of the paddle are smooth and sealed (with sanding sealer),
and the top and bottom are slightly beveled.
In order to get two pieces of wood to stick together permanently, we need
to glue raw wood to raw wood.
So, to do that, we need to cut roughly 1/8 off the top of the paddle area,
as indicated by the dotted white line in FIG 7 below. These cuts have to be
done with either a miter saw or a table saw; something that will give you a
perfectly straight cut. Otherwise, gluing the wood together to extend the
design at the top will be difficult.
When your cut is done, your paddle should look like FIG 8.
FIG 7
FIG 8
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 4: MAKING YOUR SECOND CUT
54
Now that the top part of the paddle has been prepared, we need to cut off
some excess wood to make it easier to make additional cuts.
The second cut involves removing some wood off the end of the paddle,
which should make additional cuts easier.
Leave at least 1/4 from the actual design, as Ive done in FIG 9.
FIG 9
IMPORTANT POINT: Performing some of these cuts by yourself while

holding the neck in place can be difficult using a miter saw. My advice
is that you should ask someone to hold the neck in place for you while
you make some, if not all, of the cuts.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 5: MAKING YOUR THIRD CUT
55
With some of the paddles excess wood removed, we need to cut the corner of the bottom part of the paddle, which is indicated by the white arrow
in FIG 10, with the miter saw.
This third cut should run parallel to the line of the headstock that youve
drawn. As youll read in a few minutes, the piece with the asterisk is going
to be moved in order to extend the design at the top.
When the corner cut is complete, your paddle should look like FIG 10.
FIG 10
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 6: MAKING YOUR FOURTH CUT
56
For your fourth cut, youre going to follow the line that youve drawn for
your headstock shape and cut roughly 1 below that line with your miter
saw. This cut should run parallel to the line that youve drawn for your
headstock. Try to be as accurate with this cut as possible. Draw it on with
a pencil to guide you, if need be.
When your cut is done, your paddle should look like FIG 11. Once again,
the piece with the asterisk is going to be glued to the top of the paddle, so
we can extend the design.
FIG 11
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 7: POSITIONING THE EXTRA WOOD
57
FIG 12 illustrates what were going to be doing. Well be positioning the

extra piece of wood to the top of the paddle and eventually gluing it into
place. Then, well be able to draw the rest of our template and cut it out.
Before we glue this piece into place, we need to make two more small
cuts. We need to cut a notch, which is indicated by the black line and yellow triangle. These cuts should be done with either a jig saw or a coping
saw - not a miter saw.
When the notch has been cut, position the top piece so that it lines up with
the notch, as indicated below.
FIG 12
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 8: CUTTING THE NOTCH, GLUING, AND CLAMPING
58
We need this notch so that after we glue the wood together, we can clamp
the two pieces together using a bar clamp (see FIG 14), so the join will be
nice and tight.
FIG 13
Ive indicated in FIG 12 (previous page) with the black line
and yellow triangle where you
should cut the notch. Your
alignment may be slightly different than this, but your notch
should sit vertical to the flattened piece on the top. That
way, clamping the wood together should be easy to do.
To glue the pieces together,
apply a liberal amount of ordinary carpenters glue (sold at
any hardware store) to each
piece of wood. Then line up the
two pieces so they create a flat
surface. When you have both
pieces in their proper position,
use your bar clamp to secure
them into position permanently.
FIG 14
As you begin to tighten your bar

clamp, you should have some
glue squirting out from between
the pieces of wood. When
youre finished tightening (handtight should be good enough), wipe away the excess glue with a damp
paper towel. Make sure that the two pieces create a flat surface and that
one is not sitting higher than the other. If theyve shifted, release the bar
clamp, reposition the wood, then retighten the bar clamp. However, this
time when tightening, ease off on the amount of tension you apply. If the
wood starts to shift as you increase the tension, stop when you notice it
starting to shift. Stop just short of that and leave it. That will suffice.
Allow the glue to dry for at least 8 hours before removing the bar clamp
and proceeding.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 9: CUTTING OUT THE HEADSTOCK
59
Ideally, the best way to cut out the headstock is to use a band saw.
Unfortunately, I dont have a band saw, so I had to use the next best thing a jig saw.
However, before I cut
out the headstock
using my jig saw, I
used my miter saw to
cut the edge of the
headstock so Id have
a perfect cut and
straight edge at the
bottom where the tuning pegs will sit. (FIG
15 shows the cut you
need to make - just
reverse it for the
upright headstock.)
From there, using my
pencil, I drew on the
missing section of my
headstock and then proceeded to cut out the
headstock using my jig
saw. When I was finished, it looked like
FIG 16.
FIG 15
I forgot to snap a photo of my headstock after this cut, so Ive
used this neck in its place. Use your miter saw to cut the edge of
the headstock where the tuning pegs rest, exactly as Ive done
here for a nice, straight edge.
The cut was rough in

