PALEMBANG HILT AND KERIS

[Jean]

Originally Posted by A. G. Maisey

You're a braver man than I am Jean.

In respect of pesi expansion causing a crack in the hilt:-

over a + 50 year period I have removed more hilts than I can remember from various types of blades, certainly the number of hilts I have removed would be somewhere in the hundreds. When I am at home I use a propane torch to heat the blade, when I am in Jawa I use either a candle or a small kerosene lamp. Removal of a hilt is something that I do as a very simple and basic operation that requires no thought and no interruption to work flow.
Never, ever, have I had a hilt crack during removal because of heat expansion.

I would not recommend any inexperienced person to use a propane torch.

Dear Alan,
I did break one ivory hilt while trying to remove it after heating it and the sorsoran with a hair dryer set at maximum temperature (probably not hot enough) but I think that it was broken before and re-glued.
Best regards
Jean