Opinions on Doll's Heads and other stuff

[Aaron Beck]

Yes on the twist, not the fanciest pattern but a handsome upgrade over a straight vh.

As for damascus, the revealed pattern we all like is found somewhere in the middle of the forged bar. So as you say, you stack up different metals, weld them together and then grind them back to reveal the pattern. Etching highlights the pattern but is part of the finishing process. I believe different amount of stock removal is required to show different patterns. You could show a twist pattern with little or no grinding whereas bernard would require removing almost half of the metal thickness as I understand it. In either case the same proportion of stock is removed from the thick and thin ends of the barrel tubes.
I believe the dolls head stock is thicker and wider than its corresponding rib so it seems likely it would always come out of a different piece of stock.