Guitar Kit?

Well, it would give you a much better understanding of the wiring, pickup setup, neck setup ect. as far as painting goes here are some links:

http://http://www.projectguitar.com/tut/tutorial5.htm

Yeah, what teleplayer324 said. I took my very first guitar apart. It's a junior strat :?:/homemade strat, and when I have the money I'm gonna rebuild it. It's been sanded down and dents patched so far.

Sorry I couldn't answer your question, but I think you're up to the task. Well, maybe not. Might want to go to a luthier (sp) for prices on parts. Pickups will probably be the killer.

Electrics are easier than acoustics, and I know probably a dozen people who've built an electric (as opposed to maybe two non-luthiers who built an acoustic)

The really hard part is fretting the neck - if you get a kit that has the neck already fretted, the tricky stuff is already done. Bolt-on or neck-through designs will be easier than set necks, because you can adjust the angle with shims or you won't have to worry about it at all - if you do a set neck, you may end up having to take it apart and try again in the setup phase.

One of the coolest guitars I've ever seen was an SG shape body, but very thick - about as thick as a Les Paul. The face had been carved in an elaborate patten, and finished natural - as I recall, the wood was cherry. I can't remember the name of the guy who owned it, but he was one heck of a guitar player with a beautiful homemade instrument.

Well, it would give you a much better understanding of the wiring, pickup setup, neck setup ect. as far as painting goes here are some links:

http://http://www.projectguitar.com/tut/tutorial5.htm

Yup, you learn a lot from building a kit. (You'd learn more starting from scratch, I'm sure, but I just don't have the woodworking equipment. Or time.) I just finished one of those Saga Les Paul look-alikes. I had never picked up an electric guitar before, so I learned a bit about pickups and what all the knobs are for, and how it goes together. Overall a pretty good experience, though the wiring diagram in the instructions was terrible. If I weren't handy with a meter and iron, I'm not sure I would have figured it out (I've heard they are redoing the instructions though, and some of the other kits have better instructions). Painting / finishing was defintely the hardest part. I ended up with a few sandthroughs, but overall, I think it ended up looking pretty decent. (projectguitar is a great site, along with the forums there) It plays and sounds pretty good to me, so I got what I wanted out of it (understanging, and a not too shabby guitar).
TZ
PS - pictures of my kit in various stages here: http://home.earthlink.net/~gmtarr/guitar/

nice work Timezone! how hard was it to do the burst

The absolute hardest part was the final polishing. The burst itself was not all that difficult. I rubbed the amber stain on over the whole front first, then put a light coat of clear (from an aerosol can) over that, just to keep it in place. I have a little airbrush that I used to use for paiting R/C car bodies and stuff, and it worked real well for spraying the orange around the edge. Lacking an airbrush, you can always rub on the burst as well. Then lots and lots more coats of clear, and then sanding (and hoping you don't go through all the clear, which I did in a few places).

TZ

Thanks, everyone, for all of the helpful replies. TimeZone, your guitar looks great! Out of curiosity, what sort of paint did you use for the finish?

when i first started i took apart most of my electric and put it to gether again..it all started when i went to shance the strings and they dident seem to fit through the hole in the front so i took off the metal cover bit they still wouldent fit so the bit under that then some how i managed to un hook the springs at the back and ahhhhh yeah i fucked it all up after i realised i dident have to take anything apart atall hahaha

im literature retaded ummm no that how ever i spelt it i ment changed

Thanks, everyone, for all of the helpful replies. TimeZone, your guitar looks great! Out of curiosity, what sort of paint did you use for the finish?

Thanks for the compliment. :) I used the alcohol based dyes from http://www.reranch.com . They're powders that you mix with denatured alcohol (get at Lowe's or Home Depot, etc) to make a stain that can be rubbed on by hand, or sprayed if you have the equipment. For clearcoat, I used Deft High Gloss clear aerosol cans (also available at Lowe's / HD / etc). If you're thinking of building a kit or refinishing your current guitar, reranch and projectguitar have tons of info.
TZ

Sweet! Thanks for the helpful responses -- TZ and everyone.