Update: I got a sample bit of shapal, it seems to machine ok and I did some impact tests on it- it's not brittle (ie will stand up to rough handling).

Then I looked at the price.

My jigs are around 7 inch square. A bit of shapal around 2 inch square and 0.4" thick weighs in at about 400 quid *gulp* anything larger than this is "Price on Application", which we all know means giving the company accountant a heart attack lol!