Speaking of flux- several folks have been doing good forge welds with NO FLUX, just the proper welding temp. I also watched a youtube vid where the man did all his forge welding [for the past several years] just spraying the material with WD40 before the initial heat, then using nothing from then on. These folks are mostly using gas forges- don't know if any are using coal or not. Because of the wear and tear of forge linings I am going to try my next Damascus billet with no flux or wd40 or anything. I have a lot of respect for the makers who have said they do this and want to try it. Sure be nice not to have to reline my forge after the flux eats the guts out :) You may want to give it a try, too. Dave