Sailor Seiboku

[XiaoMG]

I have a bit of a strained relationship with many of my fountain pen inks. My Iroshizuku inks aren't as durable as I'd like, though they are quite pretty. My Sailor Kiwaguro is a very good black, though it can smear for some time after it's dried, and it doesn't always look as dark as some of the other blacks.

 

There's one ink that I have though that has always performed admirably and looks just downright fascinating to me, and that's Sailor's Seiboku. I wouldn't call this a blue-black at all, except perhaps from a broad nib. However, I think it looks very interesting from a fine or fine-medium nib with lots of character and a fun sheen effect. It dries relatively quickly, does not smear after drying, and is completely waterproof. I didn't want to post these pictures in the reviews forum as they're not really a review, but I'd like to let more people get a look at this ink, since it's expensive enough in some places to discourage buying, and these "nano" inks and their moderate demands on pen hygiene can be a bit of a turn-off for some as well.

 

http://i.imgur.com/OXZhe.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/OHgSF.jpg

 

For the record, the paper is a Taiwanese brand called ipaper. I find that the paper is sometimes a bit toothier than I prefer, but it does a pretty good job of showing off ink qualities.

Edited March 17, 2012 by XiaoMG

[Anne S. Gray]

Wow! Looks like a gorgeous ink with some nice shading.

[amberleadavis]

Thank you

[Essensia]

One of my very favorite inks. Thank you for showcasing it!

[XiaoMG]

One ink that I noticed looked slightly similar was the blue Uniball Eye Micro. The color is noticeably more blue and less green than Seiboku, and perhaps the shading effect isn't quite as dramatic, but it behaves pretty similarly and offers a bit of sheen as well. Before I only looked at the black Uniball Eye and wasn't that excited about it, but the blue is intriguing.

 

The Signo series doesn't offer much in the way of shading at all, but the Eye Micro can do a pretty nice job on my ipaper and some other notebooks. I love living in an area where I can test out all the roller, gel, and ballpoint pens I want right in the store before I buy.

[mhphoto]

Very interesting. The purple sheen in the second picture reminds me of the iridescence of ballpoint ink.

[Uncle Red]

You get that in a few blues, Pilot Blue does it. PR Ebony Green sheens a lot.