Holding bodies and necks during finishing

[Andrew McSpadden]

I am spraying more and am tired of coat hangers and screws to hang my stuff. I have worked in several factories and seen some neat ways of holding and hanging parts during finishing. Anybody care to share what they use or a pic of a great idea?

Thanks in advance!

[David King]

I used a system my friend with the spray booth uses. It's 3/4" galvanized electrical conduit, hammered flat at one end and screwed to a block of wood that can key into some part of the guitar body or neck and get fixed there. You can slip the pipe over a mandrel or hang it from a wire when you aren't holding it and turning the part as you spray it. There are mandrels sticking out at various angles around the room so you can spray a stack of parts and set them up to dry or turn them frequently to stop runs from forming.

[Dan Smith]

I install an eyelet into the bottom where the strap lock will be.
I found hanging the guitar upside down easier to manipulate when spraying.

[Brian Evans]

I typically hang the neck, but I use a stand for the body.

[Peter Wilcox]

I spray everything horizontally - fewer runs that way for me. I attach a stick to the screw holes of the the neck pocket or the neck heel, or the bolt holes on bolt on necks and bodies. The stick is wedged in a hole in a riser attached to an old rotating TV stand. The part can be rotated horizontally or flipped as needed to spray, and I can just stand in one place (where the angle of illumination is best.) I have to spray outside, and I can set it up or tear it down in less than 5 minutes.

[Steve Sawyer]

I have "designs" for the mounting I'm going to use for the current build, and will share that when I get it done. One question I have though is that I'm assuming a set-neck guitar is finished with the neck assembled; I can't see trying to clamp and glue a finished neck. That assumption is what is leading me to design something that locks into one of the pickup cavities.

There might be a rotisserie motor involved now that I've seen someone do that!

[Barry Daniels]

You can spray the parts separately if you want to. Just use some masking tape.

[Steve Sawyer]

You can spray the parts separately if you want to. Just use some masking tape.

Unfortunately, I don't spray - don't have the facilities.

My concern isn't so much for the application though, just damaging the finish in the process of assembly.

[Andrew McSpadden]

Thanks to everyone that replied! I look forward to more of your ideas.

[Carl Dickinson]

Here's some pics of my spray support. Pallet, casters, 6'x post, small vise, StewMac holder.