as usual tai, you're showing your ability to edit your posts aren't lacking.
Even clay coating is an exact science for a direct result--aesthetic, but still a particular process for the generation of a particular hamon. Poor technique results in poor results, those times we find that the...
steel, brass, and of all things.......aluminium ! I ran everything from a 4 story coining press to a 1000ton forge "press"( it would close a 15" gap in less than a second)
scott, I worked in a forging plant for 7 years.
here's a vid from wusthoff, you can see the scale on the blade. Grinding thin is just a matter of keeping things cool.
http://youtu.be/YdycKhpHpOs
..that knife has still been ground, unless it has forging scale on it.
I've found kitchen cutlery varies alot from region to region.
western countries seem to like thicker/heavy knives while japanese like laser thin/light. There are exceptions to everything.
alot boils down to personal...
looks like you got lucky..
1095 and a torch is asking for problems, especialy in water. You'll get much better results with less chance of crack/warp with some type of forge where you can let the blade soak at heat for about 10-15min.
I've also noticed that when quenching, it's around the 3-5...
I've always been told that any type of cryo or sub zero treatment to simple steels (10xx) does nothing.
Crucible told me when I asked, that I should "snap temper", then cryo. Maybe they've changed their minds.