Equipment isn't a problem. He's been buying and trading industrial surplus for decades on the side. To give you a rough idea, now retired, he has been debating a 4000sq ft workshop to have room to comfortably use all the equipment he has. Lathes, mills, brakes, scribes, torches, welders, belt sanders, heat treat ovens, blast cabinets, spray booths and much more. He's also been talking with local (as in all of Texas) well known knifemakers for a few years and getting their insight. A retired engineer, he just wants to build things in his workshop as a self sustaining enjoyable hobby for retirement. Although I work in composites, I work with metalugsts, so we should be able to answer his defect questions.
I'll work up some ideas for him from the input and what I want. He's remodeling his house now, so I have a few months to think it through.