OK...please bear with me. I have a few questions.

I'm about to pull up the carpet on ~ 600 sf of oak floor that hasn't seen the light of day in some time. From the looks of what I saw in one corner, it looks like it's in good shape (but I know the corners don't get much traffic ).

Before I discovered this forum, I figured I was resigned to an oil based poly finish, but after reading several posts here I'm excited about the water based finishes that are available...and therein lies my confusion.

I read one post that said " 2 coats of Emulsion followed by 1 coat of Streetshoe". I've read other posts that said that Bona Traffic is the best finish. I have no particular loyalty to any manufacturer and I just want what will give me the best performance and still be something that someone like me (with essentially no experience doing this) can handle.

So...first off is Bona Traffic "better" than Streetshoe?

If it's Streetshoe, then what's the procedure? Is it what the aforementioned post said?

What's the difference between Streetshoe and Streetshoe 275. Is one better than the other in terms of durability? Is one better than the other for a DIYer like me?

If the best is Traffic product, then what's the protocol for the initial coats? Is there another Bona product that's analogous to to 'Emulsion'

Thanks very much in advance for any guidance.

Both finishes are very good. Better is a relative term here mainly because you have to be able to apply them correctly to fully benefit from them. I'll explain .

Bona Traffic is unique in one way among water borne finishes. It can be applied to the floor extremely heavy . I apply it to floors at about 380 sq feet per gallon .That is very heavy. The Bona traffic will not bubble on you but will actually lay out and level itself almost as well as oil based poly. In general, it looks excellent and is extremely tough.Nearly twice as durable as oil based poly.

Basic coating street shoe is also a great product. It cannot be applied as heavy as Bona traffic because if you do, you will get air bubbles that dry in the finish .Not a good thing. So to get the equivalent build with street shoe, you will have to do more coats. I apply street shoe at about 470 to 480 sq feet per gallon.

Bona offers a specialized roller to use with their traffic. It works very well and is much easier to use than a T bar or pad type applicator. Street shoe can be rolled but it needs to be done with a closed nap roller like a Purdy 1/4" nap white dove.

You can use a good brush or pad to cut in your edges. But I can promise you that no water base is as forgiving as applying oil. So check the web for some videos on applying the products. If oyu make mistakes in a water base coat, it can be very difficult to touch up.

Traffic isn't meant to be used as a sealer coat so consider sealing the floor either with Bona's oil based Dri Fast sealer. It has a color that is very similar to most oil based urethanes and can definitely be top coated with Bona traffic.

You can also use their Amber seal or DTS which are waterborne. I would not recommend their Bonaseal. Bonaseal is easy enough to apply and looks good but is a nightmare to buff out.It melts onto your abrasive very quickly. You "will" pull your hair out trying to get the bonaseal smoothed out .In contrast, the DTS , Drifast and Amberseal all buff reasonably well.

OK so let's say that I've decided to go with the Basic products.
In another post that I read, the poster said go with 2 coats of Emulsion followed by 1 (or possibly 2) coats of Streetshoe.

I'm told that Streetshoe 275 can be rolled. Can a roller also be used to apply Emulsion?

Emulsion rolls out just make sure there is no air movement and the floor hasent been heated by the sun all day. And dont overwork it trying to smooth it out thats where most people screw it up. once it starts to set up just leave it alone or you will make a mess of things. Also I always tell people to wait untill the next day to top emulsion with streetshoe. The shoe is a little hotter than the emulsion so it will want to aggressively eat into the coat if you dont give it overnight dry time.

Thanks Kevin...same roller - 1/4" nap I assume?

And your advice leads me to one more question. Your advice to wait until the next day to put Streetshoe on top of Emulsion. I assume that you mean that waiting time is after the last coat of Emulsion. If I'm planning 2 coats of Emulsion followed by one coat of Streetshoe, I assume that I apply the second coat of Emulsion after a couple of hours. Is that correct?

And thanks to everyone else. You've all been very helpful.

Yessirr. You can do one or two coats of emulsion same day no big deal. Its just better to wait the night if you change to Shoe for the final.

Do I need to abrade between coats?

If so, with what?