Originally Posted by
canid
Yes, I've been studying nihonto heat treatment for quite a while. I'm not certain how well I can pull it off, and If I lack confidence when the time comes for hardening I believe I will just oil quench and then temper the spine. This blade is maru-gitae from 5160 steel, so there is little hope of anything better than a plain, bland hamon anyway.
The traditional hardening process is much more involved than oil quenching, and is very aggressive. There can be a fairly high rate of breakage even by the skilled. The results are astoundingly graceful though.
as far as the gear cutter; Yes, I'm talking about horizontal milling, though this can be done of a vertical mill just as well by clamping your work perpendicular to the table.