Setapak, Kuala Lumpur
The address is 4 Jalan Usahawan 6, Setapak Jaya, Kuala Lumpur — and behind the modern factory walls is something that is rare in today's industry: pewter crafts made using techniques that are over 130 years old, by craftsmen who learned from those who learned from those who learned from the founders themselves.
Ten to twenty manual steps
Each object from the Setapak factory passes through up to 20 separate craft processes.
Since 1885
The factory in Setapak has produced tin for over 130 years. The techniques are handed down from master to apprentice.
Visitor Centre
Visitors can see tinsmiths at work and try their hand at hammering at the Royal Selangor Visitor Centre.
The world's leading
Royal Selangor is recognized as the world's leading producer of hand cast tin.
Morning: melting furnaces start
A working day in the Royal Selangor factory begins with the melting furnaces. The tin alloy — 92–97% pure tin with copper and antimony — is melted to 280 °C and prepared for casting. The moulds, which are made from handmade originals by Royal Selangor's own designers, are prepared by experienced moulders.
The characteristic smell of molten metal, the calm concentrated work, the sound of metal against metal — this is the working atmosphere in the Setapak factory.
Morning: filing and assembly
After the logs have cooled, the filing work begins. Molding seams are removed, edges are smoothed and components are prepared for assembly. For complex pieces — jugs with handles, figurines with multiple parts — the components are soldered together with a precision soldering iron.
Each piece is checked manually after this phase. A tinsmith with 20 years' experience can feel the touch alone if a filing is correct.
Nothing leaves the Setapak factory without passing through at least ten pairs of human hands.
— Royal Selangor Visitor Centre
The afternoon: polishing and finishing
The polishing stations are the factory's most visual rooms: rotating cloth wheels, polishing compound and the tinsmiths who hold pieces against the wheels with safe, trained hands. Satin finish, brilliant finish, scotching — each technique creates its unique surface character.
Visitor Centre: open for you
The Royal Selangor Visitor Center is open to visitors daily. You can see the tinsmiths at work in real time, participate in short workshops where you shape your own piece of pewter, and explore the museum collections that tell Royal Selangor's 130-year history. For Norwegian travelers to Kuala Lumpur, this is a visit that is genuinely unforgettable.
Until you visit Setapak for yourself, every Royal Selangor piece you hold in your hand is a direct product of what you just read about — made there, by them.
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