I'm refinishing my friend's strat qmt and noticed beneath the paint on the front is an odd light pink layer that seems almost like paper and beneath that is just wood. It's not on the back at all where there's just the normal layer of sealer. Just wondering what exactly that layer on the front is and if there's an easier way to get it off besides sanding. Also any suggestions on getting the rest of the paint of the neck and headstock besides plain sanding would be great because those will be much harder to sand than the body.

Hi and welcome to the Forum,a lot of people use a heatgun to remove the finishes from guitars but you must take care that you not stay on one spot too long or you may cause scorching.There are plenty of guys on the Forum who can give you great tips on refinishing and stripping the finish such as Ceri who recently resurrected a severely damaged Strat to better than new shape.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.