Pilot Iroshizuku Yama Budo

[Tsujigiri]

This is my first ink review, and I've only just gotten into inks, so I don't know all the criteria to judge them by. I'm mostly interested in the color, so this review will hopefully show that aspect well. As far as technical details, it flows pretty well and hasn't given me anything to complain about, so no worries there that I can think of. If you have any questions or suggestions for future reviews, please let me know. So here are a couple pics of the ink samplers in the store, the ink bottles in Tokyo, and the review itself:

 

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN6969.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN7009.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN6985.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN7011.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN7350.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN7348.jpg

[Triplet Mom]

Awesome first review!! Love all the pictures, especially the cool ink testing pens at the top and the great close up of the actual color on your written page! Pilot iroshizuku inks have quickly become my favorite inks with their luxurious colors and beautiful ink bottles.

 

Warm regards,

Lynne

[scratchy]

Hey I want a bottle of that stuff now! Thanks for the review

[UNDERDOG]

Outstanding review! The display pix are VERY helpful. I've been lucky enough to be using Tsuyu-Kusa for a little while now. The bottles are absolutely gorgeous. I've Ink Exchanged Yama-Budo too. Very deep-colored purple. This ink could easily be an addiction within an addiction. Thank you!

[kushbaby]

I love this color - great review (and great pics!).

 

I'm afraid that I have an Iroshizuku addiction (facilitated by JetPens) - I have all of the colors available. I adore all of them (though a few are pretty close to each other).

 

(I love that pic of the sampler!)

 

[Jared]

Wonderful review! I may be heading to Tokyo, so any information about where to pick these up (most convenient & best deals) would be helpful. The display of tester pens is a great idea--did you find this common in stores where the Iroshizuku inks were sold?

 

 

[MicheleB]

Very educational. Thanks. That tester sheet is brilliant. Is there a strategy to how they are laid out?

[Tsujigiri]

Thanks for the comments, everyone!

Jared, the testers were pretty common in the department stores. Quite a few had the ink, but they didn't stock very large quantities. The best deal for them that I know of is at Sekaido, a multi-storied art store. The Iroshizuku inks are on the first floor behind the counter. They mentioned something about having a card that you pay for, which gives you 20% discounts, but I didn't quite understand the details of it. They gave me 20% off on the ink without a card, in any case.

[dandelion]

...O, lovely photos. I especially like the ink sampler photos. Thank you so much for this very enjoyable review!

[Cedar]

Very nice review. I really enjoyed seeing the inks in their natural habitat. Very nice color!

I just ordered four of the Iroshizuku inks from Jetpens but they were out of this one. Drat!

Jetpens was great to deal with. I guess the "jet" part comes from how fast they ship. Great that there was no shipping added on, too.

 

Cedar

[wrath186]

Great review. Iroshizuku inks are quickly dominating my writing table. So far I have five bottles. Great stuff!!

[pb2]

This is definitely the hot color ...the "new black" or whatever.... love the bottle with the pen groove in the bottom (Noodler's pay attention!) ~ cool review too right from the inks home turf.

Your F Pel does look more M ...I'm thinking its the paper and that the ink or pen may be wetter than some. ~Thanks for sharing!

Pendleton

 

ps ~ funny avatar!

 

This is my first ink review, and I've only just gotten into inks, so I don't know all the criteria to judge them by. I'm mostly interested in the color, so this review will hopefully show that aspect well. As far as technical details, it flows pretty well and hasn't given me anything to complain about, so no worries there that I can think of. If you have any questions or suggestions for future reviews, please let me know. So here are a couple pics of the ink samplers in the store, the ink bottles in Tokyo, and the review itself:

 

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN6969.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN7009.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN6985.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN7011.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN7350.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj309/tsujigiri01/DSCN7348.jpg

 

[HenryLouis]

shipping iroshizuku ink would make it around $30... I for one think that it's too much to pay for a nice ink. I'm sure it's cheaper to buy it local though.

 

Are the bottles not completely full or something?

[kushbaby]

Very nice review. I really enjoyed seeing the inks in their natural habitat. Very nice color!

I just ordered four of the Iroshizuku inks from Jetpens but they were out of this one. Drat!

Jetpens was great to deal with. I guess the "jet" part comes from how fast they ship. Great that there was no shipping added on, too.

 

Cedar

 

FYI, I've noticed when they are out of stock on something, they tend to get it back in stock pretty quickly, so keep checking.

[Cedar]

Very nice review. I really enjoyed seeing the inks in their natural habitat. Very nice color!

I just ordered four of the Iroshizuku inks from Jetpens but they were out of this one. Drat!

Jetpens was great to deal with. I guess the "jet" part comes from how fast they ship. Great that there was no shipping added on, too.

 

Cedar

 

FYI, I've noticed when they are out of stock on something, they tend to get it back in stock pretty quickly, so keep checking.

 

Thanks, kushbaby! I did sign up for the restock notification thingey. I like that idea, too! I was very impressed with Jetpens.

 

Cedar

 

[nicholasyeo]

Very nice review. I really enjoyed seeing the inks in their natural habitat. Very nice color!

I just ordered four of the Iroshizuku inks from Jetpens but they were out of this one. Drat!

Jetpens was great to deal with. I guess the "jet" part comes from how fast they ship. Great that there was no shipping added on, too.

 

Cedar

 

FYI, I've noticed when they are out of stock on something, they tend to get it back in stock pretty quickly, so keep checking.

 

Thanks, kushbaby! I did sign up for the restock notification thingey. I like that idea, too! I was very impressed with Jetpens.

 

Cedar

A perfect ink that really seems to go with it's Japanese name of "Mountain Grape" very well. It is truly a classy looking grape colour that is not too striking to write a page in.

[Tsujigiri]

This is definitely the hot color ...the "new black" or whatever.... love the bottle with the pen groove in the bottom (Noodler's pay attention!) ~ cool review too right from the inks home turf.

Your F Pel does look more M ...I'm thinking its the paper and that the ink or pen may be wetter than some. ~Thanks for sharing!

Pendleton

 

ps ~ funny avatar!

 

It does seem a little thick.. but the nib is about the same size as my other Pelikan fines. Maybe the m200's I got are just unusually broad, because I'd expect a big pen like the m1000 to have a line like that.

 

shipping iroshizuku ink would make it around $30... I for one think that it's too much to pay for a nice ink. I'm sure it's cheaper to buy it local though.

 

Are the bottles not completely full or something?

 

True, it really depends on the availability. I was just noting that while it's considered a pricey ink on fpn and would be if I ordered it at home, it's a great deal where it's sold. That's the bottle I got at Takashimaya. For some reason, it came a little ways empty. I think that the bottle's just bigger, but holds the same amount of ink. I know that Takashimaya doesn't let customers take any ink from store merchandise for testing; they had a seperate, smaller store sampler bottle of the ink for me to test with my Pelikan.

[Miranda]

Great pics!! Thanks.

 

I adore this colour with all the hues it shows with a broad nib and the different colour it takes on with a fine nib.

 

I ordered a decent assortment of these inks a while ago, and I did find that the ink level varied a bit in the bottles. Maybe because the bottles are hand made, there are slight variations even though the volume of ink is the same.

[lefty928]

Thank you for the review. Great images and lots of information, plus a different approach. Those testers are such a good idea ...

[scribbler77]

JetPens has Iroshizuku for $22.50 a bottle. They ship free (in the U.S.) for orders over $25. Therefore, if you order two bottles you get them for $22.50 each, including shipping, not $30.00.