I never put a mill to damascus that has not been thoroughly industrial spheroidized, but then I also work with O-1 and L6, which will laugh an evil laugh at any cutting tool unless it is thoroughly defanged. I say “industrial” to differentiate the serious operation from the makeshift bladesmithing spheroidizing I often use as well.
What I would do with the 1095 mix requires a rampable kiln. I would heat it to 1375F for about an hour and then decrease the temperature no more than 50F/hour until 850F-900F is reached. Doing this I have sent damascus out of my shop to be milled, drilled, threaded and cut and have been told that my steel was one of the few those folks have never had a damaged tool from.
This treatment will require some extra soak time to put the spheroids back into solution but it is well worth it for the machining benefits. Yes, of course entirely descale the pieces to be machined, vinegar or sodium bisulfate should work, but I would also lightly grind it clean afterwards as well.
If you don’t have a rampable kiln, you can cycle it many times around 1275F-1300F or hold it for an hour around 1280F, being careful not to let the magnet stop sticking and lose any gains by dissolving the spheroids. This method will make finer spheroidal carbides with less carbon out of play, and so may chatter a mill a little more than the full industrial schedule, but will still be far better than traditional anneals that leave the carbide in sheets which eat cutters alive.
