: I was
: contemplating tinting the epoxy black - at least the first one
: on the bare wood - and maybe later ones. The boat will be
: painted black as well. I was thinking that tinting the epoxy
: black would lessen the visibility of white scratches on a black
: hull.

Tinting epoxy is pretty easy. I've tried a few methods (laser toner, graphite powder, dyes) and the most effective has been the SystemThree colorants. Very, very concentrated. I think the black is the cheapest of the colors. I've also used the blue colorant, and in very small amounts it tints the epoxy but leaves it transparent. It looks pretty cool on something like a carbon Greenland paddle.

Downsides of tinting epoxy in this application:
-makes it more difficult to see if you have good wet-out of the glass
-makes scratches more difficult to see...if I scratch through to the wood, I want to know about it and repair it pronto.

Since you are painting your BP black, you will need a very good surface prep. I'd recommend the WEST fairing additives, and that would be the place where I'd add the black tint. The Microlight fairing additive is a light brown color, and will be revealed by scratches. (BTW, if you live in a hot climate, think twice about using the Microlight under black paint, as it will fail if it gets too hot. Check the WEST product info.)

And, tint your primer as well.

John