What finish method (after the etching) do you guys prefer? I have left the steel slightly polished and I have blued it. The blueing almost hid the damascus though.

I think it depends on the finished knife. For somethig that is going to be a working grade, I generally will etch, then clean the blade by scrubbing with #0000 steel wool. Give it a good coat of wax and leave it. If I want a really bold contrast, I use baking lacquer. Bluing is usually reserved for high end pieces. Recently I have also done a few blade that have been deeply etched and then buffed. I think a finish like that could be used on either Using or colletor grade pieces.

After I wrote this post I went out to the shop and tried something to lighten the bluing on my darkly blued knife. I rubbed it down with the polishing compound "Wenol" (I'm not sure of the spelling). The effect seemed to enhance the appearance and contrast of the lines at the welds. And, it seems to be easily controlled regarding how light you want to go.