When to stain, paint and or varnish?

[morfa]

As I am a newbie to this craft, I am trying to gather as much information as I can before I open the box and start the kit (it is somewhere mid-Atlantic arriving late next week).
Does one put the kit together first (gluing parts in place), then stain parts that need it, paint the hull (in my case it is ABS white from the box), then varnish where needed at the end?
The big question is — do I stain the deck pieces before gluing or after. Do I paint the hull before I put the "superstructure" on it? Thanks - probably a real newbie question? Building a Krick Borkum kit. D.

 

[Jim J]

As far as the deck is concerned I would stain the pieces before assembly because the glue used to adhere them to the model will prevent any stain from getting into the wood making it look splotchy. As for the hull - if it is ABS plastic I would definately paint it before assembly. I would also stain any superstructure parts first unless you are going to paint them a certain color, in which case I would assemble them, paint them and then install them on the deck. Painting once installed can leave unsightly messes around the join unless properly masked - which is hard to do once assembled, but can be done with a little care. Hope that helps.