Finish Simulator
Pick a wood, pick a finish, and get two things: a rough preview of where that combination lands visually, and the sanding plan it actually needs — including the grit ceilings that hardwax oils genuinely enforce and most people find out about the hard way. Every wood here has a full write-up in the species wiki, and you can jump to it from the picker below at any point.
Read this before trusting the picture
The preview is a simulation, not a color match. It models the real optical effects a finish has — wetting the surface, adding its own tint, changing how light reflects — but it can't know your board, your lighting, your coat count, or how a particular batch behaves. Two boards of the same species routinely finish differently. Always test your actual finish on an offcut of your actual board before committing to the real piece. The sanding and prep advice is researched from manufacturer instructions where they publish them, but their datasheet beats this page every time.
Safety, seriously: rags soaked in linseed, tung, or Danish oil generate heat as they cure and can catch fire on their own in a bin. Spread them flat outdoors to dry, or drown them in water in a sealed metal container. This is a real and regular cause of shop fires, not a theoretical one. Solvent-based finishes also need real ventilation and, for spraying, a proper respirator — a dust mask does nothing against vapor.
Product names are listed because they're the ones people actually use, not because anyone paid to be here. We have no affiliate relationship with any finish manufacturer.