Kampilan Bolo - Bogobo or T'boli or a mixture?

[kai]

Welcome, Peter,

Thanks for your well-researched thread!

Well, I etched with lemon juice and it did reveal figuring structures which I guess is indicative of lamination?

Yes, definitely laminated! I think you can improve the eveness of the stain with another round of polishing and etching.

It is particularly evident along the cutting edge. This seems to match up with the report I found that said they split the edge and inserted steel along the cutting edge.

Yes, the steel edge usually contrasts well with the lower-carbon iron. Have you checked the back of the blade? It is quite common to see traces of the steel core there, too (sandwich construction rather than inserted edge).

Regards,
Kai

[prh345]

Hi Kai,

I'll follow your suggestion about re-polish and etch again and and see if anything shows up on the back edge.

This sandwich construction you mention is similar to the Japanese Katana fabrication method called "Sanmai" where the harder steel runs right through the middle of the blade. I have a Katana that uses this construction. Its only a modern Chinese version, (sadly the genuine article is way out of my reach) but still very well made and an excellent cutting blade.

Thanks for your input,
Peter