Search the Community

Noodler’s Rachmaninoff I have been stalling this review for quite a while, as I love the composer, and dislike the ink, a colour made for Barbie with the consistency of Pepto-Bismol. I’m assuming this atrocious colour was chosen because of the lovely lyrical melodies of the composer. If that’s the case, then it shows an absolute misunderstanding of the music. The composer A bit about Rachmaninoff, one of the greatest composers, pianists of early 20th century, born in Russian Empire in 1873, and died in Beverly Hills, USA in 1943. Rachmaninoff’s music was slightly out of the sync with the musical trends of the era, and critics often panned his music for being too lyrical. This is from the Groves' Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 1954 edition: His music is "effective but monotonous in texture" and consisted "in essence mainly of artificial and gushing tunes accompanied by a variety of figures derived from arpeggios. The enormous popular success some few of Rachmaninov's works had in his lifetime is not likely to last." Well, I can assure you this article has been rewritten. Mostly known for his piano work, especially his lyrical 2nd and monumental 3rd concerto. I personally love his youthful first and his misunderstood 4th. Here is his Prelude in C Sharp Minor, recorded by the Rachmaninoff himself in 1920. He has written 3 symphonies, the first of which, nearly derailed his career as a composer, due to bad premier thanks to a presumably inebriated conductor. His 2nd is lyrical and brought him fame, but with the advent of Bolshevik revolution he went to exile to the West, and made a living mostly as a Pianist. He composed few works, notably his Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini and his intense Symphonic Dances. It might be noted that the medieval theme of Dies Irae (Day of Wrath), peppers his work. Ink Review: Now for the ink, it has an offending scent, qualified as archival, fluorescent, forge resistant and water resistant. It'll clog your pen and blind your eyes It distinctly had flow issues in the Kakuno Ef, and then was extremely wet, in the Lamy Ef. Then over time it was playing hard to get with the B nib in Lamy Safari. I was glad when I dunked it down the drain. I didn’t bother to test it with a stub or flex nib, it seemed counterintuitive after having bleeding through Midori paper. It behaved decently with Rhodia and Tomoe River and it has fast drying time. I don't recommend this ink. Chroma: Writing Samples: I tried finding quotes by Rachmaninoff, though one should know the man, the music and his times to get the gist of it. Photo: I didn't bother with a photo. It's not worth it. Comparison: Water test: and finally an artwork, the Pianist Charcoal, graphite, Sumi ink · Pens used: Pilot Kakuno Ef, Lamy (EF/F/M/B,) · What I liked: Listening to Rachmaninov, fast dry times · What I did not like: Colour, stench, behavior. · What some might not like: Scent, colour, bad behavior. · Shading: Absent. · Ghosting: Yes on most paper. · Bleed through: On Midori, worse on copy paper. · Flow Rate: Awful in Kakuno with Ef, sluggish. · Lubrication: Ok. · Nib Dry-out: A bit · Start-up: Yes, with Kakuno. · Saturation: Saturated pink. · Shading Potential: Dismal. · Sheen: No. · Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: Did not notice. · Nib Creep / “Crud”: A bit. · Staining (pen): I won’t be surprised. · Clogging: I think it did · Cleaning: High maintenance. · Water resistance: Excellent. · Availability: 90 ml bottles. Please don't hesitate to share your experience, writing samples or any other comments. The more the merrier