some areas, but with
some sanding, I was
able to clean it all up.
FIG 16
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 10: SANDING THE HEADSTOCK
60
For the final shaping/sanding for the edges of this headstock, I used my
drill press. Attached to my drill press was a handy little drum sander (see
FIG 17) I bought from LOWEs. Its roughly 2 high X 1 wide. Its perfect
for any sanding you need to do for the edges of guitar bodies or for shaping and sanding a headstock like this.
Ideally, this is the best way to finish the sides of this headstock.
If you dont have access to a drill
press and sanding drum, you can
still do this final shaping/sanding
with sandpaper; youll just have
to pay extra attention to try to
keep the edges 90 degrees.
If youre sanding by hand, start by
using a 120-grit. When youve got
it evened out, move to a 220-grit,
then to a 320-grit for final sanding.
FIG 17
FIG 18
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 11: DRILLING THE TUNING PEG HOLES
61
Now that your final sanding is done, were going to drill the holes for the
tuning pegs. I begin by laying a piece of masking tape across the headstock where the holes will be drilled (see FIG 19).
The measurements you will need to make are very simple.
For your first
measurement,
measure 1/2 from
the bottom of the
headstock up in
two places and
draw a line to
connect those two
marks across the
headstock on your
masking tape (see
FIG 20).
The next measurement youll
make will be for
the first tuning
peg (low E string).
Start from the bottom edge of the
headstock and
measure 3/4.
This will be the
center point for
the first tuning
peg (low E - see
FIG 21). Mark the
center point along
the line youve
already drawn
across the headstock.
FIG 19
FIG 20
FIG 21
From that first

center point for the first tuning peg you just made, make 5 more marks,
each of them 1 apart (see FIG 22), running along the line on the masking
tape like I have in FIG 24. These are the center points for the tuning pegs.

When thats done,
youre ready to start
drilling.
FIG 22
Drilling the holes for

tuning pegs is a 3-part
process. But, before I
start drilling, I mark
the center point of
each tuning peg with a
punch, tapping it gently with a hammer.
This helps me center
my drill bit and keeps
it from slipping off the
mark (see FIG 23).
To start, I drill a small
guide hole for each of
the tuning pegs all the
way through the headstock (see FIG 25).
This allows me to find
the center for each of
my holes from both
sides. I use a 1/8 drill
bit for these guide
holes. When drilling
your guide holes, be
very careful as you
exit the bottom of the
headstock, as you
can split and chip the
wood if you exit too
quickly.
FIG 23
FIG 24
Starting with the holes

through the top of the
headstock, I use a
3/8 drill bit and drill
down half-way
through the headstock
(see FIG 26). I usually
set my drill press to stop exactly where I need to stop - that way I dont
accidently drill any further than I need to.
62

When all of the holes have
been drilled from the top, I
flip my neck over and drill
the holes from the bottom.
63
FIG 25
For these holes, I use a

7/16 drill bit. Using my
guide hole to help me center the bit, I drill down
three-quarters of the way
through the headstock
(see FIG 27). Once again,
I set my drill press to stop
exactly where I need to
stop - that way I dont accidently drill any further than I need to.
The sizes of these holes you are drilling are suitable for all Schaller-and
Gotoh-sized tuners.
FIG 27
FIG 26
TOP
BOTTOM
TOP
BOTTOM
When all of your holes have been drilled, your neck should look similar to
the one in FIG 29.
You may be wondering what to do if you dont have a drill press or dont
have access to one. You CAN use a power drill - youre just going to have
to be very accurate in your depth as well as in your angle.
Some power drills have a
level on them that tells you
whether you are drilling at a
90-degree angle or not. If
you have to drill by hand,
its best to use a drill such
as this.
If you are drilling with a
power drill, you may also
want to use some masking
FIG 28
64
tape (see FIG 28) and wrap it around your drill bits to let you know when
youve gone deep enough into the wood. Dont leave it up to your eye better safe than
sorry.
FIG 29
When drilling by
hand, make sure
that your neck is
clamped down to
a solid surface,
such as a table or
work bench, for
stability... and for
accurate drilling.
When youre
done, your headstock should look
something like the
headstock in FIG
29.
Ive indicated with yellow circles where I dinged the wood. Those dings
had to be fixed prior to painting. I used Bondo to fill the dings. I let them
dry, then sanded them smooth and moved on from there. In this photo,
Ive already routed the slot for the Floyd Rose nut. The next step will
address cutting the notch for the nut.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 12: ROUTING FOR A FLOYD ROSE NUT

