A grade and covered in wax on one side.  One board per sale.  You will not find a higher quality fret/finger board blank at this price. Quarter Sawn

Blackwood African (Botanical: Dalbergia melanoxylon)

Blackwood Characteristics

Very difficult to work with hand or machine tools, with an extreme blunting effect on cutters. African blackwood is most often used in turned objects, where it is considered to be among the very finest of all turning woods capable of holding threads and other intricate details well. When made into clarinet or oboe bodies, the wood is typically processed on metal-working equipment, giving it a reputation as being metal-like in some of its working properties.

African Blackwood is  very expensive, on par with true ebonies such as Gaboon Ebony.  Its is listed on CITES appendix II and IUCN as being near threatened, but not red listed.

Color Range

Often completely black, with little or no discernible grain. Occasionally slightly lighter, with a dark brown or purplish hue. The pale yellow sapwood is usually very thin, and is clearly demarcated from the darker heartwood.

Other Names

African blackwood, African ebony, African grenadilo, Banbanus, Ebene, Grenadilla, Grenadille d'Afrique, Mpingo (Swahili), Mufunjo, Mugembe, Mukelete, Pau preto, Poyi

Typical Use:

Musical instruments turning, inlay, and accents.

Tree Characteristics:

The small tree develops more than a single stem, and typically grows to a height of 15 to 20 feet. The bole is often short, fluted, and rarely cylindrical, with diameters that are seldom more than 12.  Since the tree grows so slowly and is generally small and gnarly, available boards tend to be narrow.

Blackwood African grows:

Mainly Africa, The tree is also reported to grow in western India.