Noodler’s Fox Red When it comes to red ink, I'm often weary as they are very difficult to clean. I also lprefer Dark reds better than brighter red. However, this ink has wowed me with its performance, it's one of the best inks, I've ever used. It doesn't ghost or bleed through on copy paper. It's a pleasure to use. Unlike other Noodler's inks, it comes into 1 oz/30 ml series. The other inks in this series are La Reine Mauve, Luxury Blue, Periwinkle and Whiteness of the Whale. Apparently the ingredients to make these inks are quite expensive, hence the smaller ink bottle. Let's start with the chroma; there's a hint of yellow in the sea of red. Writing samples: Text is from the Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. No ghosting or bleed through on Hammermill. Surprisingly longest dry time Photo Paper is Mnemosyne - Nib is copperplate. Text is in French, same as above. 2 This ink is quite close to Noodler's Esenin. If you use a lot of red then maybe it's a better choice. (Esenin is also a very good red) A bit of the red is removed. But the text is legible: And as usual an artwork: Reunion an homage to The Little Prince. Paper is Canson mixed media paper, 98lb/160 gr Other inks used: Black: Noodler's Polar Black Yellow: J. Herbin Bouton d'or Green: Polar Green Wheat: Diamine Sepia The Sky is a mixture of Herbin's Émeraude de Chivor and Diamine Shimmering Seas, which I created effects by using a glass dip pen dipped in bleach. And finally the planet is done with Ferris Wheel Press, Storied Blue, lovely gorgeous ink for doing washes. · Pens used: Pilot Kakuna Ef, Lamy Safari (EF/F/M/B), Osmiroid Copperplate semi-flex, Jinhao 450 · What I liked: Well lubricated, well behaved. · What I did not like: I’m nitpicking: I wish it were a darker red. · What some might not like: 30s dry time with a medium nib on some papers, Price. · Shading: Nope · Ghosting: None. · Bleed through: None · Flow Rate: Really nice · Lubrication: Great · Nib Dry-out: None · Start-up: None · Saturation: Saturated · Shading Potential: dismal · Sheen: Faint · Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: No · Nib Creep / “Crud”: No. · Staining (pen): No · Clogging: No · Cleaning: Surprisingly easy. · Water resistance: A bit removes but not much. · Availability: 1oz (30ml) Please don't hesitate to share your experience, writing samples or any other comments. The more the merrier

Mikhail Lermontov (1814 -1841) Russian poet, novelist. Photo: Courtesy of Wikipedia. He came to prominence after Pushkin’s death, writing a poem in his memory, which landed him in hot water with the authorities and exiled him to the Caucuses. He wrote the first Russian psychological novel, A Hero of Our time. He himself, died in duel, at age 26. He was also a painter. Photo: Courtesy of Wikipedia. His mother, from Russian nobility, died young and he was raised by his rich, doting grandmother, mostly in the Caucuses due to his fragile health. His grandmother made sure that he would have least contact with his father. It is no surprise with such an upbringing, and childhood traumas, the main character of his novel, is a narcissistic male, seduced women like Don Juan, but unlike the him was aware of his emptiness. I truly appreciated discovering this very astute and self-aware writer, and his many flaws. And the beauty of his poetry. Here is Sail, translated by Vladimir Nabakov. HP 32 - Paper - With modern flex nib Apparently, the word blue does not exist in Russian (If I'm wrong, hopefully Russian-speakers will correct me). They have words for dark/navy blue or light blue. The latter is used with much emphasis in the novel. Hence, why I assume, Mr. Tardiff, used this ice blue. It's a truly agreeable ink, very well behaved, that I used with much ease even on Hammermill 20 lb paper, with no apparent ghosting or bleed through. Chroma: Writing samples: Photo: Water resistance is quite good. In Noodler's vocabulary bulletproof means that if someone attempts forgery it'll be obvious as you can see on the left side of the image. Comparison: I was inspired by the last line of his poem Sail, to do this sketch: But you, wild rover, pray for tempests, As if in tempests there was peace! For the background I used Diamine Shimmering Seas (top), Kakimori Torori (orange yellow). The sky and sea are done with Lermontov, in diluted form. And the little sail boat, I used a dab of J Herbin's Larmes de cassis. Note how eerie it looks in under the UV light It's fluorescent ink) · Pens used: Pilot Elite (Ef/Stub) Lamy Safari (Ef/F/M/B), Kanwrite Ultraflex, · What I liked: It’s a pleasure to write with. It shines with Broad nib. · What I did not like,: it’s not an ink for all seasons. You wouldn’t want to use it in the dead of winter or on cold gloomy fall