JohnfromUK, thank you for the link to that video. I am amazed that, the more I read and watch about charcoal pack casehardening, the less consistent it seems to be from one shop to another.
From Oscar Gaddy's techniques to this at AA Brown I notice that there is a difference in the granulation size of the charcoal. I notice that there is no effort to make a nearly airtight lid-to-crucible seal at AA Brown. There is little effort to prevent oxygen from entering the "pot", as Brown calls it. Indeed, the lid is removed long before the crucible/pot is even removed from the oven. Oscar made every effort to keep the lid on the container until submersion in the water, wanting it to happen mere inches away from the surface. There is no blocking, or bracing of parts being casehardened, at Brown. Gaddy was adamant that it helped to prevent warpage, yet Brown had no warpage at all, in the video.
Having had all the necessary tools to do casehardening of parts and actions, I have been gathering as much information as possible for at least 10 years. It seems that the more I learn the less I know.
SRH
