Thanks for the advice, very grateful. I was intending to go with smooth Balau as it is a lot cheaper than the Ipe in the UK, but I got my glass and mini posts for a fully frameless balustrade at a ridiculousy good deal (off eBay somehow) so cecided to go all in with the Ipe. Will be using hidden fixings so just got to decide whether to go for 90mmx19mm or 140mmx21mm boards, not sure if I may get a cupping problem on the larger ones though. I have just checked and I can get all of those pre-requisite liquids easily enough so feel a little better now. You say that with the Ipe, that I shouldn’t need a sealant or preserver, does that mean the I can just use the OWATROL on the cut ends and on top of the boards and I should be ok?