I've used this highly figured Oregon myrtle (California bay laurel) stuff for number of ukes and have not had any problems. However, Pete is right, any highly figured piece of wood is by its very nature inherently unstable, but I've found myrtle to be reasonably stable and polite. A pleasure to work with. The wood I've worked with is from a reputable suppler and is well seasoned and stable. As a matter of fact, that piece of timber looks oddly familiar and it is possible I know where it came from. If it is, they sell nice wood and it is well seasoned and stable. Also Mya-Moe Ukuleles uses a lot of myrtle and they are a commercial outfit and can't afford returns due to unstable wood. Gonna look great.