If youre putting a Floyd Rose locking
system on your guitar, here are a
couple of things you need to know
before routing for the nut. (Ive used
these pix from Project 5150 as I forgot to snap these pix for this project.)
Youll need an R2 nut for this neck,
which is 1-5/8 wide. Also, youll need
to install an aftermarket Floyd Rose
nut that mounts through the top with
screws, rather than the older version
that requires you to drill holes right
through your neck and tighten the nut
in place from underneath using an
Allen key.
Because of the placement of the
truss rod on this neck, using the old
nut is tough; the screws that pass
through the neck dont have enough
clearance and would most likely, hinder making truss rod adjustments.
65
FIG 30
FIG 31
FIG 32
Using the aftermarket nut only requires

that you pre-drill the two small holes.
Once theyre drilled, the base of the
nut can be secured to the neck with
the screws provided. From there,
youre ready to go (see FIG 31, FIG
32, and FIG 33).
To route for the Floyd Rose nut, I once
again used my drill press and a handy
little drill bit I got from ACE Hardware.
With my drill press set at 5/32 depth, I
removed the wood where the nut
needs to sit (see FIG 30). I didnt pop
the nut out before I started to remove
the wood. I simply routed the wood in
behind the nut, and that allowed me to
easily remove the nut without having
to fuss with it at all. The area where
the plastic nut sat also had to be routed to the same height as the rest of
the area. This drill bit seen in FIG 30 made that very easy to do.
FIG 33
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 12: ROUTING FOR A FLOYD ROSE NUT
66
If you dont have access to a drill press, I recommend that you have a professional route this area and drill the holes for you so that its done perfectly.
If that area isnt routed evenly, your nut wont sit properly, and the guitar will
probably never stay in tune.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 13: CLEANING AND PREPPING
67
When doing this neck project for the first time, you may be a little pre-occupied with the steps and forget to clean off the excess glue thatll squirt out
from between the pieces of wood.
Not to worry. To remove any excess hardened glue, simply use a palm
sander. It shouldnt take longer than 30 seconds to remove it.
After sanding, if you notice that you went through the sanding sealer and
you can feel the grain, try using some Bondo to fill that in. When it dries,
sand it flat.
From there, apply some (3-5) coats of sanding sealer back over top and let
each coat dry before applying the next. When its dry, sand it back down to
a smooth, flat surface.
When thats done, youre ready to mask.
IMPORTANT POINT: You may not have to clean any glue or spray any
sealer at this point. If you did a good job of making sure that no glue
dripped and hardened, then proceed to the next step.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 14: MASKING THE HEADSTOCK
68
I havent seen many photos of a real M1-Tiger, so Im not sure whether the
back of the headstock is painted yellow or not. So, for mine, I just left it
unpainted.
To start, I covered the
entire headstock and
neck, leaving only the
face of the headstock
exposed.
I used my green 3M
masking tape to cover the
entire back of the headstock. I extended it down
onto the back of the neck.
From there, I used paper
to mask the rest.
FIG 34
I wrapped a few sheets of

letter-sized paper around
the neck and secured
them with the masking
tape.
When youre all done,
your neck should look like
the one in FIG 36.
FIG 35
FIG 36
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 15: SPRAYING THE PRIMER/BASE COAT
69
By now, youve probably already got a good understanding of how to apply

