Hi, in the process of staining my 2 1/4" red oak floors black after sanding them down. the first coat of Osmo black oil stain does not appear to be nearly dark enough and is a bit uneven in shade. i can put a second coat on to dark it up and or shoud i switch to something like duraseal true black. How many coats of stain can i put on? I plan to top coat with osmo polyx oil.
Can i just kepp applying coats till its dark enough? also any trick to fixing the few scuffs i put in the waterpooed floors from my knee pads. of course they only showed once the satin was applied. thanks for your help

If you want to add another coat of stain you ought to wait a few days to a week so the first coat has had a chance to harden up. The solvent dries fast but the oil part of the stain needs to cure before another coat. #2 Steel wool polishing between coats may help to blend in the marks. Another coat of stain will not darken the floor like a coat of paint, but will make an effect. The second coat will take longer to cure. Polish off extra stain with the steel wool, again, after the second coat of stain. This will be all the stain that the wood can take.
You can seal the floor with sealer that has black dye added. You need to apply uniformly. A second coat of dark seal will help to even the color out. Another coat of the darkened finish with dye in it ought to be as dark as you like.
Make sure the finish is pretty well cured before you bring in the furniture.

so i think i have it dark enough. The colour looks pretty even and not blotchy. What i am worried about is the sheen of the stain is uneven. ranges to flat to almost a semi gloss. Should i be worried? I am waiting a few days to apply the osmo poly x sealer. I am planning on adding a little black stain to the sealer. Will the sealer even out the sheen? thank you kindly for any advice. Never stained floors this dark before.

The second coat of stain seals the wood.It ought to dry pretty thoroughly. Where the wood has been coated the second time the excess stain will stay on the surface and a thin layer will have a shine. Before you apply a coat of seal I recommend using #2 steel wool to scuff the surface to remove any stain that is left on the surface. This will help prevent adhesion issues. As the surface is polished wood fibers will be exposed to accept the seal coat of finish. With the surface practically sealed by the stain it will take longer for the seal coat to dry and cure enough for a coat of finish. A single coat of tinted seal can cause unevenness in the color if it is applied too thick in spots.