Can this Hamon be improved? Or leave it alone?

[ricky_arthur]

Can I improve this Hamon by doing another etch with vinegar? It has been etched with diluted ferric chloride and polished with 000 steel wool 5 times. I like it a lot. But it doesn't have that ashy appearance I see in some Hamon lines. This is Aldo's 1084. Can I improve it or should I leave it alone.

Here are 2 pics after etch and before polish. Because its late and the light is poor so it shows the lines better In a picture.

Any input?

 

[Josh Dabney]

Ricky.

It can be improved by taking your blade to a higher grit surface finish. The white looking ashi or "activity" Won't show up well until about 800 grit but the higher the better. I go to 1500 grit then do a 15 second etch in ferric. After the etch you'll need to polish the blade up. I've found I like polishing with Gojo (pumice) then flitz to get the blade to pop.
My methods are admittidly beginner methods in the world of polishing hamon but they'll bring out the ashi.

With Aldo's 1084 you're not likely to get alot of ashi to form in the traditional sense but you should still have a nice bright line running along the transition zone. 1095 1075 or W2 from Aldo are better choices for hamon IMHO. You'll certainly get a differential hardening with 1084 like you see here just not the kind of activity you can get with these other steels.

GREAT looking blade !

-Josh

Great looking blade !

 

[ricky_arthur]

Thanks Josh. Here it is this morning. Maybe I need to get some flitz? Or leave it alone? I tried 2000 grit paper about midway and that almost wiped it off. So I need something gentler than 2000. This is how it looks polished with the steel wool. This blade followed my clay line very closely. . Go figure.

 

[Josh Dabney]

I've had the same experience with attempting final polishing with paper. I always ended up with a blade that appeared polished and really shiny.

I like the gojo to clean up the blade after etching. I squirt it on the blade and polish with cotton make-up pads and I like that process. The Flitz just "brightens" things up a little after that.

Some folks will do their final polishing with loose powdered abrasives and others with rotten stone. I have not tried these yet but intend to eventually. For the time being I'm happy with the gojo polish that leaves me with a dull finish that shows the details.


Fun stuff

-Josh