days. · What some might not like: The colour moves/changes when water touches it. · Shading: None. Unless you write on a modern shiny postal card. · Ghosting: Very well behaved. Even on copy paper. · Bleed through: None. · Flow Rate: Wet · Lubrication: Good. It’s slightly dry. · Nib Dry-out: None. · Start-up: None · Saturation: Medium. · Shading Potential: None. · Sheen: None. · Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: None · Nib Creep / “Crud”: Nope. · Staining (pen): No. · Clogging: No. · Cleaning: Easy. · Water resistance: Very good. The excess ink came off, but the rest was stable. · Availability: 3 oz/90 ml bottles, Russian Series is more expensive than the traditional line of Noodler’s. Please don't hesitate to share your experience, writing samples or any other comments. The more the merrier

Noodler’s Pushkin Agreeable muted green/blue. While it doesn’t capture the flamboyance of one Alexander Pushkin, it encapsulates the Russian spirit complexities and nuances. A bit about Pushkin before touching his namesake, considered the father of modern Russian literature. His great-grandfather was Abram Petrovich Gannibal, kidnapped from “Africa” gifted to Peter the Great, freed, and ennobled. Most of his works are in form poetry. And he was killed in a duel of honor, by his bother-in-law, a French Officer, in a duel at age 37. Now to the ink. I had difficulties reviewing this ink. This is the first Noodler’s which seemed to have flow issues. It absolutely disliked Ahab, especially when flexed. However, when I wrote with a light touch, the pen glided effortlessly. Chroma: However, compared to similar inks, i.e. Akhmatova, General of the Armies the writing experience was uneven to put it diplomatically. I enjoyed it however, in Lamy Safari. Ink even diluted, is waterproof. Here is diluted test: Ink is fluorescent, I would place it between Akhmatova (subtle) and General of the Armies (striking) General of the Armies... Writing samples: On Midori (photo)/ TR 68 gr (scan) Sketch on super absorbent paper (Peter Pauper) Swatches: Pros: Bulletproof/ very easy to clean/ doesn’t stain etc. Cons: Flow, and chemical scent. Note: Like most Russian series, this ink is more expensive than the typical Noodler’s ink. · Pen used: Noodler’s Ahab / Lamy Safari Broad/ Pilot Metro Fine/ Kanwrite Flex · Ghosting: Yes on thin papers like Stalogy · Bleed through: None · Flow Rate: On the dry side, sluggish · Lubrication: adequate · Nib Dry-out: No. · Start-up: Depends · Saturation: Yes · Shading Yes. · Sheen: No · Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: None · Nib creep: Yes, quite a bit. Though, Lamy has a black nib, so I didn’t see anything. · Staining (pen): None · Clogging: None. · Water resistance: Bulletproof · Availability: Only in 90 ml bottles

De Atramentis Dokument Tinte Blau / Document Ink Blue Dear FPN friends, This time an ink review of a very special ink. De Atramentis Document Blue. This ink is mentioned for doctors, lawyers etc. and for all who need a permanent ink for official Documents To be qualified as a document ink the ink has to meet certain standards. The standard in Europe is ISO 12757-2. This means that the ink has to be lightfast and may not be influenced by any outer influences. To show you the resilience of the inks I have poured several aggressive Fluids over it and… Nothing happened. It is like if the ink was carved in stone…. Amazing… It is not only bulletproof but also bombproof … I believe the ink even survives a nuclear accident or bomb attack (sorry for not testing that ) The ink is extremely lightfast. This is tested and certified with the Woll-Skala, wool scale in English. This may sound peculiar, but isn’t that strange on second glance. In history quite often the same pigments used for Dyeing wool where used for inks as well. The Woll-Skala reaches from 1 not lightfast over 5 extremely lightfast to 8 extreme lightfast. The ink “of course” is WS 8. There are other resilient inks like inks based on iron gall or soot. The problem is that iron gall inks are very aggressive to both paper and nib. (the paper of old Dutch documents from the golden age are often eaten away partially by the ink) Both iron gall