Help etch barung please

Tim Simmons · 12th September 2010, 12:18 PM

I took a gamble on this as they are not my thing. I hope this is circa 1900? The scabbard seems to have seen some life before being covered in a lacquer and the cloth wrap is most unlikely to be the original. The blade needs retching. Can anybody talk me through this process? I know it is Philippine but that is all. Thanks in advance.

Lew · 12th September 2010, 01:52 PM

Hi Tim

Nice barong. As far as age goes I think 1930s-1940 but it could be older. Clean the blade up with 600 grit wet/dry sand paper and you can etch with pineapple juice of ferric chloride. Once etched use 0000 steel wool and lightly go over the blade add a light coat of oil at the end.

Sajen · 12th September 2010, 02:52 PM

Hi Tim,

you also can use hot vinegar. I have used it by a blade you know, see picture.

Regards,

Detlef

Ferguson · 12th September 2010, 04:25 PM

What Sajen and Lew said are correct. Here is the procedure that I use.
Steve

Please understand that there are as many methods to etch blades as there are people that do it. Do a search on etching and read what others have to say.

Polish the blade by sanding with some very fine wet-or-dry sandpaper, starting with at least 400grit, then with 600, then as high as you want to go, up to 2000. Use Windex, or any brand window cleaner with ammonia to lubricate the sandpaper, and keep it from loading up. Try not to cut your fingers off.

With each finer grit of sandpaper try to get any scratches out that were left by the previous sanding.

1. Use acetone or denatured alcohol to degrease the blade. Both are flammable, so use good ventilation and follow the safety instructions on the can.
2. Saturate a rag or paper towel with warm vinegar or pineapple juice and rub it onto the blade. Put it on with a fully saturated rag, and wipe it on evenly. Do one side then the other, doing your best to cover the full side of the blade in one pass. Don’t let the solution run down into the grip. I use a plastic trough that is used to wet wallpaper that I bought at the local home improvements store to catch the drips.
3. When satisfied with the pattern, rinse with cold water.
4. Neutralize the acid by rubbing the blade with a thick mixture of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and water, or with ammonia, or window cleaner containing ammonia.
5. Rinse the blade in cold water.
6. Dry the blade thoroughly, and oil it well with mineral oil, or whatever you currently use to prevent rust.

An alternative is to use ferric chloride. It works quicker and sometimes brings the pattern out better, but is potentially more dangerous to the blade. (this is the procedure that I use as it is much quicker and often provides more contrast)

1. After polishing as above, use acetone or denatured alcohol to degrease the blade. Both are flammable, so use good ventilation and follow the safety instructions on the can.
2. Mix one part Ferric Chloride, available in the US from Radio Shack as Printed circuit board etchant, with 3 or 4 parts distilled water.
3. Using rubber gloves saturate a rag or paper towel with the solution and rub it onto the blade. Put it on with a fully saturated rag, and wipe it on evenly. Do one side then the other, doing your best to cover the full side of the blade in one pass. Don’t let the solution run down into the grip. I use a plastic trough that is used to wet wallpaper that I bought at the local home improvements store to catch the drips.
4. When satisfied with the pattern, rinse with cold water.
5. Rub the blade with a rag or paper towel saturated with vinegar. I’ve read that this helps to stop the ferric chloride reaction.
6. Rinse with cold water.
7 Neutralize the acid by thoroughly rubbing the blade with ammonia, or window cleaner containing ammonia.
8. Rinse with cold water.
9 Dry the blade thoroughly, and oil it well with mineral oil, or whatever you currently use to prevent rust.

Tim Simmons · 12th September 2010, 07:39 PM

I have tried wiping the blade with boiled vinegar. So far all I have is a shiny silver handle from my gripping, and a clean blade with possibly less visable linear? pattern than when I started. Is it like cleaning a Keris blade? Do I need to have the vinegar or pineapple juice on for sometime? like hours or even a day or two?

Sajen · 12th September 2010, 08:37 PM

When you follow the instruction from Steve it will work, you have to do the etching sometimes many times until it workes, don't give up.

