I agree with what Chris said and echo his recommendation of Kevin Cashen's stuff. Kevin has spent a lot of time and money investigating metallurgy as applies to bladesmithing, and you can't go wrong taking his advice.

One other point about 1095: The "annealed" 1095 that I've worked with had a lot of carbides in it that made it difficult to work. I ruined several hacksaw blades and drill bits on one 1/8" thick piece when I was first starting out.

Go with 1080 for now--you won't regret it.

Josh