A second-generation blacksmith, Loh plies his trade in his unassuming shop, an old-fashioned nameplate hanging above the main entrance, with standard block lettering and Chinese characters spelling out the name Chop Seng Lee.
Lai sells blades such as parangs, machetes, sickles and the popular keris. One would be hard-pressed to find another Chinese man in Malaysia who takes orders for the keris, the making of which is a dying trade.
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Lai told FMT he had learned the craft at the age of 12 from his blacksmith father, who migrated from China and set up shop in Kukup. “I learned the craft while I was still in school,” he said.
“I make parangs and other blades and stuff, although now I mostly make keris. Different customers have different requests. Some ask for rubber tapping knives or machetes; but many are interested in the keris,” he said proudly.
Lai, who likes to go by the name Ah Lai, said short daggers similar to the keris are also found in China, but when his father came to Malaya, he had to learn the unique wavy shape and designs of the Malay dagger.
The process of forging the keris traditionally requires that the wood for the handle be dried under direct sunlight. Instead, Lai smokes the wood in his workshop for at least three months.
“Once the wood is dry, then you’ll get a nice pattern. And we always use good quality wood. We don’t want to use wood that breaks easily or doesn’t have a nice grain.”
His customers come from all across Johor, some even as far as Batu Pahat. Lai said one keris could fetch up to RM1,200, though this depended on the customer’s request.
After some 60 years in the trade, Lai is still tinkering away in his workshop, but unlike his father, Lai does not have someone to whom he can pass down his craft.
“I have three children, but I don’t have a successor. All my children have their own jobs.”
Nonetheless, Lai was confident that someone would eventually take up the craft, even if it was someone outside his family.
“Working as a blacksmith is not easy, but I feel that this job is very important. Because aside from the keris, parangs and knives will continue to be used in daily life.
“As long as I can do this, I will continue. But I’m also looking out for anyone who’s interested to pick this up, a student of sorts.
“What’s necessary is that they must work hard and be self-confident. Without the right spirit, it will be difficult because this is a complicated trade, it’s craftwork.”