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That's been my observation as well. I use it as the sole glue for leather-covered wooden handle and scabbard cores (no sewing), and once it's set and the leather is oiled or waxed, it's basically permanent. If it was good enough for Stradivari to use on his violins, it's good enough for me. The only variety I've used is Behlen 192-gram dry flake, because that's all I could find when I wanted some. Carpenters and luthiers use a heated pot because they work with large quantities, and as long as you keep it hot (130F - 190F) and moist it won't start to set. I've done a longsword handle and scabbard just using an insulated cup. With the water hot, just stir in dry glue until it's the consistency you want, use, and rinse. Only takes a couple tablespoons of dry glue in about a cup of water to do a handle and scabbard. I like it thick enough it's not runny, but not so thick it's gummy.

Yes, it's a good choice for an outdoor/field type knife. We don't use hide glue anymore much, so most people are no longer aware of its characteristics. It softens to water, but it takes a really long time. It's not very porous, so water doesn't really seep in. The bond to wood, horn, leather is super strong. You'd think it rusts metal, but the collagen matrix it creates holds water in it so effectively, it doesn't really rust at all. Imve had multiple experiences now with hide glue on untreated steel, and it probably prevents rust more than anything. With a narrow seam, it's going to be a real struggle if you even want to get it apart again. It doesn't bond metal well, but if you get it into a hole in the tang, it will hold on for dear life. I have found surfacing the tang with a file also helps the hide glue hold. All that being said, don't soak it or leave it in standing water (like in a sink), that will probably compromise the glue eventually. Otherwise I think you'll be surprised how strong it is. Hide glue works best with long cure times. Even if it has set, I would still give it 24 hours to fully cure, for maximum strength. I find the hold is the best if you leave it clamped at least until it sets, preferably until it's fully cured. The glue I use tends to be soft when its first set, but after 24 hours it gets hard as resin. You don't want it to set or cure too fast, because that makes it hard to work with. It's tricky to get the hang of it, but once you've worked with it for a bit, you find it's more forgiving and useful than it seems.

Hotter than that, yes. Just off the boil, say 190 F. Stir in as much glue flakes as will dissolve, use within five minutes. To polish horn, wet-sanding up to 1500 is really all you need, but if you have a buffing wheel you can wet sand to 600 and buff.

One of my favorite photos and moments too. It was great to be among such talented and inspiring people, particularly for an amateur like me I hope there will be more times like that!

Yes the sides can be polished as smooth and shiny as the face. It does take a bit of work. I haven't used it in many years, but this is a spacer I made in a Bowie from 2008-ish.

The important thing is to push yourself a little and have fun doing it.

I just use dry hide glue flakes. You don't need a traditional glue pot either. For small batches just use an insulated coffee mug and hot water. That works really well for tiny batches. Keep some hot water on hand and it'll be fine.

For some reason I am reminded of one of my favorite photos: Owen Bush's house, spring 2011, I don't remember who took the picture. Maybe Grace Horne? Left to right: Peter Johnsson, Tod of Tod Cutler (his last name is not cutler, btw), I don't remember who's holding the camera, maybe Eli Sideris? Jeff Pringle, Petr Florianek, Jeroen Zuiderwijk, Josh Burrell, and me. Hard to believe that was 12 years ago...

Leave it as rough as you can. Most adhesives don't stick to horn very well, and anything you can do to increase surface area will help. Using organic glues that do stick to horn is also a good idea. Either hide glue or casein-based glues. When you hollow out the back, be very careful not to let the bit grab. I'd use a Forstner bit rather than a router. And welcome aboard!

Got a chance to do some rough grinding on the ko-tanto. I got the edge centered up and the bevels started. They still need drawn down the to edge but I'm going to use stones and sandpaper to convex the single bevel a little slower than my grinder would. I dunked it into the ferric for about 10 minutes and it showed some very cool grain structuring that I struggled to get a good photo of, lol!