Dear Oracle

I am ready to cut slots in my precious unmarked deck. I've been practising cutting slots in a piece of scrap and working out how to cut them, seal the wood and then seal the hole with the loop in place, and I am a bit nervous that they won't seal.

I have a coping saw. I also have a fretsaw but the arm doesn't bend like a coping saw so I will use the coping saw to be able to cut the slot parallel to the sheer line.

I started by drilling and cutting a 7/32" slot, plugging it with epoxy. And then cutting a 3/32 slot in that. Then I thought, can I not simply cut a 3/32 slot in the wood, spread a little epoxy in to seal the wood, and leaving roughly a 3/32 slot. Do I really need a hole plug of epoxy in there.

So my questions:
* The epoxy I spread in does seal the wood. Of course, it's not as thick as the plug wall would be. Have I got enough epoxy on the weed? I assume I do, since there is no wear on this hole?
* 3/32" is about as thin as I can get the slot (anything thinner I can't get the coping saw blade in). But it's quite a bit thicker than the webbing. What do I use to seal the slot, with the webbing inserted?

I kind of feel like I am missing something here, and that I should be aiming for a much thinner slot. But I can't figure out how to do it. I wish fretsaws came with bending arms like a coping saw.

Many thanks all for your help :-)

Ian