Ganjah help needed!
 

Hey Keris lovers, I need some help with this keris right here:http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=18521

I need to remove the ganjah, because there is some rust buildup in there. In fact, I had originally thought that it was ganjah menumpang which I take to mean a ganjah forged in a piece with the blade. What I took to be a forged line to indicate the separation is actually packed with corrosion. I don't think this is good for the kerns, but while my other keris had a ganjah which came off quite easily, this one is proving a challenge. I thought that this was surprising considering the tiny key to mate the sections. My fear is that the two pieces have rusted together. To deal with this so far, I have placed the kerns upright and put a few drops of penetrating oil at the base of the tang. Hopefully this will ooze through the corrosion over the weekend and facilitate the "divorce" of the pieces. Am I doing this right, and if not what can I do that makes more sense?

Have you soaked this keris for any long period of time in a mild acidic liquid such a pineapple juice or vinegar? I have never had to remove a gonjo when cleaning a blade. Prolonged soaking with frequent brushing with an old toothbrush and then working the crevice between the gonjo and blade with a sharp needle point would be my approach personally. The acid liquid should loosen the rust, but this could take up to a week or two soaking, brushing and picking.

I have soaked it, but I am a bit shy of damaging this already worn blade by too prolonged a soak. If you look at the pictures I posted, you can see that some details are quite faded.
Also, the ganjah was already loose on my other keris, so I was able to see the interface between the two parts, and it was quite rusty. Because of that, I am worried about leaving rust in that (tiny) gap, since it could spread. Am I over thinking this, do you suppose?

There is nothing delicate about this blade that you need to worry about. You will not damage this blade soaking it in pineapple juice, even for more than a week (though you may find yourself skimming mold off the top of the juice ;) ). Be sure to use 100% pineapple juice, not from concentrate. That seems to work the best.