I have never done less than 30 coats of TruOil because I like a TO glossy finish. I do a light clean up with ScotchBrite (grey) after each coat. However the SB does not flatten the coats. Therefore it needs levelling. If you give the finish one stoke with 1200 sandpaper you see fine stroke marks from the application. I find I have scratched the finish if I do use 1200 to level it. But found that the 1200 equiv micro-mesh pads level like 1200 sandpaper but does not leave scratches. As I get further through the process I use finer MM. I do a level after 5 coats. The last couple of levels are very light.