So after a few days of doing nothing (my excuse is I was letting the oil dry...) I have got this to a stage that I think it could be used.
To recap, I removed the grain sheet then hand sanded with 80 grit to remove the layer of paint.
I then worked my way through the grades of paper, 120, 180 and 240 before applying a coat of oil.
Once the oil was dry I gave it a final hand sand all over with 320 and 400 grit to get it nice and smooth.
So here it is!
It now weighs 2lb11 & 5/8 with the original grip and toe guard still applied.
I plan to change the grip setup to 1.5 chevrons and apply a scuff sheet.
I'm pretty pleased with how well it's turned out, filler aside. It's got a couple of beautiful butterfly stains and the grains are pretty tasty for the price.
For a £45 bat it's pretty good looking (from the face, at least) and is in a usable weight.
I may also apply some stickers of some description to the back. If the filler is out of sight then it becomes a much better buy