Refinishing a natural guitar (Yamaha Pacifica 112)

[aphasiac]

Ok, so I want to re-finish my Yamaha Pacifica 112, as it's my first and most versatile sounding guitar, but looks so boring i can't ever play live with it. My Dad's going to help me

Anyway, it currently has a plain-wood natural alder finish. Stupid question, but do i still need to sand it down? I assume it's covered in lacquer even though it's natural. So how do i know when I've sanded the lacquer off?

this is going to be a fun project! I'll post pics.

[Hurb]

as long as there's no dints etc. i would give it light(read very) sand. and go straight to primer.

[aphasiac]

as long as there's no dints etc. i would give it light(read very) sand. and go straight to primer.

it is quite dinged / scratched from use - will need a bit of sanding.

the reason i was asking is that in the trem cavatity, the wood is def rougher and non-shiney - so there must be something coated on the outer surface. i dunno, i gotta think of the design first - plus i probably need access to a power-sander (dont fancy doing this by hand!)

[Aug]

if you sand the soundboard too thin, you might as well just throw the guitar into the trash. Give the body a good once-over with the sander, then use an epoxy-based wood filler for all the dings. Once that sets, (10 minutes is usually enough time) sand everything down. For the smaller dents/dings try using a glaze putty mixed with hardener. Sand, prime and shoot.