: Most of the really dark woods are really heavy. I was thinking
: about going with the darkest WRC I could find and using aniline
: dyes to darken it just prior to glassing.

Redwood comes in many colors. It is lightweight,
not exorbitantly expensive, and widely distributed. Real mahogany can be stained and so can Lauan or Meranti, which are often called 'Philippine mahogany.

: . . . Aniline dyes?

They seem to work well.

Will the epoxy make the
: dye bleed?

Probably not. It doesn't hurt to do a small trial on scraps of your strips.

Will Lassie rescue Timmy?

Woof. Grrrr-woof woof. Lassie's translator says, "Don't forget you can make the wood appear darker by using a tinted varnish. "

And we all know Lassie will always speak ther unvarnished truth.

PGJ