I understand that damascus sword steel was made by folding the strip of steele double , reheating, hammering, folding again and so forth hundreds of times. Was this the same or very nearly the same techmique the japs used making the sword blades the samari swords?(forgive the misspelling)
Actualy, the secrets of forging Damascus steel has been rediscovered. In the 1970s, a Russian scientist found that he could duplicate the steel found in old Damascene swords. While it is true that such swords (which have to be made by hand) would be more expensive than usual, you must keep in mind that the majority of Damascus swords are still forged in Damascus. Syria is a highly inexpensive country, and the price of a Damascus blade, while being expensive to Syrians, would be cheap to Westerners. In reference to your question about wether there is anything special about Damascus steel, the answer is yes. At the time of its creation, Damascus steel was the lightest and most flexiable metal known to man, even lighter than the steel Katana swords used by the Samurai of Japan. During the Crusades, Europeans reported that the Arab blades were capable of bending in the wind, and floating on water. While these are certainly exaggerations, they are proof that Damascus blades were far lighter and stronger than the crude iron weapons used by the Crusaders.
The samari swords are made by folding to make many many alternating layers of different steel compositions. Damascus swords were made differently. The steel was heated and forged (like samari swords) but it was not folded. The patterns produced are due to the micro macro-structure of the steel alloy and the way the steel is forged. Fake Damascus steel knives and gun barrels and other items have been made by pattern welding (forge cladding steels with different compositions together) and then folding and forging with some tricks. google damascus steel and you will find lots of info. hope this helps
Damascus: A folding technique where the steel is folded over itself many (generally up to sixteen) times, leading to hundreds or even thousands of layers (one fold = 2 layers, two folds = 4 layers, three folds = 8 layers, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, etc.). More folds than sixteen are pointless, as the layers would become thinner than one molecule - which is impossible. This method was developed to removed impurities from the steel (it also removes carbon, which is bad, but can be compensated for to some degree), but modern steel is so pure that Damascus folding is no longer needed. It is now used for aesthetic reasons; Damascus steel looks really good; you can see the layers in the blade. San Mai: Translates to three layers. Layers of softer, lower carbon steel (or iron) is forge welded to layers of harder, higher carbon steel. The lower carbon steel forms the core (and sometimes the sides and/or back), and the higher carbon steel forms the edge. The hard edge will hold its sharpness, the softer core provides shock absorption; making the sword harder to break. Unlike Damascus, San Mai is still very practical. San Mai folds should be invisible; if you can see a San Mai fold the forging was flawed and the blade should be discarded - you'll have to trust your seller that the blade is San Mai - you can't tell by looking. San Mai can be revealed by etching the blade with acid, such as lemon juice, but I don't recommend trying this unless you know what you're doing; you can permanently stain the blade. San Mai swords are more durable (and more expensive) than simple blades. They are more durable (and usually less expensive) than Damascus blades. A blade can be either San Mai or Damascus, or it can be both; Damascus steel which is then San Mai folded. Very cool, looks good and lasts long.
