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I like vintage ink I like the idea that ink that was made in the 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s HAD TO WORK It had to be relatively trouble free and it had to perform as expected. This was after all, a time when fountain pens were simply PENS. They were expected to write and write well. On that note, I recently bought a bottle of Waterman's Aztec Brown. The bottle is almost NOS. Using it, I found that I really like it. This is a problem as the stuff is getting expensive. So, I decided to get a bottle of the current Absolute Brown and compare them to one another. Here are the results: Waterman's Aztec Brown 2oz bottle, vintage (1940s-50s)Bought on eBay Jun 2020for $10 This brown leansonly a little red-ishInk has that vintage Waterman's smell (Phenol?)Flows great, no surprisethere. No bleed or feathering except on the worst quality paper Goodshading + lots of vari-ation depending on thepen used. (Dry Times) Wouldbuy again?Yes Shading: Good/MediumSaturation: Good/MediumFeathering: Some/Low-ishSpread: Low-NilBleed: Low-NilCleaning: Very Easy Waterman Absolute Brown50ml bottle The PaperyJun 2020. This is Waterman'scurrent brown formu-lation. It used to be called Havana BrownAs a Waterman ink itflows well and behaveswell. Like Aztec Brown there is a lot of differencefrom pen to pen. It isslightly redder + darker thanAztec Brown. That may be due to Aztec's age. (Dry Times) Would Buy Again?Yes! Shading: Good/MediumSaturation: Good/MediumFeathering: NilSpread: NilBleed: NilCleaning: Easy Notes: Good butSlightly redder replacementfor Aztec Brown