For anyone else considering lye:
If you pour water onto the lye it can, and probably will, splatter. Lye splatter can blind you or burn your skin. It will also destroy paint on the fork.
Wear eye protection. Goggles best, glasses as a second choice. No exposed skin.
To prevent splatter either add lye to water first or fill container to desired level with cold water then add lye.
Have an extra pail of cold water ready.
Cold water is good as the reaction will rapidly heat up the water anyway.
Wrap a rag around fork to prevent any bubbling getting out and on the paint or you.
Insert wrapped fork into lye/water solution. Leave inserted until bubbling stops. I found it took at least 10 minutes time for each soak and that was in sub zero weather.
Remove fork and rinse in clean water before inspection because you don't want to flick any solution around when you turn the fork for inspection.
Have a safe place to dump the used solution.
Repeat until sliver of fork
Strongly endorse this, especially safety equipment and the pre-mix. In addition to my bucket of water, I also had vinegar on hand to help neutralize the lye solution in case of any spill.