I used fiberglass tape on the inside and outside of the butt joints. It turned out perfectly clear. There isn't any kind of a tape mark. I took the advice from the people at Pygmy and tried to do the assembly and get a saturation coat of epoxy on as soon as possibe to avoid the darkening of the wood outside of the taped butt joints. They said the wood that doesn't have epoxy on it darkens from sunlight. As far as staining, I would get reccomendations from Pygmy and the epoxy manufacturer. Good luck. It's a wonderful learning experience.