| Name | African Blackwood (Dalbergia melanoxylon) |
| Type | Hardwood. |
| Other Names | Also known as Mozambique ebony, Senegal ebony, mpingo, grenadillo, banbanus, ebene, mufunjo, and Congowood. |
| Sources | Grows in East Africa. Dark purplish brown heartwood with black streaks and narrow, white sapwood. |
| Appearance | Mostly straight grained with fine texture, dull luster, and slightly oily nature. Dark purplish brown heartwood with black streaks and narrow, white sapwood. |
| Physical Props | Extremely heavy and hard and rates high in strength, stiffness, shock resistance, and decay resistance (heartwood). Very stable in use. |
| Working Props | Has severe blunting effect on cutting edges but otherwise cuts smoothly and cleanly and can be easily tapped for screw threads. Pre-drilling required for screwing or nailing. Glues well and polishes to a very smooth, lustrous finish. |
| Uses | Often used for woodwind instruments such as flutes, piccolos, oboes, clarinets, recorders, bag pipes, and so on. Also used for brush backs, knife handles, chess pieces, bearings, pulley blocks, walking sticks, inlay, and carving. |
| Comments | Considered one of the best woods in the world for turnery. |
