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Stupid question of the day.

Will soon be starting the finishing of my guitar.
Trying to prepare everything for as smooth a process as possible.
Decided to finish the guitar body and neck separately and will be using a Tru-Oil finish.

Question is how to support the body when doing this.
When doing the pore filling it isn't an issue since I won't be applying it to the top so the body can rest on the top.
With the Tru-Oil, I want to do the whole body at the same time but how?

One solution is to just do the top and sides, wait for it to dry and then do the top.
I could hang the guitar body using the holes for the neck attachment ( it's a bolt on neck) but it still seems awkward.
If anyone has any other suggestions on how best to support to body so I can do everything at once I would he interested.

Thanks

Experiment. Your project, your shop, your tools. You'll find a solution good for you only after trying a variety of options.

And do the neck first. It's small and part of it will be masked off and offer a surface it can be parked on.

I’ve seen expensive vices that hold the guitar by the neck so you can rotate it. Looks like an accident waiting to happen.

I do the neck separated from the body and clean up finish after assembly. For the body I use a clean bench with a clean moving blanket or puppy pads and do the back and sides 1st but after a while you’ll get to know when you can flip it over on the clean pad and not make a mess of the finish. A clean bench is the key no matter how cured the finish is.

Carpet samples from the floorimg store. Evenly sized, bound, and awfully inexpnsive (discontinued at that store).

most use a hook on the tail where the strap pin fits 1/4 in hole

you hang it from that

Or you can make a temporary "neck," either bolt-on, or with a dovetail and perhaps a setscrew to keep the joint from coming apart.
I've always done my finishing in stages: the back; the top; the sides; letting on section dry before doing the next. Not terribly efficient.

Try this. Works great.

Dowel through a block so you can rotate the guitar.
Attaches to the mortise with a tenon on the end of dowel using your bolt on holes. Clamp to your bench.
All sides top and back accessible.
This us how I spray now instead of hanging the body.

I've used a heavy wire, hooked through the dovetail mortise. Anymore, I just spread my fingers apart in the dovetail mortise if I need to move the box. I only do 1 surface at a time while french polishing.

Thanks for the ideas and feedback.
I like the dowel connected to the bolt on neck block but I think it only makes sense for spraying.
I will be using Tru Oil so I'm really afraid of putting too much stress on the connection.
Hanging the body from the bolt on neck holes or strap tail hole seems interesting but not much to hold onto.

Also, I have time so I really don't need to do the whole body at the same time.

As a result, I came up with the following compromise.
I made a platform shaped like the guitar with feet and a padded top.
This way when the body is on it I can easily do the sides and the back at the same time.
When that is dry, I can then do the top.
Not perfect but what is.

Scamp

If it works for you it's perfect