I was planning on going with Brazilian Walnut 3/4" solid flooring. I was going to have a friend help me lay it because he has done a couple of oak floors. Someone just recently told me that because the wood is so hard it is extra difficult to install it. Is this correct and should I not attempt to do it myself?

What would be the best nailer/stapler to use for this?
What type of underlayment shoud I use. Some people have said to just use roofing felt.

This will be about 450sqft in my great room above a basement that stays between 55-65 degrees year round. Once I have the basement finished I will begin to heat it sometimes. I have 3/4" osb subfloor on top of 2x10's 16" OC.

Are there any special precautions I need to take in using Brazilian Walnut?

By the way this is a prefinished floor.

Thanks in advance.

I have just installed ~330 sq ft of Brazilian Walnut in my living room. Mine was 3/4" solid unfinished, on top of 3/4" plywood. I am currenty in the process of putting on the sealer. To in stall, I used the bostitch MIIIFS stapler which worked extremely well. FYI, The wood is very heavy. I would not be surprised if it is twice as heavy as oak. Also, if you need to top nail some of the boards and you are nailing by hand, pre-drill the holes. There is no way a nail can be drivern by hand in this wood.