Meteoric Balinese Blog....

[lemmythesmith]

Rick Lemmy, it would be interesting if you started a thread on this project and kept us updated.

David Yes, please!

Willem Yes, please!

Well gents, here's a sneak preview :p 19 inch blade of the usual construction-iron from all over, meteorites, horseshoes, stuff I've found lying around waiting for the enterprising smith to pick up.............I have it all written down with weights etc, more of that later.
I don't have much of this blade's early days but there is a picture of one of the meteorites (Campo Del Cielo 195g) and one of "block 3" before welding, 9 layers of iron and pure meteorite, there were four of these so 36 layers a side. There's some photos of the pamor drawn out ready to bend and insert steel, the blank ready to weld, the blade partially forged and fully forged. The selut progress is documented too (got a new camera!) Togog development to follow..... :D

[lemmythesmith]

The full view and closeup of pamor.... :D

[David]

Oh Goodie!!! :D

[Rick]

Cowabunga Lemmy !!
David, don't you have an example of that dapur ? ;)

[asomotif]

Amazing to see this in progress. :eek:

The settings for the stones/glass on the selut, are they prefabricated ?

Nice dapur, I like it "simple" with no luks.

[David]

David, don't you have an example of that dapur ? ;)
Something similar perhaps...why, are you missing it? ;) :p :D

[ganjawulung]

Bravo, Lemmy....

Magnifique garap. The dhapur, probably similar to these Javanese "PASUPATI". The one with pamor, was made by a Solonese keris maker Ki Sukamdi, but the kodokan is Maduran made...

GANJAWULUNG

[Raden Usman Djogja]

bravo....Lemmy!!!!

[BluErf]

Woohoo!!! :) Great job! :) I salute you, Lemmy!

[Rick]

Looking forward to the next episode, Lemmy . :D

[lemmythesmith]

Hi all, many thanks and glad you like it so far... :D

Willem, the settings are made from bearer so they are cut from strip, bent and soldered so you have a built in "ledge" for the stone to sit in. The stones are laboratory grown star rubies.

Ganjawulung, dapur is pasopati-in fact I studied both of your keris whilst making this one. The ganja is "wulung" too!

More to follow, hopefully this weekend (lots of togog pics to resize)

[asomotif]

the settings are made from bearer so they are cut from strip, bent and soldered so you have a built in "ledge" for the stone to sit in

Thanks Lemmy !

Nothing the easy way.
Really looking forward to more pictures in due time.

[kino]

Nice...very nice!

Is there a Moro Kris in the future.

[Newsteel]

Not bad at all....

[lemmythesmith]

Hi Kino, a meteoric Moro kris-the thought had crossed my mind (together with a kampilan, barong, gunong etc :D)

[karset]

wow,,,nice lemmy

[lemmythesmith]

Hi all, here's some pictures of the togog in various stages (well the front views anyway) his left foot is a little more developed since I took these snapshots....... :D

[lemmythesmith]

Now with added face.... :D

[drdavid]

Wonderful work lemmy, great carving. What type of bone, and are you using only hand tools for this?
drd

[asomotif]

Wonderfull hilt !!!

How is the selut progressing ?

[David]

Lemmy, you are one very talented fellow! :)

[Marcokeris]

wonderfull work :eek: :) :)

[lemmythesmith]

Thanks all!! Thought you might like him! He's carved from a portion of a elephant tusk I bought many years ago, but it's only now I feel confidant enough to tackle such an ambitious project. I tend to "rough out" a carving with a dremel using burrs/small milling cutters, fine detail is added with various knives and scrapers, my favorite carving tool is a sghian dubh I made with a damascus blade which takes a wicked edge! I haven't done any more on the selut as yet, but I can feel an urge to do some silversmithing coming on.... :D (once the urge to make a tanto copying the work of Etchu Norishige goes away, but enough of my problems..... :rolleyes: )

[ferrylaki]

bravo...very nice work

[lemmythesmith]

Hi all, I've made a start on cutting the greneng :eek: I'm going to leave "as is" for a day or two then go back to it, needs a few more coats of looking at!! :D

[Michel]

Lemmy,
You are really doing a great job. Not only smithing but carving. I am very,very impressed. One question: in your last photos you show us the ganja, neatly adjusted to the blade but on the first and the last shots, you show the peksi (the flame) of the kris blade with an enlargement right after the ganja. I can understand why you did that (to block the ganja in its place), but I cannot see how you realized it.
Can you explain ?

Thanks and really "bravo" it is a superb work.
Michel

I think I found the way: your peksi is not part of the blade but is screwed in the thickness of the blade ! Right or wrong ? :)

[A. G. Maisey]

In Javanese the word for a keris tang is "pesi".

The word "peksi" means "bird". It has the same meaning in krama as does "manuk" in ngoko.

The word "pesi" has the alternate meaning of "bird", but the word "peksi" has only one meaning, and that is "bird".

[Rick]

Should I be looking for a ron dha in a Bali piece ??
Or no ?

[A. G. Maisey]

Yes Rick.

