Painted headstock finishing/refinishing questions

[CoughSyrup]

Two project necks in the pipeline, two separate issues:

First neck is well-finished on the neck and back of the headstock is painted black and there is some slight overspray and drips. I'm deciding between painting it another solid color or taking it back to a natural finish. How to best remove the black paint without having to take the entire neck to bare wood?

The second neck is completely unfinished and I would like to paint the headstock. What is your recommended satin poly finish for the back of the neck? I was thinking about using gunstock oil on the back of the neck, but I am not sure how well it would work with the gloss paint and clear coat I'd add to the headstock.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

How about sand out the problems with overspray and drips. Then clear coat and enjoy.

Back of the 2nd neck, lots of folks use TruOil, it's easy to put on and protects well. You can knock the gloss back if you don't like it.
So many other options, I personally am very happy with Danish Oil for bodies and necks.
A lot depends on what kind of wood we are talking about.

Oh and one last thing, do some scrap testing work first, combining different finishes/paints can cause all sorts of problems.