spray paint, so I really dont need to repeat myself here, right? THIN
COATS! Enough said.
When Im spraying solid
colors, I always like to
use primer prior to spraying the base coat.
Primer gives me a good
indication as to whether
the surface is smooth and
whether Im going to see
any grain when Im all finished.
FIG 37
I sprayed three thin coats
of primer, allowing each
coat to dry for at least an
hour before applying the
next coat.
FIG 37 shows the face of
the headstock after just
one thin coat of primer.
When I was done applying the primer, I allowed it
to sit for a day before
FIG 38
sanding it with 400-grit
(dry) to remove some of
the little bumps. When it was blemish-free, I began spraying the yellow
base coat.
Once again, I sprayed three thin coats of yellow, allowing each coat to dry
for at least an hour before applying the next coat. If you need more than
three or four coats, then go ahead and spray additional coats. Your goal is
a solid color, regardless of how many coats it takes.
FIG 38 shows the face of the headstock after the first coat of yellow.
Give the face of the headstock at least 3 days to dry before masking it to
spray your black.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 16: MASKING AND SPRAYING THE BLACK
70
After allowing my yellow coats to dry for a full 3 days, I masked the face of
the headstock in preparation for painting it black.
I used the same technique I used for masking
the body - overlap each
piece of masking tape by
roughly 1/4 (see FIG 39).
I then drew on the pattern
I wanted on the headstock. The M1-Tiger actually comes with a stratstyle headstock, so Im
just trying to create a similar design on this headstock shape (see FIG 40).
FIG 39
After a couple of attempts

(I didnt leave enough
room the first time to
allow for the ESP decal I
was planning to make), I
finally had my pattern
drawn on.
I then moved to cutting
out the design using my
X-Acto knife with a fresh
blade (see FIG 41).
FIG 40
FIG 41
FIG 42 (next page) shows

the headstock after one
thin coat of black. As you
can see, theres plenty of
yellow still poking
through. Dont ever worry
about this as youre
spraying your color coats;
thin coats RULE.
After allowing the black
coats to dry for a little
more than 24 hours, I
removed the masking tape.
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 16: MASKING AND SPRAYING THE BLACK

If you end up with any
bleedthroughs or if your
headstock needs any
lines touched up, simply
spray some black paint
into the cans lid. Using a
small brush, fix any lines
that need it.
FIG 42
I recommend using black

to do touch-ups rather
than using yellow - unless
theres a yellow area that
definitely needs to be
touched up.
The problem with touching up a color like yellow is
that, sometimes when
brushing on the color, it
differs slightly from the
color already down... and it
becomes obvious that the
areas been touched up.
So, if its just some lines
that need to be fixed, use
black rather than yellow.
FIG 43
All done?... lets move on to the next step.
71
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 17: MAKING A DECAL
72
For some of you, making

a decal such as this may
be close to impossible if
you dont have experience
with drawing programs.
Still, I want to show you
how I do it, so that you
understand how its done.
FIG 44
To recreate a logo, you

first need a good clear
copy of the logo you want
to rebuild/recreate.
Once Ive found the logo
I want to use as my
guide, I import it into
Adobe Illustrator. I place
it on its own layer and
lock the layer.
I then create a new layer
to recreate it using a
combination of actual letters and the pen tool. I
convert each letter to outlines so I can manipulate
any part of the letter I want.
FIG 45
The backing is still on my decal in this photo which is why its
not transparent.
For me, rebuilding a logo like this doesnt take any longer than 15 minutes.
When I was done, I printed it out on a sheet of Avery Clear Sticker Paper
#8665.
Normally, my decals are flawless. In this instance, though, my Epson printer, which Ive had for at least 7 years, would not print crisp edges. I was
left with a logo that had fuzzy edges. So, thats what you see here. The
logo is accurate - the print of it is dicey. But, I proceeded anyway... I had no
choice - its the only printer I had at the time. (Of course, since this, I went
on to purchase another inkjet printer.)
To get the logo into position is just a matter of having a good eye and clean
hands... thats right - clean hands. When removing the protective backing,
if you have anything on your fingers, you could transfer that to the clear
part of the sticker, and it will live on under your clear coats forever.
So, make sure your hands are clean!
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 18: SPRAYING YOUR CLEAR COATS

With my logo now in
place, Im ready to add
my clear coats.
As you can see in FIG 46,
with just a few coats of
clear on the headstock,
you can see where I
touched up some lines
with black paint. And, if
you look closely, you can
also see the outline of the
decal.
FIG 46
Not to worry, though - all

of this stuff will disappear!
Take a look at FIG 47 there are now 25 coats of
clear on the headstock.
All of the visible decal
lines and painted edges
have disappeared.
Still, youll have to wetsand to get a truly flat
surface to buff.
FIG 47
73
PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 19: LETTING THE PAINT SETTLE
74
Just as youre doing with the body, youre going to have to let your neck sit
for 2 months without doing anything to it.
However, make sure that you remove any masking tape still left on the neck.
When youve passed your 2-month waiting period, move on to the second-last
step of the painting process, Step 19 - wetsanding the clear coats.
FIG 48
When letting your neck sit for two months, remove the masking tape off the fretboard.

