Correct me if I am wrong, but the Hwy 1 has a poly finish underneath the nitro finish right? I don't think it is a true Nitro finish and think we may have discussed this here before.

Any suggestions for the best method to remove the finish down to bare wood? I have heard a heat gun can be used and should have it coming of like a shattered windshield if it is a poly finish. I could use acetone to wipe off the nitro then use the heat gun and take down the poly.

After removing the poly finish will sanding be required to refinish if in nitro or will the poly finish just come off cleanly? Anyone have any experience with this

I am going to build a custom Telecaster and wanted to use this body instead of buying a brand new one but if it is too much work I may end up buying a a blank body and selling the Hwy 1 body gutting it.

Any suggestions or info will be appreciated.

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Blues with a feeling.

GUILD GUITARS: MADE TO BE PLAYED!

BCB ...brother Highwayman don't do it...you will regret it...trust me. Everyone I know with a HWY1 who has sold or modd'ed it has regretted it....
ABS

Well I have modded mine (changed tuners, pickguard, string tree, saddles) and I still love it! But I want to build my dream Tele and after buying a custom neck, Glendale parts and Kinman pups the costs have gotten pretty steep. It is either, buy a blank body and have it finished or use the body I have along with the electronics I want to keep and sell the neck for money towards the finish.

I love the my HWY 1 but I know I will love the finished product of my Shoreline gold with vintage style nitro finished flamed maple neck and all my parts better!

Unless I can sell one of my acoustics, in which case I will keep my Hwy 1 as is and use the funds to finish my project.

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Blues with a feeling.

GUILD GUITARS: MADE TO BE PLAYED!

You know I am just teasing you my friend! I know what you mean about your dream Tele. I am fortunate in that for some reason the mojo on mine has made it perfect! I absolutely love how mine sounds and plays!! Fantastic guitar! Lety me know if there is anything that I can do to help!
ABS

yeah my Hwy 1 has definitely developed mojo with every little nick or ding.

Well, do you know how to go about removing the poly finish off of one? easiest and best way to do so?

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Blues with a feeling.

GUILD GUITARS: MADE TO BE PLAYED!

i sanded the poly finish off of my mij strat , not as hard as people make out , then again i'm a joiner/ carpenter to trade , as long as you use some good auto sandpaper you'll be fine but if you have a heatgun use that i sanded right down to bare wood cos i wanted a natural finish , a few coats of danish oil and it's bloody lovely hth

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i sent an email to customer relations just to double check what the finish is made of so I will know how to attack it. i dont have the tools to do all of the sanding and the guy who is doing the refinishing would charge $100-150 to strip it. Seems steep to me if I can do it myself, otherwise I will just wait a bit longer and save more dough so I can provide him with a blank body

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Blues with a feeling.

GUILD GUITARS: MADE TO BE PLAYED!

Well it turns out the Highway 1 has a poly sealer with a satin nitro finish over that.

So is a poly "sealer" the same as a poly finish? Like a clear poly finish?

ANyone?

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Blues with a feeling.

GUILD GUITARS: MADE TO BE PLAYED!

Yeah when they say "sealer" they just mean that the purpose of that coat is to seal the wood underneath from the paint you're putting on top.

The highway one has a layer of poly then a layer of nitro.

Sandpaper will get through the nitro easy but the poly is a serious pain.

If you're refinishing in a solid color, what you can do is just sand down until you get through all the nitro, then reuse the poly layer by sanding up the grits and just painting the new coat of nitro right on top.

I don't have any experience stripping with a heat gun.

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life is too short for bad tone.