and soot inks may also clog the feed of your fountain pen. The De Atramentis inks are, as far as I understand, made with nano-particles. According to the noble Fountain Pen King Sire Richard of Binderheart. Nano-particle inks can be safely used in Fountain pens. I always have one Fountain Pen filled with the ink for work and flush it once every 2 months… No problem at all Down here are the technical specs (as suggested by Ann Finley 2007) points 1-5 1 = Bad : 5= Excellent Fountain Pens: Sheaffer Targa F, “online Best Writer 0,8 Italic, Lamy Joy 1,5 Itaic Paper: Leonardo Ringbuch,average quality school note book made in Austria Drying time: Quicker than a camel’s bottom during a desert stroll points 5 Flow: like a Hippie on LSD points: 5 Wetness: very wet still drying fast points 5 Lubrication: very smooth points: 5 Bleeding: medium on average quality paper with ‘normal’ nib points: 3 Shading: almost none points: 1 Waterproof: what do you think points 5000000 Package: bottles only Points: 3 Availabilty: EU Excellent points: 5 USA/ASIA ??? Quality: Handmade everlasting points 5 A very good dark blue ink, it is a bit too dark for my taste. Funnily the dark blue obiously even darker but I find the colour nicer. Shading is absent. Verdict: a very nice bombproof ink for all official purposes. Next time; De Atramentis dark blue. I will ask Dr Jansen for some technical specs and ask him why the ink probably survives all mankind… Have fun

Lovely Liquids De Atramentis Dokumenttine Dark Blue /DA Document ink Dark Blue Dear FPN friends, Here is another review of a De Atramentis Document Ink. The Document Inks are available in the following colours. · Blue · Dark Blue · Black · Magenta · Turquoise · Green is being developed now. This time it is the De Atramentis Dark Blue, which is a Blue Black ink. I have already reviewed the Blue document ink the link can be found here. https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/263866-de-atramentis-document-ink/ The De Atramentis Document Dark Blue has a lovely dark blue greyish colour. It isan excellent writer which dries quicker than a camels bottom during a dessert stroll. It is a Permanent Ink and ultra-proof against Bomb Raids. Because I am a lazy (bleep) I copied some of the text from my previous review DA Document ink Blue down here in blue italic This ink is mentioned for doctors, lawyers etc. and for all who need a permanent ink for official Documents To be qualified as a document ink the ink has to meet certain standards. The standard in Europe is ISO 12757-2. This means that the ink has to be lightfast and may not be influenced by any outer influences. To show you the resilience of the inks I have poured several aggressive Fluids over it and… Nothing happened. It is like if the ink was carved in stone…. Amazing… It is not only bulletproof but also bombproof … I believe the ink even survives a nuclear accident or bomb attack (sorry for not testing that ) The ink is extremely lightfast. This is tested and certified with the Woll-Skala, wool scale in English. This may sound peculiar, but isn’t that strange on second glance. In history quite often the same pigments used for Dyeing wool where used for inks as well. The Woll-Skala reaches from 1 not lightfast over 5 extremely lightfast to 8 extreme lightfast. The ink “of course” is WS 8. There are other resilient inks like inks based on iron gall or soot. The problem is that iron gall inks are very aggressive to both paper and nib. (the paper of old Dutch documents from the golden age are often eaten away partially by the ink) Both iron gall and soot inks may also clog the feed of your fountain pen. The De Atramentis inks are, as far as I understand, made with nano-particles. According to the noble Fountain Pen King Sire Richard of Binderheart. Nano-particle inks can be safely used in Fountain pens. I always have one Fountain Pen filled with the ink for work and flush it once every 2 months… No problem at all There are a few differences in the testing method though. I have also attacked the written text with other inks, the Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Green and purple. Well you guessed it nothing happened. I also used