You get a smaple of each done by the person doing the floors the sample on your floors

I love that particular choice in wood, so I totally get your wish. Consider Loba Invisible 2k AT. I wanted as little color change as possible on our white oak, and I tested all the products you mean, along with a ton of others. They all pulled tannins and changed the look. We finally went with Loba, using the Invisible as our first coat like a sealer (even sealers designated as sealers drew color, but the invisible--if it did, it only drew a snick.) Then we coated with the Supra 2K AT because we did want a little shine. So far, they have held up to workers and our dogs, etc..

The (poorly lit) picture below is finished floor with a piece of the same white oak with JUST coats of Loba Invisible. You can see how dry and raw it looks, yet it is fully protected, which wax/oil won't do.

Staircase with invisible, waiting for its coats of supra.

@Lomo That's what I was afraid of, but when I saw that it was used on the floors at the airport with millions of shoes & boots walking over them, I figured it must be ok for a residential home...but I don't know anyone who'd used it

@Keen B I love the look of your staircase and what looks to be the middle(?) piece of wood in the other pic you posted. It's exactly the look I'm after with very low sheen. Did you try the Osmo Polyx Raw by any chance? I don't know anyone who has used it but it was suggested to me as a less expensive alternative that was more forgiving when having to do repairs (able to do spots/small areas rather than stripping the whole floor. Also that it was quite good for potentially wet areas like kitchens and baths

@CGKA2020 I kept trying to talk myself into the hardwax/oil products for that very reason-the fixable nature of it. But the more research I did and the samples I tested, I was not totally convinced that it would hold up and do what I wanted it to.. (Afterall, those public spaces you mention are probably waxed/treated more often than we see, sort of like the janitors in schools with their giant wax rotors going up and down the halls weekly, if not daily.)

Yes, I tested Osmo. I also tested Pallman's, Fiddes, Ciranova, Rubio, even Bona Craft Oil (which was the hardest sample to find, and the most inconsistent in results-spotty.) I was a little obsessed, searching for a particular look, LOL. I got lots of great, tireless advice from the pros on this site. I was looking for a wax that I could coat with Poly if I felt it was necessary later. Yes, most of the companies have a poly that will go over their waxes/oils if in same product line.

The truth is that ALL the oil/wax products pulled tannins. None of them kept the wood as raw/natural as possible...The thing I noticed is that the longer the samples sat, like weeks later, the more orange they became and the more alike they looked. Meaning, no matter the product or even the shade color, the more they looked like the others, and the more the flooring looked like they had oil based poly on them. Makes sense, since the products are oil based.

The only one that did not do this was the Ciranova raw and white; Ciranova was the best wax/oil at keeping the wood looking normal and it changed the least over time. Their product TITAN on top, kept it the strongest. The Rubio was the easiest to apply and get good results, but it has a bad reputation for not being the most protective. I tried TITAN on top of it and it worked with helping make it stronger, but not sure that would be warranted. The titan was the easiest to apply, but by itself, it pulled tannins.

Now realize I cannot speak to big applications-these were samples.

The OSMO colors were sort of icky looking, and like I said the raw didn't stay raw looking.

I was totally ready to go with the Ciranova had I chosen wax/oil, but we are near the ocean and have large dogs...it just threw me to spend that much money and possibly need to recoat every year/every few years. So I started testing the WB poly products, which are honestly the only ones that don't pull yellow over time. Bona, Ciranova, Pallman's and then finally Loba. I was ecstatic about the Loba. It was the only one that truly looked raw and achieved the color I was hoping for. All the others simply made the wood the color it is when it is wet.

We found a supplier that didn't charge an arm and a leg, but I don't think they do mail orders. We paid less for the Loba than the other high end companies charge, though I see it priced much higher elsewhere, so look around.

We found it more forgiving to apply than Bona, but the first coat of Invisible is tricky to apply (as are all tinted poly products). You MUST follow directions and try to apply quickly and along the length of the planks... more if you want help/advice there later, if you choose this product. But 3 coats of the Invisible 2k AT (make sure it is AT) and you probably won't be worrying about areas that need fixing...Some advisors here say to do a coat of the invisible, then a gloss coat of the Supra, then back to the invisible so it won't look too milky. Test, test , test.

OR Ciranova has an oil product called Ecofix or Woodlook. It might be what you are looking for.

Oh, and with the wax products, how tightly sanded the wood is can greatly affect the color, too. So your samples really really need to be just like your floor conditions...

@Keen B - Good point about the janitorial staff and upkeep etc...I hadn't thought of that! So, it's sounding like I may scratch the hardwax oil idea.

I don't have dogs or kids, and do like the claims that it does well in kitchens & baths (potentially wet areas) but I really don't like the idea of maintenance.

I haven't done a search yet on where to buy the Loba Invisible 2K, but I was going to have to get the Bona Traffic HD Raw shipped to me so I'll find it somewhere! Plus, what I've learned so far is that it comes at a relatively good price.

Did you say you tried the Bona Raw? It's not long on the market and the reason I was leaning towards that brand was the low sheen. Their claim is it's only 3% or 4% sheen..apparently, the lowest on the market.

@CGKA2020 No, I did not test the raw poly, because it required one of their sealers first, and all their "light colored" sealers changed the color of my wood. The Loba Invisible can act as a sealer, and you do not have to lay down a coat of anything else first.. Perhaps a pro here can weigh in on whether the same is true of the Bona Raw, (even though the company says otherwise.)

And wax did a great job of protecting floors for centuries. See any 200 year old floor on the New England coast. The poly came in as a way for us to not have to wax our floors over and over, LOL.