Ferguson · 13th September 2010, 12:49 AM

Tim,
Ferric Chloride is available on Ebay in the UK. If you have any shops that cater to electronic enthusiasts, it might be available there. It is used to etch the copper off of printed circuit boards. It works much faster than vinegar.

Steve

Tim Simmons · 13th September 2010, 06:55 PM

While my blade is being cooked up in a pineapple soaked tea towel. I would like to get more information about these. A google search has sites suggesting that scabbards with mother of pearl on them are post 1940s? Looking at this seen many times before standard google search image. The chap in the centre has mother of pearl on the throat of his barung scabbard. What time period is this picture? Something about this picture reminds me of a Black Crows album sleeve.

kronckew · 13th September 2010, 08:54 PM

Maplins (UK electronics store, bit like radio shack used to be) has ferric chloride in bagged pellet and in liquid form (there's on about 8 miles from me in swindon where i buy mine), also they have a web store but do not sell chemicals online, link to it's store locator .

kai · 13th September 2010, 11:07 PM

Tim, pineapple juice is better for cleaning a rusty blade.

Most of the boldly laminated Moro blades shown by well-known sellers have been stained with ferric chloride; while impressive, it may be argued that this stain is not traditional.

This blade was etched with hot vinegar:
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=6792
Vinegar is the main active component of coconut water - apparently the traditional cleaning and etching fluid.

Keep the etching time short: the blade should stay smooth and not corroded as in keris Jawa. You may have to do several rounds of polishing and etching to get a decent staining, especially if the blade has been polished with power tools by some former owner.

Regards,
Kai

Tim Simmons · 14th September 2010, 06:59 PM

The contrast is not that strong, so quite hard to photograph. Steve, thanks for the tea towel tip. I have used an antique wax and fine steel wool to finish. Total length 22 inches blade 16.5 inches.

Ferguson · 15th September 2010, 06:51 AM

Sometimes the contrast is just not there. It's a beautiful blade though.
Steve

12th September 2010, 12:18 PM	#1
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,736	Help etch barung please I took a gamble on this as they are not my thing. I hope this is circa 1900? The scabbard seems to have seen some life before being covered in a lacquer and the cloth wrap is most unlikely to be the original. The blade needs retching. Can anybody talk me through this process? I know it is Philippine but that is all. Thanks in advance. Attached Images Last edited by Tim Simmons; 12th September 2010 at 01:22 PM. Reason: struggling with strange PC

12th September 2010, 02:52 PM	#3
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 8,468	Hi Tim, you also can use hot vinegar. I have used it by a blade you know, see picture. Regards, Detlef Attached Images

13th September 2010, 06:55 PM	#8
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,736	While my blade is being cooked up in a pineapple soaked tea towel. I would like to get more information about these. A google search has sites suggesting that scabbards with mother of pearl on them are post 1940s? Looking at this seen many times before standard google search image. The chap in the centre has mother of pearl on the throat of his barung scabbard. What time period is this picture? Something about this picture reminds me of a Black Crows album sleeve. Attached Images

14th September 2010, 06:59 PM	#11
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,736	The contrast is not that strong, so quite hard to photograph. Steve, thanks for the tea towel tip. I have used an antique wax and fine steel wool to finish. Total length 22 inches blade 16.5 inches. Attached Images Last edited by Tim Simmons; 14th September 2010 at 07:13 PM. Reason: add size

12th September 2010, 01:52 PM	#2
Lew (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: East Coast USA Posts: 3,191	Hi Tim Nice barong. As far as age goes I think 1930s-1940 but it could be older. Clean the blade up with 600 grit wet/dry sand paper and you can etch with pineapple juice of ferric chloride. Once etched use 0000 steel wool and lightly go over the blade add a light coat of oil at the end.

