PATENTS
Gene,
I'm not aware of any patents Al might have on wootz. Others have made it besides Al and Rick. I believe Larry Harley claims to have made wootz, although I have not seen any. Rick does make a small ceramic crucible into which he adds iron and his "secret recipe of 11 herbs and spices". He showed me a small blade, about 6" long, just over an inch wide, and almost 5/32 thick that he has made to replicate (to some extent anyway) an antique middle eastern knife. His color and patterning were a bit subtle, but remember I'm more used to pattern welded damascus with a good deal of contrast. Rick also had heat treated this blade and it showed a hamon. I found that odd, but did not have the time to get more details on it. Either this one or another had some interesting patterning, a variation of a ladder I believe. I found the wootz interesting enought that I'm itching to make something with it.
Yes, my wife is quite a shot. She may not be the Texas NRA Bullseye champ, but still I wouldn't want to be on the other end of her sights.
Competition? Go for it!
David
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