old luk 3 keris

BluErf · 28th January 2007, 03:43 AM

Oh, I see some fibres on the keris. Remnants of the cleaning rag?

Better pick those off with a pair of tweezers, or you will soon see real rust forming on the keris!

I would suggest you use a dabbing motion to clean the oil off the keris, rather than a rubbing motion, which will lodge a lot of loose fibre on the keris. While we like our kerises to smell nice, it is better to clean off the oil until it looks dry. Shiny wet oil on the keris dries up and leaves residues which causes more rust, and the worst part is that they stain the wrongko. Once the wrongko is stained by oil, you can never get the stained patch to go away. Better to note for your kerises in expensive wrongko.

Singer oil would be a good cleaning oil, after which you can apply a eeny teeny bit of scented oil.

Happy keris collecting!

A. G. Maisey · 28th January 2007, 06:28 AM

We all have our own favourite method of looking after our keris, and obviously they work for us, or we wouldn't pass them on.

I live in a maritime climate. I am less than fifty meters from the edge of a salt water lake, and when we get a strong southerly breeze salt spray hits the front of my house.

I have a lot of keris and other weapons that I need to try my best to maintain in excellent condition. There are keris and other weapons that I have not looked at, nor oiled in years. Truly, years. I am not speaking figuratively.

After a blade is freshly stained I spray it, or paint it with WD40. I drench the blade, and allow it to dry off overnight. I then paint it with keris oil that I make myself from about 45% cendana, 5% kenanga, and 50% medicinal parafin. I slip the wet blade into a plastic sleeve, twist the sleeve around the blade so it is tight, and place it into the wrongko. I then place the wrongko into a singap, and the singap into a chest.

I do not display keris anywhere in my house. In my private security room I have three keris that are not stored in the chests, and these are not in plastic sleeves, I might oil these keris perhaps once every six months. None of them have been stained in more than 15 years, all of them are in perfect condition.

Although I do not display keris, I do have 9 or 10 tombak around the house, some in a ploncon, some just leaning in corners. None of these blades are in plastic sleeves, all these blades are in perfect condition and they get oiled about once every six months or so.

Where I do not place a freshly oiled blade into a plastic sleeve, I strip excess oil from the blade with a toothbrush.

David · 29th January 2007, 01:52 PM

I like using an artists paint brush to apply oil. I prefer natural fiber brushes, but if you are muslim or trying to keep traditional to Islamic area keris you would want to be sure of the type of animal used as a source for the brush. For me the brush allows me to put very controlled amounts of oil on the blade at a time and the brush caresses the blade in a way that a rag does not.

Also you will not leave fibers from the rag behind that might get snagged on sharp points of the blade. Most of my keris are on display and i tend to oil monthly.

28th January 2007, 03:43 AM	#1
BluErf Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,180	Oh, I see some fibres on the keris. Remnants of the cleaning rag? Better pick those off with a pair of tweezers, or you will soon see real rust forming on the keris! I would suggest you use a dabbing motion to clean the oil off the keris, rather than a rubbing motion, which will lodge a lot of loose fibre on the keris. While we like our kerises to smell nice, it is better to clean off the oil until it looks dry. Shiny wet oil on the keris dries up and leaves residues which causes more rust, and the worst part is that they stain the wrongko. Once the wrongko is stained by oil, you can never get the stained patch to go away. Better to note for your kerises in expensive wrongko. Singer oil would be a good cleaning oil, after which you can apply a eeny teeny bit of scented oil. Happy keris collecting!

28th January 2007, 06:28 AM	#2
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,992	We all have our own favourite method of looking after our keris, and obviously they work for us, or we wouldn't pass them on. I live in a maritime climate. I am less than fifty meters from the edge of a salt water lake, and when we get a strong southerly breeze salt spray hits the front of my house. I have a lot of keris and other weapons that I need to try my best to maintain in excellent condition. There are keris and other weapons that I have not looked at, nor oiled in years. Truly, years. I am not speaking figuratively. After a blade is freshly stained I spray it, or paint it with WD40. I drench the blade, and allow it to dry off overnight. I then paint it with keris oil that I make myself from about 45% cendana, 5% kenanga, and 50% medicinal parafin. I slip the wet blade into a plastic sleeve, twist the sleeve around the blade so it is tight, and place it into the wrongko. I then place the wrongko into a singap, and the singap into a chest. I do not display keris anywhere in my house. In my private security room I have three keris that are not stored in the chests, and these are not in plastic sleeves, I might oil these keris perhaps once every six months. None of them have been stained in more than 15 years, all of them are in perfect condition. Although I do not display keris, I do have 9 or 10 tombak around the house, some in a ploncon, some just leaning in corners. None of these blades are in plastic sleeves, all these blades are in perfect condition and they get oiled about once every six months or so. Where I do not place a freshly oiled blade into a plastic sleeve, I strip excess oil from the blade with a toothbrush.

29th January 2007, 01:52 PM	#3
David Keris forum moderator Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Nova Scotia Posts: 7,211	I like using an artists paint brush to apply oil. I prefer natural fiber brushes, but if you are muslim or trying to keep traditional to Islamic area keris you would want to be sure of the type of animal used as a source for the brush. For me the brush allows me to put very controlled amounts of oil on the blade at a time and the brush caresses the blade in a way that a rag does not. Also you will not leave fibers from the rag behind that might get snagged on sharp points of the blade. Most of my keris are on display and i tend to oil monthly.