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hello all, I am new to guitar building and have a LP kit guitar to finish for my daughter's graduation.
I am an experienced wood worker so am familiar with finishing processes but need help deciding what to do.
The body has a flame maple top that will be stained blue. The main body is basswood and this is where I need help. I can't decide to paint or stain the main body. Any ideas?
One big question is about the binding around the top, probably white plastic. I will mask it off for the staining but have a question regarding painting the back and sides. With the buildup of paint will the paint sit higher than the binding? How do I deal with this?

Thanks for any help

The finish options are many. I have build a few Les Paul's. Once the body is sealed. I like to use a translucent or toner color on the top if it has a figured top. I start with a good clear sealer. Mask off the binding apply the color and pull the masking.
Then I clear coat the top and apply a few coats to help fill the masked binding. Level sand buff and polish.
The clear base coat allows you to cut back to a clear coat if you need to.

Basswood dosen't stain directly very well...you can shoot a washcoat of clear 50/50 let it dry and them shoot a dye mix in the clear...the more you shoot the darker it gets..I like Gibson Cherry or a brown with the blue or a mix..hope that helps!

Ray:)

I liked sealing clear and using translucent dyes (colortone) as a toner. I had trouble taping off the binding and getting a clean line so I left them unmasked. After I had the sunburst on the top and the color on the back I notch cut a scraper to just scrap the bindings clean. After that I sprayed a few coats of clear lacquer on everything sanded and buffed

I was happy with the results.
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To get a clean masking line use pin strip tape, you can find that at most auto parts stores. Also solid colors from auto stores are a good paint for guitars. The details of the binding can be challenging but are worth the effort. To avoid chipping you can lift the tape a few minutes after spraying the final color coat