Yeah, we've had this conversation before, and it's still weird to be taking something so seriously, but we're the little forum that could.
Even if you don't go as far as making your own lightbox, there are a few things that can help your pictures.
Back light. Make sure the major source of illumination is behind you, even if only a little bit.
Light color. Warm yellow or clean white work best, but the moment you get any kind of blue color, you start to get nasty glare. If you're not sure, err on the side of yellow. Obviously, sunlight is the standard of excellence, but the sun can lead to the same problem as blue light, which is:
Glare. You don't want it. Shiny reflections obscure the surface they reflect from, and wash out details that are beside them. This is a problem, because the things we photograph are very reflective, and you may have to walk around your table a little to find the sweet spot.
Finally, an aside from personal experience. I observed how many people like MisterS' "pocket art", so I tried a "MisterS" style photo, and even got a nod from the man himself, although my gear is nowhere near so pristine and color-coordinated as his.
But I decided that chaos and disorder are the dominant forces in my life, so I decided that any massed gear pictures I post are going to be visual tributes to chaos. In short, it's going to be a great heap of stuff!
The moral of the story? If you choose to pose your gear, you should find a way to do it that feels authentic to you.
Stainless Steels of any kind need precise heat treating to bring out their best.
You select a target Rockwell, then soak at a prescribed temperature for a set period of time, then quench to another temperature, then temper, and so on.
It's all time at temperature.
Fortunately, the companies that develop these steels understand them pretty well, and publish time/temperature charts for their products.
Link to PDF from Bohler/Uddeholm on Elmax heat treat:
At the moment, the Shoutbox is being derpy, so I'll adress Stonepaw's question here, for the possible benefit of others.
I said it's hard to screw up a machete.
Meaning that, a machete is a simple tool, which does not require careful heat-treating to work well.
I believe typical hardness for a machete blade is 47 Rc, although that may be a little low.
Given the fact that they are made to be very forgiving of rough treatment, lots of companies can make a very serviceable machete. About the only way to make one wrong is to make it so hard that it breaks instead of bending!
However. There are details about the way any tool is made that can only be learned by using it.
Imacasa is based in El Salvador, and they employ many people who came from a farming background, that is, a background of actually using the tools they make.
Condor tool and Knife is the American division of Imacasa. So buy with confidence.
Right. 200 amp MIG/TIG welder with automatic wire feed. I forgot. Thanks, Roy!
Add a welder and a bending brake to the rest of the stuff and you really could make a car...
But none of these things really help WillyDigger, though.
What he needs is a way to translate his hand movements into the movements of a motor-driven cutting tool, which would allow him to more easily work with more persistent materials.
Something like a 3-axis mill hooked up to a virtual-reality rig. Metal sculpting at 3 HP.