A pair of Bali (?) keris, 1 of 2

[David]

Originally Posted by S.Workman

I have given it a wash with diluted vinegar, which has taken off surface rust mostly, there is still quite a bit of crust on the tang, which suits me if it turns out my finishing strategy was wrong.

I agree with the other assessments here. A proper staining my well show some contrast in the pamor. However, it will be essential that you remove ALL the rust before attempting another staining. Sometimes a keris needs a prolonged soaking in the bath. I have generally used pineapple juice for this, but your vinegar solution should also work fine. You may need to soak it for days though, removing from time to time and brushing with a toothbrush to remove the loosened rust. If stubborn rust remains it can often be removed by picking at it with a needle. But if rust remains on the blade it will not respond well to the warangan.

[S.Workman]

Originally Posted by David

I agree with the other assessments here. A proper staining my well show some contrast in the pamor. However, it will be essential that you remove ALL the rust before attempting another staining. Sometimes a keris needs a prolonged soaking in the bath. I have generally used pineapple juice for this, but your vinegar solution should also work fine. You may need to soak it for days though, removing from time to time and brushing with a toothbrush to remove the loosened rust. If stubborn rust remains it can often be removed by picking at it with a needle. But if rust remains on the blade it will not respond well to the warangan.

On the question or rust, I have noticed that rust removes easily enough, when picked at or pressed with an awl (I actually push at the flecks and you can hear them crush, then they can be wiped away). Those are red oxides, but there seem to be, at least on the keris I have, black oxides which are extremely resistant, and seem to darken over time but which I can't see in sunlight. Is this stain considered rust in the sense of a hostile oxide?

[A. G. Maisey]

I think that Japanese sword people call this black coloured corrosion something like "inert rust", or "inactive rust". They do not seem to want to remove it on sword tangs. I truly do not know if it can cause further damage or not, because I have always taken everything back to clean metal, no matter what colour the corrosion is.

I normally use magnification and bright light when I'm cleaning away rust. Direct sunlight is good, but I also use very bright artificial light.

[S.Workman]

By the way, although pamor can't yet be defined on this or my other kris, any insight on how to describe the dapur would be much appreciated.