12th September 2010, 04:25 PM	#4
Ferguson Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Kernersville, NC, USA Posts: 793	What Sajen and Lew said are correct. Here is the procedure that I use. Steve Please understand that there are as many methods to etch blades as there are people that do it. Do a search on etching and read what others have to say. Polish the blade by sanding with some very fine wet-or-dry sandpaper, starting with at least 400grit, then with 600, then as high as you want to go, up to 2000. Use Windex, or any brand window cleaner with ammonia to lubricate the sandpaper, and keep it from loading up. Try not to cut your fingers off. With each finer grit of sandpaper try to get any scratches out that were left by the previous sanding. 1. Use acetone or denatured alcohol to degrease the blade. Both are flammable, so use good ventilation and follow the safety instructions on the can. 2. Saturate a rag or paper towel with warm vinegar or pineapple juice and rub it onto the blade. Put it on with a fully saturated rag, and wipe it on evenly. Do one side then the other, doing your best to cover the full side of the blade in one pass. Don’t let the solution run down into the grip. I use a plastic trough that is used to wet wallpaper that I bought at the local home improvements store to catch the drips. 3. When satisfied with the pattern, rinse with cold water. 4. Neutralize the acid by rubbing the blade with a thick mixture of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and water, or with ammonia, or window cleaner containing ammonia. 5. Rinse the blade in cold water. 6. Dry the blade thoroughly, and oil it well with mineral oil, or whatever you currently use to prevent rust. An alternative is to use ferric chloride. It works quicker and sometimes brings the pattern out better, but is potentially more dangerous to the blade. (this is the procedure that I use as it is much quicker and often provides more contrast) 1. After polishing as above, use acetone or denatured alcohol to degrease the blade. Both are flammable, so use good ventilation and follow the safety instructions on the can. 2. Mix one part Ferric Chloride, available in the US from Radio Shack as Printed circuit board etchant, with 3 or 4 parts distilled water. 3. Using rubber gloves saturate a rag or paper towel with the solution and rub it onto the blade. Put it on with a fully saturated rag, and wipe it on evenly. Do one side then the other, doing your best to cover the full side of the blade in one pass. Don’t let the solution run down into the grip. I use a plastic trough that is used to wet wallpaper that I bought at the local home improvements store to catch the drips. 4. When satisfied with the pattern, rinse with cold water. 5. Rub the blade with a rag or paper towel saturated with vinegar. I’ve read that this helps to stop the ferric chloride reaction. 6. Rinse with cold water. 7 Neutralize the acid by thoroughly rubbing the blade with ammonia, or window cleaner containing ammonia. 8. Rinse with cold water. 9 Dry the blade thoroughly, and oil it well with mineral oil, or whatever you currently use to prevent rust.

12th September 2010, 07:39 PM	#5
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,736	I have tried wiping the blade with boiled vinegar. So far all I have is a shiny silver handle from my gripping, and a clean blade with possibly less visable linear? pattern than when I started. Is it like cleaning a Keris blade? Do I need to have the vinegar or pineapple juice on for sometime? like hours or even a day or two?

12th September 2010, 08:37 PM	#6
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 8,468	When you follow the instruction from Steve it will work, you have to do the etching sometimes many times until it workes, don't give up.

13th September 2010, 12:49 AM	#7
Ferguson Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Kernersville, NC, USA Posts: 793	Tim, Ferric Chloride is available on Ebay in the UK. If you have any shops that cater to electronic enthusiasts, it might be available there. It is used to etch the copper off of printed circuit boards. It works much faster than vinegar. Steve

13th September 2010, 08:54 PM	#9
kronckew Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Room 101, Glos. UK Posts: 4,150	Maplins (UK electronics store, bit like radio shack used to be) has ferric chloride in bagged pellet and in liquid form (there's on about 8 miles from me in swindon where i buy mine), also they have a web store but do not sell chemicals online, link to it's store locator .

13th September 2010, 11:07 PM	#10
kai Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 3,215	Tim, pineapple juice is better for cleaning a rusty blade. Most of the boldly laminated Moro blades shown by well-known sellers have been stained with ferric chloride; while impressive, it may be argued that this stain is not traditional. This blade was etched with hot vinegar: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=6792 Vinegar is the main active component of coconut water - apparently the traditional cleaning and etching fluid. Keep the etching time short: the blade should stay smooth and not corroded as in keris Jawa. You may have to do several rounds of polishing and etching to get a decent staining, especially if the blade has been polished with power tools by some former owner. Regards, Kai

15th September 2010, 06:51 AM	#12
Ferguson Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Kernersville, NC, USA Posts: 793	Sometimes the contrast is just not there. It's a beautiful blade though. Steve