If you drop it in a swimmin' pool, you'll find it on the bottom, cause it doesn't float. Seriously, its pretty hard, dense, oily, a little tough. Requires sharp tools, and will dull them fairly easily. That said, its a really nice wood to work, takes a polish readily, and isn't really finicky to work with. You'll have no problem working with it. Just remember it really is a dense wood--its used quite a bit for bearings, especially on ships, due to its oil content which keeps any water damage from occurring. In fact, I'm using lignum vitae for guide blocks on my band saw, and its much better than the ones that came with the saw!