I use my finger too. I think I can rub it in to the pores of the wood better. Not knowing better I hung a Turing from the ceiling with a loop on the end, I do 1 limb down into the handle, hang it from the nock of the unfinished limb, when that dries I flip it over and repeat on the other limb, overlapping in the handle. Steel wool between coats, then after 6 or 7 coats, spray with satin poly to knock the shine off.