Philippine (?) spearhead for comments & ID
 

I was looking for khukuris on Ebay when I found a khuk, spearhead, and a puukko in the same auction. All my favorites in the same auction! How lucky is that? The spearhead looked promising, but I didn't get my hopes up. Pictures can be so deceiving. It looks Philippine? Moro? It's laminated, but the pattern is subtle. Thanks for any comments.
Steve

as received
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...spear-rust.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...ar-overall.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...spear-hilt.jpg

Sure looks like a Moro budiak to me . :)

Hey Steve that was a fast clean up job on the spear.It's a real nice budiak.


Lew

Thanks guys. I HATE RUST!

Steve

Here's another Budiak Spearhead

And another ... :D
I'm always amazed at how short the tangs on these blades are :confused:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...onrad/BUD1.jpg

Rick, is that a twisted core spearhead? what a beauty :)

Hi Panday , I guess it is ; the veins of metal stand up a little ; you can feel them when you run your fingertip over the panel .
Best thing is that it's pretty much complete with ferrule shaft and tailpiece . :)
The head's a tad wiggly but I figure it's probably an old one .

Rick, if it's not too much trouble, could you please post pics of the ferrule and the tailpiece? I was toying with the idea of mounting mine and would like to know what the ferrule looks like.
Thanks!

Steve

Edit: That is gorgeous! And Panday, thanks for the picture of your very nice piece.

Beautiful puppy Panday. Possibly an early budiak?

Too Much Work For A Sunday
 

Here you go Steve ,
The buttcap I added to ; originally this spear came with the two dark metal sleeves you see in the picture . The end of the spear had been drilled to accept a butt spike which was missing . I got lucky and found one on ebay made from brass ; to completely cap the end I bought a vintage brass 10 Ga. shotgun shell and drilled out the center ; the shell just fit under the original sleeves and the spike then went into the hole drilled through the shell casing .
It seemed to me a nice way to finish off an obviously incomplete end for the spear ; all pieces are vintage and could have been found in the Philippines in the 19th C. making it within the realm of plausibility as a treatment for this spear .
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...ad/budbutt.jpg

The ferrule is a casting and would require either a talented machinist to fabricate from brass stock or would need to be made out of jeweler's wax and fabricated with the lost wax casting method .
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...budferrule.jpg

This budiak also has a waisted haft that swells at either end where it meets the fittings .

Is that inlay Panday ?

Yes Rick, that's an inlay, not sure what type of metal though, I was gonna say silver, but it's kind of reddish yellow, any idea?

Mmmmmmmm .. Suassa .
Really a beautiful point Panday !

Hi Ferg

Here are two from my collection.The smaller one may help you with your rehafting project.


Good Luck

Lew

Nice inlay Panday.

Lew and Rick thanks! Those pictures are just what I needed.

Steve

Ferg , you could easily make a ferrule like Lew's ; I would suggest using at least 6ga. Sterling sheet folded on the edge , formed around a ring mandrel and then soldered on a soldering mandrel while held together with iron wire .
Of course your silver sheet will have to be fan shaped in outline .
I'm willing to bet that Battara has the right equipment for this work . :)

I used to . :o

Silver is really fun to work with . :D

Probably brass, perhaps with more copper than usual.

Ian.

[QUOTE=Ferguson]I was looking for khukuris on Ebay when I found a khuk, spearhead, and a puukko in the same auction. All my favorites in the same auction! How lucky is that? The spearhead looked promising, but I didn't get my hopes up. Pictures can be so deceiving. It looks Philippine? Moro? It's laminated, but the pattern is subtle. Thanks for any comments.
Steve

Hi Ferguson, how much time did it take you to clean that spear head? Can you share how did you do it? I have some spears here which I am planning to clean then etch it after. Many thanks.

Pinoy,
I'll be happy to tell you how I did it, just proceed with caution so as not to ruin an antique. I spent about an hour cleaning and etching. My methods will probably not be approved of by some, and shouldn't be used on an expensive or rare antique without more knowledge than I have.

Since I was planning to etch, I wasn't concerned about removing the patina. It had active rust and some slight pitting. I started sanding with 400 grit wet-or-dry silicon carbide sandpaper. After I had cleaned off the rust, I continued with 600, 800, 1000, and 1500 grit. This type of sandpaper is sold at auto parts stores and is used to sand car bodies for painting. It works better wet. I use spray window cleaner that contains ammonia. The high ph of the ammonia keeps the steel from rusting quickly like water would. The liquid keeps the sandpaper from loading up. You have to be careful not to round off any of the edges. If I'm sanding a sword, I will use a small wooden block to sand flat areas. You also have to be careful around the edge. I've cut myself pretty badly before when I slipped.

Steve Ferguson

If I'm sanding a sword, I will use a small wooden block to sand flat areas. You also have to be careful around the edge. I've cut myself pretty badly before when I slipped.

Steve Ferguson[/QUOTE]

Hey Steve

I see! Thats why they call you Four Fingers Ferguson :eek: :p


Lew

Lew, I've still got them all, they just look funny. ;)

Steve

Thanks Steve, yeah I know how it feels like to be cut. I had my share of experiences. :D

Thanks Battara, this puppy will be paying you a visit soon :)

Hello Panday,

I'm pretty sure that's really silver (alloy). I've seen this kind of yellowish "patina" with several blades (probably all etched with fruits) - one example would be this inlayed kris: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=1243 (the uncleaned inlay looked even more brownish/dark-yellowish than the pics shown).

Regards,
Kai

You're probably right Kai, I just finished comparing the tone of your Krises inlay to my spearhead's, they're about thesame.


Thanks,
panday

Btw Kai, how did that restoration on that Kris came out, can you post photos pls.

Thanks,
panday

OH BOY, OH BOY, OH BOY!.... :D

Kai, you make a good point. Especially if the copper content is high, like in coin silver (80% silver 20% copper) or lower, the patina/tarnish can look yellow or even brown versus the usual black for sterling (92% silver 8% copper) or higher.

Oh yes, and just for the halibut ( :D ) here is another spear head that I have mounted with my armour:

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=1963

Hello Punal, I never got around to decide wether the last polishing round was going to be the final one. :o So, the blade is still unstained and disassembled. I'll surely post pics once it's finished...

Hello Battara,

Yes, coin silver would be always readily available. Silver on the hilts seem to be often close to sterling silver whereas of the small sample of inlayed blades which I saw most seemed to be coin silver.

Are that differences in the silver alloy which lend themselves to different applications or are other factors like many inlays older than silver fittings on an average kris, etc. of greater importance?

Wow, that's a nice one! How about the whole blade?

So you finally got a digicam, Battara? Great, keep them pics coming! ;)

Something Fishy Here ...
 

Good 'Cod' Jose ; I'm left 'floundering' for words .
Yes, let's see more de'tails' ; whoever made that point put his heart and 'Sole' into the effort . :rolleyes:




/aaarrrggh

Kai,

No still needing to get a dig camera. These are Rswords pictures he sent me before I got the spear from him (and after). I will post a picture of the whole blade next week (as soon as I can find it :confused: ).

On application of different silvers: I'm not sure. If brass was used as inlay (fairly hard metal this this) then coin silver would be softer, and sterling or pure would be even softer and easier to inlay. Sterling and coin would probably be more needed for pommels and mounts due to the amount of expensive material needed and it will hold it's form better than pure silver.

Rick,

Thank you. What you said was beautiful, just beautiful (I think I'm going to cry :o ).