David, I can possibly respond to this question a little more fully than you might be able to.
When a keris is made and prepared for kinatah work it is then up to the retail seller to put gold onto it, or to leave it up to the retail buyer to put gold onto it.
The craftsman who applies kinatah is totally separate from the craftsman who makes the blade.
Kinatah work comes in various qualities and at differing prices, and no matter if you choose to have the lowest quality work from the cheapest, most barely competent craftsman, it will always be extremely expensive.
It is difficult to find any craftsman at all now who can execute competent kinatah work.
Then there are the people who prefer to be able to see the excellence or otherwise of the metal carving.
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