a drop of another whisky. First of all not to shock MIGO 984 as Talisker is her favourite malt whisky. Second but equally important is that I used Connamara Irish Malt whisky to please GMAX who is from beautiful Eire (Ireland) Conclusion: it can handle Connemara Whisky as good as I do (probably better) Down here are some of the technical specs (as suggested by Ann Finley 2007) (not copied in but for this ink) points 1-5 1 = 5= Fountain Pens: Online best writer 0.8 italic nib: Lamy Joy 1,5 Italic Paper: Leonardo Ringbuch,average quality school note book made in Austria Drying time: Ultrafast points 5 Flow: Like a dam break points: 5 Lubrication: smooth in both pens points: 5 Bleeding: stronger in broader nibs points: 3 Feathering: none points 5 Shading: none points: 0 Waterproof: no need to mention here points:5 Package: Only in bottles,Wide opening for easy filling up points: 3-4 (bottle is quite nice but the not very special, although the label is beautiful) Availabilty: In Europe Good, D-A webshop www.tinten-online.de, Amazon, La Couronne Du Comte (NL), USA Amazon, DA Webshop www.de-atramentis.com maybe Brian Goulet www.gouletpens.com points: EU 4 USA??? Quality: Hand Made in Germany points: 5 Down here are the technical specs (taken from the German website) dokumenten-Tinte DUNKELBLAU. Sie ist für alle Füllfederhalter geeignet. (suitable for all FP’s) Technische Daten der Tinte: - Lichtechtheit: 8 (Light fastness) - ph-Wert: 7,5 (PH value) - Oberflächenspannung: 60 mN/m (surface tension) - Viskosität: 1,2 mPas (viscosity) - Feuchtigkeitsbeständigkeit: ja/yes (moist-/waterproof) - Temperaturbeständigkeit: ja/yes (heat proof) - Farbe: Dunkelblau (Colour Dark Blue) - Inhalt: 35 ml (bottle contents) - Die Dokumententinte entspricht der ISO 127757-2. (complies with ISO-12757-2 document standard) Caution this is a Permanent ink. Do regularly clean your Fountain Pen. I have written an article on Permanent ink in Fountain Pens down here is the link https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/266035-on-permanent-ink-permanency-and-safety/ . Please take notice and you will have years of fun from both your Fountain Pens and your inks Cleaning is easy though. Down her ist he converter I used in this review. I only flushed it with a minimum of water 2 or 3 times (filled it up and emptied it) Well that’s easy isn’t it? The “First“ Issue. In 2007 he was the first to bring a Fountain Pen save Document ink, based on nano technology, on the market Dr Janssen is a talented and very friendly Ink enthusiast. He did not only did intensive research on Ink history and ancient ink recipes. He also does a lot of research before bringing an De Atramentis ink to the market with the ISO 12757-2 standard. In 2007 he was the first to bring a Fountain Pen save Document ink on the market. It used nano technology were the pigments are grinded in microscopic little particles. That’s what I guess, a gret Cook does not give away his recipes why should Dr Jansen do so . Montblanc had a permanent ink on the market those days which was made with Iron Gall as far as I know. Iron Gall is the Mass Murderer of Fountain Pens. Please read the article on permanent inks. As with any product of excellence competition is keen on copying or bringing there own version. I.e. Apple vs Samsung. I do not want to suggest anything here explicitly. But De Atramentis brought their nano technology ink to the market in 2007. Montblanc also from Germany did it in 2010. I guess it takes less effort if an example is there .. Don’t get me wrong here I don’t like ink bashing at all. Montblanc is a nice company which makes excellent Fountain pens. The text above is how I see it. But you are free to make your own opinion of course. Well and I must say that the bottles for their permanent inks are of sheer beauty. But personally I prefer originals… Back to the De Atramentis inks. I already mentioned it writes superbly. It is definitely permanent. There is a disadvantage to normal inks though. The bleed through gets quite strong, when you use broader nibs on thin paper. This is not a failure but it is meant to do so. The ink has to drench the paper I order to prevent forgery. This way the