| I'm fairly certain Engelhardt doesn't spray their boards anymore, and given how long you've had your S-9, yours should not have the lacquer on it that Moped refers to. They DO dye their ebony to acheive the 'traditional' solid black look on what are actually very dark brown, streaky boards. You can remove much of the dye with careful sanding, as Moped suggested, or by carefully rubbing it off with a cloth and plain old rubbing alcohol. Avoid lacquer thinner, 'cuz if you get it on the finish, you're in trouble. When done, you can leave the board as is, or apply a drying oil finish like tung, boiled linseed or danish oil, or just hit it once in a while with some lemon oil. Good luck! | 
