Black palm is an absolute PITA to work with, but it looks sooo good when/IF you get it right. I really like to work with Ebony/African Blackwood, it's sooo dense and you don't have to use a finish on it & when you do use a finish it's even more beautiful. The more I think about it, any real dense (love the exotics) hardwood is what I like. Picked up some bamboo from a local flooring place the other day and am going to give it a try here soon.