Buttonlac. Warm look, good wear and easy repair.
Steve spaketh...
Not on a floor IMHO, too soft, not enough water resistance
Not sure what "warm" means. A softer sheen maybe. Wax would work well on heart pine, high maintenance. You need a finish designed for floors or you will have real trouble.
MH
A whole bunch of kayak and canoe makers would disagree with you.
I have only book knowledge about most of these options, but I'll share my thoughts anyway. The first idea that comes to my mind is tinting your poly with one of the many powdered tints available (there are water-based, oil-based, and alcohol-based; I think you would use oil-based if your poly uses paint thinner as its solvent). Another thing that comes to mind is to make a pass over the floor with one of these tints before the poly (with a base that is not compatible with your poly so it doesn't redissolve). Note that if you intend to use a water-base, a pass beforehand with water to raise the grain with a light sanding after dry is recommended in what I've read. My third thought it that if you used a phenolic varnish, I believe it will yellow over time to give it warmth, and should be plenty hard enough.
P.S. From what I've read, shellac wouldn't be hard enough; it would be a big surprise to me to find out it has fared well in a high wear area.
DAGS on shellac, floor, repair. Shellac was used for years and years on floors. True, it's not as hard as poly, but it is much easier to fix any scratches. Both will scratch -- the difference is that you can fix shellac.
Steve spaketh...
kayaks and canoes do not get the foot traffic that a floor does
I am surprised, of what I have read about boat building, I have never seen buttonlac on any list of recommended sealants for watercraft, guess you learn something new every day.
Better options for the home owner or floor guy? With shellac, when it started looking bad, you could clean it and put another coat on. With poly, you have to sand it off and have it reapplied which is not a DIY for most people.
I disagree. The DIYer can apply another coat of poly just about as easily as a coat of shellac.
M Hamlin
But they can't sand the floor down without leaving lots of ruts and hills. Shellac partially dissolves the previous coat and chemically bonds itself. Poly relies on a mechanical key and thus must be sanded or screened before an additional coat can be applied.
Oil is an option, and wax would give about the same look while adding some protection. What is the claimed density of that product?
Polyurethane does look like plastic if there is too much finish. If you saw a bad water base, you saw a poor quality finish or poorly applied finish. An outstanding water with a very low sheen is Bona Kemis Traffic or Basic Coatings Street Shoe Matte. The best oil does not come in a very low sheen(Fabulon Poly-Pro Satin).
The only way you will ever know is to apply some samples.
My personal taste means that almost every piece of furniture I see with a plastic-y look gets two thumbs down. (At best one thumb down and one thumb sideways). I am hyper aware of it. I used three coats of satin alkyd varnish last year on an end table and it didn't look plastic-y. I assume that a few coats of matte or satin poly wouldn't either. I would guess that the plastic look comes almost entirely from using a glossy sheen. I would be surprised if there was any realistic danger of you putting so many coats on that the finish thickness affected the appearance.
Wouldn't a final coat of polished wax give it a glossy look regardless of what is underneath? By the way, have you considered just looking at some finished floors to see what you like?
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