how to make hamon really pop.

[Tony Park]

SO is there good quench technique to make hamon really pop, or is most of it done post quench, like acid etching, or reverse etching?( iguess reverse etching is when people cover the hamon with cyanoacrylate, and then go over it with ferric chloride or something.

Hoping to get this right the first time, or at least get ot something i can live with.

 

[Richard338]

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-hamon-thread.1459372/
Check out the hamon thread.
The clay and the quench will decide if you have the different zones along the blade. After that it's all about polishing and etching. The good news is you can repolish and start the etch again many times until you see what you like.

 

[Kevin Kf knives]

I follow jball_knives on Instagram, he does some pretty cool hamons. I'm still trying to figure how to make my hamon stand out like his, a bunch of failures so far, but I'm having fun trying and have some interesting hamons so far.

Too bad a lot of the pictures don't work anymore on that hamon thread.

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

#1 tip is this - The clay is everything. It may take 100 hamons to dial in your clay application.
#2 tip - Start with much less clay than you think you need. Using the right steel, temperatures, and quenching techniques you can get a nice hamon even with no clay.
#3 tip - Practice, practice, practice. If a hamon runs off the edge or didn't come out right, just re-do it. Move your clay or change the amount of clay as needed to get the hamon to fall where you want.
#4 tip - Start simple. No one is going to come even close to "Willows in front of Fugi" ... so don't try. Start with a simple suguha hamon. When those fall exactly where you want every time, try chogi, gunomi, and others.


I haven't used mine yet, but bought them for my next hamon tasks. From what I read, the Nuclayer system of two clays is really good. The jars are large and should last for 100s of hamons.
I really like them being in two colors so you know the exact placement of the clay line and ashi.

 

[Kevin Kf knives]

#1 tip is this - The clay is everything. It may take 100 hamons to dial in your clay application.
#2 tip - Start with much less clay than you think you need. Using the right steel, temperatures, and quenching techniques you can get a nice hamon even with no clay.
#3 tip - Practice, practice, practice. If a hamon runs off the edge or didn't come out right, just re-do it. Move your clay or change the amount of clay as needed to get the hamon to fall where you want.
#4 tip - Start simple. No one is going to come even close to "Willows in front of Fugi" ... so don't try. Start with a simple suguha hamon. When those fall exactly where you want every time, try chogi, gunomi, and others.


I haven't used mine yet, but bought them for my next hamon tasks. From what I read, the Nuclayer system of two clays is really good. The jars are large and should last for 100s of hamons.
I really like them being in two colors so you know the exact placement of the clay line and ashi.

I've been seeing #2 is so accurate trying to figure out that guys hamons. I literally use a razor knife to drag down a sliver of furnace cement and get a long, wider than expected line.
I really enjoy practicing too. I'm lucky enough to have the resources to buy plenty of W2 and 1095 and like seeing what a slight variance makes in the cement.

And I'll research that Nuclayer stuff.

 

[Kevin Kf knives]

This is how the hamon came out with the furnace cement applied with this pattern, and I can't get the contrast much better, but still trying.

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

You will find a wash coat first, followed by the hamon clay coat gives the best hamon. This is the standard method used by most folks I know. The wsh coat is really thin ... like a melted milkshake. The hamon coat is about the consistency of cheap yogurt.

Take a look at the Nuclayer videos on applying the clay. He shows the steps quite well.
Walter Sorrell's videos are also superb.