I'm using stewmac aerosol sanding sealer lacquer. Still haven't made the leap to a spray gun. I've put on about half a can (4 coats) in the second pic, and havent done any sanding yet. I spray it about a foot away, maybe a little more. It looks normal enough when im spraying it, though I havent really noticed how wet it looks, i'll have to pay more attention next time i put a coat on. Maybe I need to put it on a little heavier to wet it out.
For the stain, I wiped on a couple coats over the whole body, then sprayed the burst a little darker with an airbrush.
EDIT: I think it's coming around. I took it outside and it looks better than it did with the camera flash. Here's a picture: stain 3. You can probably tell the wings arent actually glued on yet.. my last big challenge is figuring out how to do that without screwing up the finish, but I think I have a plan. They're pegged for alignment, so I'm only worried about glue dripping out, but I think some low tack masking tape along the edges will catch most of it, and I can wipe off the rest with a wet rag (hence putting the sealer on before glueing) Then do the remaining coats of lacquer once it's glued.
westhemann: I'm not really sold on the wood selection either... it's supposed to be tulipwood, though it doesnt look like any of the pictures of tulipwood i've seen online. (bought the wood online without seeing the actual pieces) I was expecting it to be yellower with a purplish grain that would match the purpleheart. The whole thing kind of doesnt look as good as it did in my head, and if i was starting over now I'd do some things different, but whatever. Seeing as it's my first time I didnt wanna get too picky since I figured there was a good chance i'd completely screw it up and have to start over anyway. The neck position matches the plans (67 sg), though I may have carved the horns a little deeper than they say, but it's mostly according to plan.