Bali keris comments plz

David · 2nd August 2025, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeffS

Thank you Alan. I purchased it for the hilt (needed for another Bali keris in my collection), but will clean this up hoping to have a rough, but honest old village keris with attractive pamor. I may circle back after it is cleaned up to see if I can learn a bit more, but understood this is not a particularly interesting keris for this board. A veneer would be easier to replace than a pendok if it turns out to be worth the effort.

Jeff, i'm not sure why you think this keris would not be of interest to this board. It actually looks like quite a nice restoration project if you are interested in undertaking it.
It is difficult to be sure what the pamor is on this keris, but it looks something like pamor santa or some related pamor. Washing and restaining the keris will make identification much easier. If you have the skills to place new veneer on this sarong, stain the blade and get a nice uwer you could end up with a pretty decent keris. Please update this thread if you do indeed restore it.

A. G. Maisey · 2nd August 2025, 10:15 PM

Jeff, David & I are on the same page.

This keris will restore well.

The blade is not at all a clunker, it is decent workmanship, my doubts about the blade only relate to age, but as far are workmanship goes, it is pretty decent.

The blade clean up is white, household vinegar, combined with scraping & picking, after the rust has gone, a polish with wet & dry paper, finishing with worn 1200 grit will give a foundation for staining.

The veneer does need to be replaced, & if you ca source some veneer this is not a big job. You clean off the old adhesive, it might be shellac, so try metholated spirits & steel wool first, if that doesn't work, soften with water & use scraper/paper, but do not get too heavy handed. You can put the veneer on with PVA adhesive & you bind a stocking(s) around to clamp it in place until dry & cured. Then you finish the job.

This keris definitely has potential.

2nd August 2025, 10:15 PM	#2
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 7,059	Jeff, David & I are on the same page. This keris will restore well. The blade is not at all a clunker, it is decent workmanship, my doubts about the blade only relate to age, but as far are workmanship goes, it is pretty decent. The blade clean up is white, household vinegar, combined with scraping & picking, after the rust has gone, a polish with wet & dry paper, finishing with worn 1200 grit will give a foundation for staining. The veneer does need to be replaced, & if you ca source some veneer this is not a big job. You clean off the old adhesive, it might be shellac, so try metholated spirits & steel wool first, if that doesn't work, soften with water & use scraper/paper, but do not get too heavy handed. You can put the veneer on with PVA adhesive & you bind a stocking(s) around to clamp it in place until dry & cured. Then you finish the job. This keris definitely has potential.