Rusty Moro Kris

[tunggulametung]

Originally Posted by mrwizard

@Tunggulametung & Spunjer
Electrolysis is of course a very gentle and elegant method of rust removal. On the other hand it is always a big mess and takes some extra effort.

Well life is a lot more practical here in the East. I never read safety note when I read article on the internet
For my case, I don't know how many power I got, just the oldest small battery charger in the planet with no indicator, I don't even know which lead is positive and which is negative, just see how they react if the bubble is on the wrong side, switch it the worst case isn't electrical shock but merely sparks when the two lead short circuited

This is A LOT simpler then you thought. The internet guide might be looks complicated, but it is actually peanut. Just use whatever charger available (I read somebody do that with computer power supply he has lying around), use as little water as possible (covering all blade surface), as much as sacrificial iron as possible, add a dash of washing soda, you can leave it and do your activities, you'll likely going to clean it off in less than half day, with little or no effort. You can pause and repeat the other day if necessary. I read on the internet it looks like they took days, this is not true for may case. You need to check after several hours, clean off the carbon, if you find red rust under the carbon repeat after you clean the remaining carbon. No need to do it too often.

I swear result is better compared to acid. I believe once you try it, you'll never look back into acid.

[Battara]

Nice piece! I think the blade is older, say, early 1800s. I agree that it originally had 2 baka-baka and that the scabbard is Maguindanao. The blade could be, but it could also be Sulu (they did a lot of trade). The hilt, there was something around the top, perhaps a band of metal. It also may have originally had metal ferrul too, but this is now covered by the later wrap.

A nice piece. Good luck with the "power etching"!

[tunggulametung]

Ok here is quick shot of before and after of last attempt. On macro there are some left over carbon in small cavities that need to be clean, but that can be done with oil easily later using softer small wire brush (need to find that for myself). Overall result is better in person/day light photo. This one take about two hours. Forget to mention, I use boiling water to start with. I guess you can also use quick and mild acid etch at this point so the blade didn't stays too long in acid such as in heavy cleaning.

Good luck.

[Battara]

Well, the etch for Moro swords is different and not as strong nor deep as it is for Indonesian pieces.

[Spunjer]

like tunggulametung said, you don't have to be specific. i used an ol' cheapo batt charger from sears, with 2Amps/8Amps switch, with it switched to 2 amps. then five 3/4" iron rebars and small gauge copper wires. i used carbonate soda (from walmart; brand name Arm and Hammer) for electrolyte and there you got it. just check up on it every 15-20 minute or so, depending how bad the rust is.

[mrwizard]

@Spunjer & Tunggulametung
Thanks for the pictures and detailed instructions.
I will definitely build a test-setup ( I have more than
enough rusty stuff lying around). If i will use it for the
moro kris i will decide later.

@Battara
Thanks for dating the kris. After looking at some picture
it may indeed be a sulu blade. I see no evidence of former metal applications on the hilt (nails, rifts, holes, etc.)
If there were any, the must have either been glued or the hilt must have been recarved after their removal.

I will keep you informed about the further progess.

Best Regards,
Thilo

[Sajen]

Originally Posted by mrwizard

I will keep you informed about the further progess.

Best Regards,
Thilo

Do you can post some results?

Regards,

Detlef