Mark.

I would much rather screw up a $5 piece of pine than $50 worth of hardwood( I am a cheap ass)

Besides that I am not really sure of what I am going to do as far as riser shape goes so I just play around with pine untill I get something I like

This is mock up riser number 3

I think I will be narrowing down some more in a couple of places so it is not so "bulky" looking[8D]gotta make sure the end result is top notch