i dip a finger into the little bottle and i put a drop at the top, in the middle and at the end of the stock and i use 2 fingers and rub it in circle pattern untill the stock is coated and then i'll use my 2 fingers and start working it in long strokes and watch in the light for any drips, then i let it sit for maybe an hour to an hour and a half and while its still tacky, i'll add a thicker coat and then allow it to sit over night. After its good and dry i buff it lightly with 0000 steel wool and repeat it over again. On my last coat i didnt steel wool the stock, i let it sit for 2 days to fully cure and then i buffed it with stock sheen to take out the high gloss and any little bumps that were on it. I found that when i applied the first coat in a circle pattern and rubbed it in, i hardly got any sags or drips. Im happy with it now, but i just looked and it appears a little dog toe nail scraped against it and now i have to go and fix that part. [:@]