Okay, Melissa, you want to buy a cheap guitar with a thick, shiny finish and make it look like an old guitar with a matte finish.

Have you ever stripped and refinished a piece of furniture? Do you have the equipment? Workbench? A basement or garage? Ventilation? Because if you live in an apartment, there is trouble ahead.

Then there's the matter of the other materials in the guitar. It could contain adhesives and other finishes which will be damaged by fumes or seepage from the stripper. For example, what will a stray drop of stripper do to the neck?

Somebody recommended acetone. Acetone is very dangerous.

Unless you are experienced in stripping, I recommend going back to the post by John in kansas and doing what he says.

But first I would live with the guitar for a while. You may discover that the shiny finish doesn't really matter.