Epoxy palaver!

Well I've tried using thin stuff on 2 instruments now as grain filler and even though the finished surface is great to spray onto, it is a tedious process. When I used the 15 minute stuff before and mixed the first coat with sawdust it worked a whole lot better. I think I'll try that next with the finishing epoxy over the top. Using a window cleaning squeegee is also a great idea because it really helps to control the spreading out of the epoxy.

Grain filling is probably our least favorite part of building. Char makes me do it I used to use epoxy mixed with micro beads as a thickener. The window squeegee is almost a must to reduce sanding time. In my experience, there is no perfect grain filler. It just a painful process. We now use a uv-cured grain filler. I like it--fast to apply, cures instantly with the uv light, and sands very easily without loading the sandpaper.

If I had a larger workshop and more time I'd experiment - I'm also going to try paste filler with epoxy...