If a Balinese blade has a greneng, that greneng should show ron dha of a specific form.

I suspect that Lemmy has moved in this direction and perhaps when he completes the greneng he will have produced an acceptable ron dha.

There are other minor points where this blade does not conform to a Balinese standard, but I must emphasise that these are minor points, and I for one am not prepared to level criticism at Lemmy's effort.All the rough outlines are there, they just need to be refined and finished.

[Rick]

Yes Rick.

If a Balinese blade has a greneng, that greneng should show ron dha of a specific form.

I suspect that Lemmy has moved in this direction and perhaps when he completes the greneng he will have produced an acceptable ron dha.

There are other minor points where this blade does not conform to a Balinese standard, but I must emphasise that these are minor points, and I for one am not prepared to level criticism at Lemmy's effort.All the rough outlines are there, they just need to be refined and finished.

Nor was I Alan; just satisfying my curiousity on that point . :)

Lemmy, you are indeed a prodigy . :D

Magnifique !!

[A. G. Maisey]

Yep. I understand that Rick.

[lemmythesmith]

Hi all, thanks for the latest input!!

Hi Michel, the tang is part of the blade not a separate piece screwed in. What you can see is where I have thinned the diameter of the tang a little just after the gongo-it needs a little bit more taking off yet so it's flush with the gongo top, I'll do that just before I final fit the gongo with keyways and wedges.

Hi Alan, please feel free to point out any wavering from Balinese standards. You've got infinitely more experience than me in these matters and know how it should look, so any help and suggestions are most welcome. (I have never even had hold of a Balinese piece!!) I'm working from photos so it's a little like herding cats....... Looking at the greneng I think maybe I have a little too much "curl" on them and need to refine the bottom of the "dha" I'm not really sure whether Balinese blades have gusen? If I can get this piece close to the real thing I'll be more than happy.

[Gustav]

Looking at the greneng I think maybe I have a little too much "curl" on them and need to refine the bottom of the "dha" I'm not really sure whether Balinese blades have gusen? If I can get this piece close to the real thing I'll be more than happy.[/QUOTE]

Hello Lemmy,

I hope this would help a little bit. I have seen some pictures with Pogokan on a Bali keris, but forget where :)
(one on Oriental-Arms site)

[A. G. Maisey]

Lemmy I'd like to help you if I could, but to try to give you pointers from photos is close to impossible. What you've produced is excellent, but it is excellent to the extent that I can see in the photos --- I'm only talking about the blade here.

When we hold a good quailty Balinese keris in the hand we can see that everything is contoured to incredibly tiny differences in three dimensions. The differences are so small that even very experienced collectors who have not been educated in the indigenous artistic ethic often cannot see the differences and need to have these differences pointed out to them. I once spent several hours on two consecutive afternoons trying to explain the contouring and form of sogokan on a Surakarta keris. The person I was trying to instruct was a collector of edged weapons, including keris, and an artist and sculptor in his own right. Maybe it was just my inadequacy as a teacher, but it did take a total of probably about 4 or 5 hours before he was able to see and partially understand what I was trying to get across.

Many people in Jawa regard the keris --- ie, keris blade --- as the premier expression of the Javanese plastic arts. This status is not lightly given and to understand why this is so, we must first understand that the keris in art and in tradition, is more than just a dagger blade. When we sculpt a keris blade we must incorporate into that blade a human feeling, a feeling that can be sensed by a person experienced in keris art as a representation of the essence of mankind. When we talk about a keris blade we apply the same descriptors to it that we apply to a human being:- brave, humble, clumsy etc, etc.

Lemmy, when you set out to make a keris blade, you began the creation of more than just another different kind of dagger. For you to understand what you have begun you need to involve yourself in serious study of the subject. If you do not have a thorough understanding of the subject you cannot really create a keris. You can create an expression of your own artistic ability that takes the form of a keris, but cannot create a keris.

What you have achieved so far is excellent work, and as a copy from photos it demonstrates your very considerable ability. But to go further, you need the study to achieve understanding.

[lemmythesmith]

Hi Gustav, thanks for the photo-it’s a clearer example of the form of the greneng, should be of help!!

Hi Alan, thanks for the explanation-yeah, it’s nigh on impossible from a photo to explain the subtle differences, I’ve had similar problems trying to explain the same sort of thing to a friend I’m tutoring in Japanese swordmaking.
I try to study as much as I can, but I think I will have to be satisfied with making “keris like objects” for now! Having said that, I feel that the journey itself is as worthwhile as the finished product, for self improvement/development. My patience level has certainly improved, along with technical ability. If making keris makes me a better person as well as a better smith then it can only be a good thing!! :D

[asomotif]

Hello Lemmy,

How is this one progressing ?

Best regards,
Willem

[lemmythesmith]

Hi Willem, I'm afraid I haven't done much recently as I've been busy on other things, I recently bought a huge chunk of buffalo horn for the wrongko......... I'm planning to do some more work on it during summer break when it's a bit hot for forging work but I think this keris will be a long term project!!!

Regards, Graham.