it is only a work in progress bare in mind, so the scratches from the sandpaper and so on will be removed later on, and i will darken the bare wood once its all finished.
but thanks for the advice, i'll heed it all
thats just how strats are done. i dont know about older ones, or newer ones, but certainly all that iv seen with rosewood boards are done this way
it did have laquer on it, but only a very thin layer it seems, as lightly rubbing with fine wire wool has taken almost all of it off. i only realised when only a small section turned yellow after two days in the sun