Tombak Opinions Wanted

[nechesh]

Originally Posted by doecon

Please dont play with arsenic yourself, just leave it to proffessionals. I'm sure there is some small businesses in your area that can do it for you. I clean a lot of blades, but the staining itself I leave to others. see link below for some of the better reasons

http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/englishhtml/a7512.htm

I am afraid Rick has a point Doecon. Not many mom & pop shops doing traditional keris staining in my neck of the woods either. Also, some collectors like to take a hands-on DIY approach to their collections. I've been working with this process for a couple of years now. Common sense is, of course, a necessity in the handling of a substance like arsenic and your link is a valuable resource and much appreciated.
I also agree with Rick that this tombak isn't in too bad a shape. I would just keep it oiled for now.