Stopped using quench oil on spring steel after a straight razor job in Tulsa
Customer's file knife came out brittle and chipped on test flex, then a 70-year-old smith told me to use hot water for thin stock, tried it on a leaf spring and the grain looked way tighter, anyone else skipped oil for water on high-carbon?
So a 70 year old smith told you one thing and now oil is out the window for everything? That is a big jump from one leaf spring. Hot water can work on thin stuff because it cools slower than room temp water in some cases, sure, but that does not mean oil is the problem. Plenty of guys run oil on 5160 and 1095 and get fine grain, the grain size has more to do with your soak time and how hot you got it. I would bet money that razor job in Tulsa had more going on than just the quench. And "grain looked way tighter" from one eyeball test is not really proof of much.