"I am not an authority or expert on this topic, this is just what I have learned through trial and error and advice received from some amazing makers in the community. It works for me and I am happy to share it."
I used a gas forge for my first 2 years of Heat Treating and actually had more consistent results than the last year of using my Evenheat Oven. They are different animals, and require a different approach.
My Gas Forge HT Process:
My Biggest concern when HT-ing in a forge is getting too hot during my Soak TIme. It is very important to have good control of your heat and let it stabilize as close to 1470 - 1500 F as possible. 1095 and W2 (The steel I recommend for active Hamon's) require a soak time of 6-10 minutes at austenitizing temp.
Mike Quesenberry was gracious enough to help me when I was using a gas forge and gave me some great advice. start heading the blade by holding the tip in the tongs spine up to get everything heated up. This prevents the tip from overheating which I had huge problems with. It is almost impossible to have that tip in the forge when bringing the blade up to temp and not over heat it.
when the Ricasso / Cutting edge reaches non-mag. (test with a magnet frequently) flip it around and heat tip first edge up, to bring the tip up to temp. Then move the blade back and forth to try and keep the entire blade the same temp. We don't care about the spine just the edge and bare spots between the clay. This is your Soak, it is important to keep the heat even along the entire edge and just above Critical Temp.
If you have the room darkened or do it later at night you are able to see the waves move through the steel, this is what you want to happen while you are "Soaking" your blade, make sure to keep moving it in and out so you dont get the steel too hot, you can even bring the blade out of the forge during your movement to keep it cool. Don't let it drop too much though....
Good Luck,
Ryan Weeks
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