Makes sense to me, though I'd bet the alloy of whatever steel used for the test plates will have something to do with how the colors come out.
The current makers can buy a big batch of whatever steel they choose to use and run their tests on some of that, then know going in what they will come out with.
When re-doing old plates, parts and actions, testing on modern steel similarly shaped will give some idea on what the resulting pattern might be, but it will not be nearly as predictable as the modern makers might have with the steel they use.
Last edited by Dave in Maine; 08/25/11 06:48 PM.
