I have an American Strat (ser # E460617) that was given to me by a friend that bought it brand new in the 80's. It had some big gouges in the body so I took it to a luthier to be refinished. However, he is having a hell of a time stripping the original finish as it is almost like the body was dipped in bondo or plastic. Anybody else have this problem? And if so, how did you strip the old finish?

Older Strats were finished with a nitrocellulose finish, which many consider to be superior, both in looks and its effect on tone. After 68 fender switched to a polyurethane finish, which is cheaper, and as you now know, more durable.
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polyurethane is notoriously hard to strip.
There are 2 choices, serious solvents, or a heat gun and putty knife. the heat gun works really well, but you need to be very careful, or you could burn the body.

But I would suggest if your 'luthier' doesn't know how to refinish a Strat, you need to look for someone else.

It's not a polyurethane, either. The luthier I took it to has been doing guitars for 20+ years now and I've seen his work, it's incredible. But the coating on the body is like plastic. Even airplane stripper would not remove it and that stuff is like napalm. He's thinking the guy that gave it to me may have got taken and given a strat that had been modified and put on the shelf as brand new.

Wow thats weird. I know the airplane stripper is the one solvent people suggest for stripping poly, if that won't work, I don't know what to tell you.
i would personally try the heat gun, but god only knows what your guitar has been coated with.

i will talk to a couple people I know tomorrow, and see if they have heard about anything like this, and/or if they have any ideas. could you post a picture, preferably including one before any work, and one now, to see what kind of effect your guy's work has had on the finish? maybe get him to list what he has tried.

The best way to do this is by using a product called aircraft remover. And yes, those guitars are dipped in plastic.

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Custom Shop '59 Strat with John Cruz Master Design Pickups
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Klean Strip Aircraft Remover is what I use. I buy the aerosol cans.it takes off polys , epoxys, lacquers and all.
http://www.kleanstrip.com/

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I've got an '83 Standard Strat - it has a polyester finish that feels like it's about 1/4 inch thick.

I can about imagine what it would take to refinish the thing. The neck has the same finish.

It's kind of cool - I don't think I'll ever have the neck wear that you'll see on other 25-year-old maple necks and it has yellowed with age.

Some may call it a tone-turd, but I was 17 when we bought it new, it was my first and I'll always keep it.

Shane~

Maybe its one of those anodized aluminum strats

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Guitars:
1. mid 70's Ventura MIJ Gibson l6-s clone (Pre-lawsuit) in Black with Rosewood FB and EMG 81 BR/ 85 Neck
2. ESP KH2 Neck Thru
3. 2008 Am Std Strat in 3 tone sunburst

Bizarro! I have a polyester coated Squier bod from the '80s and it is fairly indestructable, to be sure. But I'm amazed if serious grade stripper doesn't do it. How can that be?

Still, if chemicals don't work then it's a very coarse sandpaper and hours of hard work for you, I'm afraid. It will be some effort, but actually stripping by hand doesn't take forever. Wrap the sandpaper round a dowel or similar to do the cutaways. There's a website about how to do it somewhere - but I can't find it at this second.

Good luck - C

Yea, but coarse sandpaper will remove a lot of wood to. Careful if you take this route or the "Original Contour Body" will truely be original.

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Guitars:
1. mid 70's Ventura MIJ Gibson l6-s clone (Pre-lawsuit) in Black with Rosewood FB and EMG 81 BR/ 85 Neck
2. ESP KH2 Neck Thru
3. 2008 Am Std Strat in 3 tone sunburst

If you're going with a solid color just scuff sand it and lay on. But if you want the wood to show then sanding it all off is probably required as above. On the flat surfaces you could use a sander. Don't go rotary. Use a random orbit sander. As for web sites, I know there is comprehensive refinishing information at the Guitar Reranch site.

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James Burton Upgrade Telecaster
Hot Rodded Am Fat Strat Texas Special (now featuring Kinman Traditional II pickups)
Fender Blues Jr.
SWR California Blonde
Pedals Pedals Pedals

Definitely true. You have to move to finer and finer grades as you move down through the layers. And keep the sanding flat, with a machine or a block. It's no good at all if one area is stripped to the wood while another is still thick with finish. Keep it flat and even.

And of course, you'll never get the finish out of the cavities - at least not without days upon days of amazingly fiddly work.

But it really can be done. This wasn't the website I was thinking of, but it'll do:

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

Cheers - C

I have found some good info on www.reranch.com about refinishing guitars. I recently picked up an old Squire Strat that I intend to refinish as my first "from the bare wood" refinish job. I hope it comes out well.

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A bunch of guitars, a few amps, some pedals and some other stuff that makes noise.