I dont want to repeat myself
here, so just follow the same
polishing technique you used to
buff the body.
75
FIG 49
After all of the wetsanding, buffing a headstock literally takes

two minutes and you get a
shine like this!
Now comes the fun part assembling and playing!
There you have it - your very
own M-1 Tiger - complete with
neck modification. And, the best
part is, you did it yourself! It
sure beats spending close to
$3000 for the real thing, huh?
Hopefully, this book has opened your eyes to what can be done with a little
bit of hard work. Its not difficult to paint guitars - just a little time-consuming.
The truth is, though, youll forget all about the sanding and prep work just as
soon as that guitars been put back together and youre playing it. In fact, if
youre like me, youll probably start thinking about what design youre going
to paint next once your current projects been put back together! What a
sickness!
Im always excited to see your project guitars, and Im always here to
answer questions if you have any, so please stay in touch with me.
I also encourage you to join my free bi-monthly newsletter which is always
a good source of additional information on painting, set-ups, maintenance,
and anything else that pertains to guitars.
Until next time, happy painting!
John Gleneicki
PROJECT M1-TIGER: FINAL PHOTOS
76

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Copyright 2005 - Stay Tooned, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.

PROJECT M1-TIGER: TABLE OF CONTENTS

PROJECT M1-TIGER: INTRODUCTION

PROJECT M1-TIGER: SUPPLIES YOULL NEED

Heres a complete list of items I used to paint

3. Wet/Dry Sandpaper - It doesnt matter the

5. Sanding Block(s) - Whether you buy one or

PROJECT M1-TIGER: SUPPLIES YOULL NEED

6. Primer/Paint - I use Krylon

For this project, youll also need a can of

9. Hook - I mount a hook into the top of the

PROJECT M1-TIGER: SUPPLIES YOULL NEED

13. Spray Can Holder - (see FIG 12) Its not

PROJECT M1-TIGER: SUPPLIES YOULL NEED

If you purchased all of the grits of wet/dry

PROJECT M1-TIGER: WHAT TYPE OF PAINT TO USE

There are several types of paint

Personally, I like the Krylon brand;

- All Purpose Primer White #1315 (1 can)

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 1: REMOVING OLD PARTS

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 2: REMOVING THE OLD FINISH

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 2: REMOVING THE OLD FINISH

If you can carefully keep the

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 2: REMOVING THE OLD FINISH

perfect horizontal position.

Heres a body I bought on eBay for $20. It was routed

Its now on to Step 3.

Heres the same body a couple hours later. Once the

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 3: FILLING ANY HOLES

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 4: MASKING THE NECK CAVITY

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 5: CREATING YOUR BODY MASKS

I was fairly accurate when cutting

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 6: ADDING THE STICK AND HOOK

Most likely, your body wont come

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 7: APPLYING THE SEALER

Applying sealer to a body is most often necessary in order to produce a

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 8: SPRAYING THE PRIMER

Another benefit to using Krylons

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 8: SPRAYING THE PRIMER

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 8: SPRAYING THE PRIMER

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 8: SPRAYING THE PRIMER

of primer over the entire body... possibly more.

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 9: SPRAYING YOUR BASE COAT

- All Purpose Primer White #1315 (1 can)

Okay, as Ive mentioned several times already, youll be applying THIN

Continue with the same painting

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 9: SPRAYING YOUR BASE COAT

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 10: APPLYING YOUR MASKS

Begin by placing your tape around

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 11: SPRAYING THE SIDES

When spraying the sides, you should

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 11: SPRAYING THE SIDES

As you can see in FIG 38, although the

Once again, this is the most crucial

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 12: MASKING THE ENTIRE BODY

Continue laying down the tape this

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 12: MASKING THE ENTIRE BODY

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 13: PIECING TOGETHER THE DESIGN

Actually, the original template was

I printed four letter-sized pages,

PROJECT M1-TIGER: STEP 14: TRANSFERRING THE DESIGN

Once you feel youve got it in the

Dont remove the template until