Noodler's Borealis Black

[Grwilliams86]

Courtesy of BilltheEditor, I have a small vial of Noodler's Borealis Black. I was looking to test true blacks as well as Noodler's Inks. I'm sad to say that I'm slightly disappointed with this ink, as it didn't pair well with my cheapy Hero 616. But, still a true black!

 

Enjoy!

 

 

[someonesdad]

I'm grateful for your post. I like to use Hero 616's and 332's and I was interested in trying this particular black. From your review, now I'm not so interested.

 

FYI, I've been using some Noodlers black that I got recently in a sample and I put it into my favorite 616. I've only had it in for about 5 days, but so far I'd give it a B or B-. The ink is fine once it's on the paper, but it writes a tiny bit dry in this pen. Plus, it can be a tiny bit hard starting after not being used for half a day. I normally use this pen with my favorite black, Herbin Perle Noire and with which it walks across water, but I wanted to try the Noodlers black. I'll give the Noodlers another week or two, but if I had to decide now, I'll go back to the Herbin ink. Side by side, I can't tell the Noodlers black or Perle Noire apart (maybe I could with a microscope). Both look great on paper.

 

Next, I'm going to try the 616 with some PR DC Supershow blue that I also got in the ink sample trade. It's a rich, dark blue in a medium nib Parker I have and I think I'll like it even better a bit diluted. I also want to try it in the Hero, as I suspect it will look great from that pen too. I've used the 616's and 332's with both Waterman Florida blue and Herbin Eclat de Saphir and have absolutely no complaints about those two inks.

[Grwilliams86]

Can you update me about what you find with inks for your 616. I use this pen as my primary black pen, so this ink is disappointing. I've been wanting to try the Perle Noire, but it seems a bit pricey since I don't NEED a black-black. I might just be okay with Pelikan or Sheaffer unless I have astounding proof otherwise.

 

Not to mention, I disassembled my 616 the other day and there was Borealis Black all over the place under the hood. It's just not consistent enough for me.

[jpnyc]

This would be my perfect black ink--blackest of black color, no feathering, decent dry time, highly water resistant (but washable!) etc.--except it has poor flow characteristics. It seems to dry quickly on a nib (within a couple of days capped) and displays reduced flow in each of the three pens I've used it in. In a wider nib, that's not a problem, but it absolutely refuses to write at all in my dry-writing EF Lamy 2000. I honestly thought I'd broken the nib and needed to send the pen off to Lamy for repair until I switched inks.

Edited April 17, 2014 by jpnyc

[gadgetjunky]

I have generally had very good luck with Noodler's Heart of Darkness in xf/fine nibbed pens. I have used it pretty much exclusively in a Pilot Prera with a fine nib for several years. Perle Noir is a lovely ink but I have found that I prefer the water resistance of HoD for use at work.