Ebony wood is oily and fairly difficult to finish with lacquer; urethane tends to work better. Sand them, wipe down with acetone, dye, and finish. The most success I've had with making ebony sharps black is to die them with a high quality shoe makers leather dye and finish over that. The leather dye works well on the lesser quality sharps.
High quality ebony sharps were never really intended to look "absolutely black". They look and feel amazing if sanded down to 600 grit and buffed. If one wants pure black sharps with no grain, use plastic.
Michael Spreeman www.RavenscroftPianos.com
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