I got the Hack berry from a friend here in Florida, She is a wood turner. It was cut somewhere in Florida, not sure if it was north or south... The wood is fine grained and has a medium hardness... a bit like cherry, but maybe a bit denser. The rosewood is also from Florida, St Pete I believe. I just strung it up, it is not the loudest uke in the world, but I left the Hack berry a touch thicker then I will next time and I went with 3 fan braces... next time I will go with a single brace... That seems to be holding up well on the sycamore concert I strung up a couple weeks ago.