Some methods to the madness... I like to fill checks, ring shakes, spilts with resin prior to applying the finish.. the reason is it seems like bubbles loves to escape from the defect right after the epoxy has kicked.. no bueno..
In this case the Elm is a light wood so I added black pigment to the resin before filling the defects... and in reality they are not defects.. they're character..
Cleaned up a bit with a belt sander... Ill bring this back to the shop and have them use the 52" drum sander to clean up the remaining shadows from the pigment..
A spritz of alcohol to show what it will look like finished...Pics don't do it justice..
