In the Field
JUNE 16, 2026
The Chronicle
Notes from the field, the bench, and the reserve—where rare timber, working process, and the making of each bow are recorded as they unfold.
The Wood
May 10, 2026
Macassar Ebony: A New Foundation
A fresh lift of exhibition-grade Macassar ebony is on the bench—dense, ribboned, and wide enough to speak riser language without borrowing from guitar-scale offcuts.
The Wood
April 29, 2026
Wild Grain Ziricote: When the Lines Break
A wild-grain Ziricote board in the reserve trades tidy spiderweb lines for churned, smoky figure and a pale sapwood shore—grain personality for the archer who wants the strange cousin, not the textbook set.
The Wood
April 28, 2026
Ziricote, Taken from the Guitar Bench
A thick, wide Ziricote slab from a respected luthier supplier—landscape figure, pale sapwood rails—held for an Imperator commission that asks for exhibition fiber at riser scale, not guitar scale.
The Wood
April 27, 2026
When Amboyna Turns to Stone and Ember
A singular Amboyna burl slab—natural blue-grey field, amber burl heart, live edge—sits in the reserve after deliberate sourcing; figure follows the same structural gate as every other riser timber.
The Wood
April 26, 2026
Sonoran Desert Ironwood: Weight, Quiet, and History
A fresh sawmill lift of true Sonoran Desert Ironwood is on the bench—documented origin, partnership-sourced, and dense enough to quiet a riser the way the best knife-scale lifts always promised but rarely supplied at bow width.
The Wood
April 24, 2026
Banksia Pods: Casting Light into the Seed
Three fifteen-inch Banksia pods sourced on commission—unusually uniform in seed-eye spacing—await stabilization and cast resin before they can carry an Imperator riser as structure, not ornament.
The Wood
April 23, 2026
Black & White Ebony: Drawing with Grain
A matched pair of Black & White Ebony blanks sits on the bench—unusually continuous in figure, graphically bold, and reserved for a commission that understands what top-shelf contrast demands of a riser.
The Wood
April 22, 2026
African Blackwood Burl: The Apex of the Reserve
A master-grade African Blackwood Burl blank has entered the reserve—dense enough to quiet a riser, dark enough to hold depth without theatrics, and rare enough to reset what "available" means on the bench.
Bowyer's Notes
April 10, 2026
Anatomy of the Hybrid Longbow: Deflex, Reflex, and Absolute Silence
Merging the quiet characteristics of a traditional longbow with the extreme energy storage of an advanced recurve limb profile requires obsessive attention to geometry.
Bowyer's Notes
March 22, 2026
Selecting Exotic Hardwoods: Beyond Aesthetics
While stunning to look at, the exotic timbers chosen for an Imperator riser are strictly selected for their structural density and harmonic dampening properties.
