Thanks again for the kind words!
The neck is now beginning its four-day curing phase.
I ran into a couple of issues early on which I think I have a remedy for, but definitely getting filed in the 'I will do this differently next time' bin.
I was surprised by how quickly the amber colour started ramping up on the neck. The colour was just in the Rustins (a blend of 'pine' and 'light teak' dye). I had one run, which was resulted in a darker patch on the neck. I sanded this out, but very quickly went through the amber, which then gave me a lighter patch instead. The takeaway from this, I'm getting, is:
1) Make sure any coloured coats go on perfectly and check any known offending areas for runs, etc.
2) Build up layers of untinted clear to seal in the colour coats.
My thinking here is down to the fact that I wanted to hit my magical nine coat target, but by that time the neck would be dark orange. I started applying uncoloured Rustins for the last three coats, which went on heavier as a result as the dye thins the stuff out. This should give me a good base to wet sand back to a level finish, like the body.
I'm trying to figure out how to wet sand a curved surface without introducing flat spots. I know the answer is 'apply good quality coats that need the minimum of aftercare', but this isn't the case with Rustins! It rolls on thick and gives you enough raw material to finesse later. A lot of people are now using ultra-thin oil finishes on maple necks, so advice now seems to be weighted towards this style of work. I will figure something out!
