Okay I get what you are saying about cup now. Thanks Eric. There could be a some of that, but its not bad enough on mine to reject the slat.
The mature madake boo seems a bit narrower than the average mature moso, so its going to have a little more crown once its flattened. Tonkin is even smaller in diameter so its only suitable for a relatively narrow bow, unless you edge join two narrow slats.
Maybe the Moso has more of a tendency to cup than madake.
Howard hill used to flatten his madake by steaming, then put in a press. So that might be a viable option( a lot of extra work though).
Ben. I'm down in Sydney. Bought the boo from BambooOZ on a holiday, easier top transport by car split than round. Plenty of good bow wood in QLD. Saffronheart(rainforest timber), on the east coast where you live. Also red/pink ash is a big favourite with local bowyers in your region. Seems pretty common around Gympie, as a scrub tree growing in the understory of sclerophyll forests. You can see them growing on the side of the road.
Further west, Kingaroy, you can find brigalow. Even further west most of the tough desert acacias like mulga will also make a good bow too.
