I suspect the difference in the colors of the butt welds along the edges of the ribands were due to how the metals were stacked in the billet. Outer edges of iron in the billets would result in a silver line, steel would cause the black.

I'd think this was easy for the smiths, considering how they were able to manipulate and create intricate patterns.

Last edited by Ken61; 03/05/16 11:31 AM.
I prefer wood to plastic, leather to nylon, waxed cotton to Gore-Tex, and split bamboo to graphite.