[TheForge] welding heat, katana billets

[gladish]

> I've found that in my rich running prop. forge, I can easily weld at
> med-high orange and up.

Hey, Jerry, is that a blown forge, or venturi?
I just finally hooked up my blown propane forge and boy is it nice! Never
would have believed a year ago that it would be so easy to like propane...
 Easy to get to welding heat, but hard to get used to all that scale. Better
run it richer...

Also, Fiorini said to weld (when laminating) at the lowest heat practical,
to avoid damaging the steel, but the Japanese that I've seen on video don't
weld those katana billets until they look like a whole sixth grade class
with sparklers on the fourth of July!
Any comments on the difference?
Apparently they lose about 2/3 of the original weight by the time it's a
finished blank.
Andy G.