Jim, Mr. Bell did not conduct his testing in a highly scientific double blind method or anything else like that. Nor did he use a particulary high amount of guns in his sample group. And in one test, if my memory serves me correct he was shooting one gun with increasing loads until the barrels would blow up, and here an obstruction was needed to help finish the job. But all he did is show that damascus steel is a heck of a lot stronger than most people used to give it credit for.

Tim