In my shop, I always vein leaves cold or at a black heat. Heating to a dull red is your main problem because the steel yields too easily and grabs the chisel. That soft state is why your lines go uneven and deep every time. You need the metal to fight back a little so you can feel each cut. All the fancy ornamental work I see fails from this same hot method making details messy. Keep the piece cooler and use lighter, repeated taps to build the vein lines slowly.

Yeah the hour count thing is wild lol. I always watch those timelapse videos and it blows my mind how long it takes.

Surface prep makes or breaks that ten-year silicone promise.