I just got the guts to try a feather inlay. I tried a couple of peacock feathers using Diamond CP and It turned the feathers really dark. My question is will the clear epoxy finish bring back the color in the feathers or do I need to find another CP ? The tutorials that I have read use 811 but that's the old stuff not the new. From what I have read about the new 811 I don't really want to try it. What is everybody using now a days ?
Thanks.

I have been using olympic water based urethane to set and seal my feathers. have not had any trouble with darkening. they dry the exact color and shade and do not darken when i apply epoxy or varnish. i suspect that any water based urethane will work for this. i do apply 3 coats of the urethane before applying my final finish.

I'm a little in the dark here!! I missed the original posts on problems with 811 on feather inlays but searched "811" and found a few comments. I still don't understand the problem. Like Terry, I just tested 811( about a year old) on a practice blank and the results look good after the epoxy was applied. I did notice when I added some alcohol for thinning it did become "cloudy" as I mixed it ... and stayed that way as it was applied ..but seemed to dry very clear. I just ordered a new bottle and was just getting ready to use it on my first inlay when I read these posts. Is the consensus that we toss the 811 and look for another brand? Thanks for your input.

RodMaker Volume 2 #1.

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Thanks everyone.
Tom, I got Vol 2 on CD a couple of weeks ago and haven't had time to look at it. Guess I'll take time to look at it now. I also got RodMaker in the mail today so I don't know what to look at first. It might be one of those sleepless nights.
Thanks

i think Russ's article will answer most any question you have. If not, come back here and fire away. But I think it'll get you what you need - it's pretty in depth.

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