texts cannot be manipulated without leaving traces. There is a simple way to counter this. Use heavier paper >= 100 grams. On thinner paper use a fine nib and the bleed through is minimized and very acceptable. In the review of DA Document Blue severeal question raised about the availability in the USA. One member thought that some of the contents are forbidden in the USA.Another member could not find them in the USA and was worried about the shipping coasts from Europe. Two questions two answer. The ink contents are not forbidden in the USA. Dr Jansen exported a lot of Document inks to the USA. Dr Jansen also told me that Goulet is a very nice client of his. He suggested to give Goulet notice so that they can order them for you along with their other DA orders. This way you save on shipping I love this ink for several reasons as I do love the other DA document inks. It is safe for fountain pens it performs very well. It dries extremely fast… Hint.... left hand writers. One disadvantage: It does’nt shade. But I love the colour Hope you enjoyed the review and that it was usuable for you.If you have any questions or remarks please post I will test the DA Document inks Magenta and Turqouise inks soon. I can’t wait for the green version. But I will review that as soon as it is on the market. Kindest Regards Peter Vlutters dokumenten-Tinte DUNKELBLAU. Sie ist für alle Füllfederhalter geeignet. (suitable for all FP’s) Technische Daten der Tinte: - Lichtechtheit: 8 (Light fastness) - ph-Wert: 7,5 (PH value) - Oberflächenspannung: 60 mN/m (surface tension) - Viskosität: 1,2 mPas (viscosity) - Feuchtigkeitsbeständigkeit: ja/yes (moist-/waterproof) - Temperaturbeständigkeit: ja/yes (heat proof) - Farbe: Dunkelblau (Colour Dark Blue) - Inhalt: 35 ml (bottle contents) - Die Dokumententinte entspricht der ISO 127757-2. (complies with ISO-12757-2 document standard)

We're very excited to release our first waterproof Blackstone ink. Barrister Black is a well behaved, pure black, nano carbon ink that is 100% waterproof, fade proof and is highly resistant to bleach, alcohol and acid. Barrister Black comes packaged in in 30ml HDPE Nalgene bottles. If any Australian FPN members would like a free sample for review please email me at kevin@justwrite.com.au You can see a review by dcwaites HERE Barrister Black is now available at JustWrite in Australia and will soon be available at Anderson Pens in the US and at Appelboom in Europe. http://justwrite.com.au/image/cache/catalog/products/Blackstone%20Ink/barrister-black-waterproof-fountain-pen-ink-1100x619.jpg

Lovely Liquids De Atramentis Dokument inks BROWN and Green Dear FPN friends, Here is a Review of the new De Atramentis Document ink colours. In This Review I will examine the new Brown and the new Green. Both are absolutely bombproof like the De Atramentis Document Ink Blue and Dark blue I have reviewed before https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/263866-de-atramentis-document-ink/ https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/266158-de-atramentis-document-ink-dark-blue/ All new Colours of De Atramentis Document Ink The new range of colours will be: Blue, Dark Blue (blue black), Grey, Black, Red, Green, Brown (or sepia), Turquoise and Magenta The best thing is all colours can be adapted on input if artists and writers. More on this under “Liz Steel and Urban Sketchers” Liz Steel and Urban Sketchers Liz Steel is an Australian who paints with Fountain Pen inks. Liz has her own blog www.lizsteel.com on which she helps other artists. She is also a prominent member of Urban Sketchers www.urbansketchers.com , a worldwide online platform of painters. Down here in Blue is an article of Liz takn from her blog (her text in blue) Exciting Alternative to Noodlers Bulletproof Ink Today I had a crazy day in the Manly area- 3 coffees and not a sketch of any of them!?! Perhaps some of you think it is crazy to want to sketch everytime I go into a coffee shop. I started the day having a quick coffee with an exciting local artist Fiona Verity that I meet last year at my Sketching Architecture workshop. I hope this will be the first of many catch ups. SHe does wonderful work of birds and landscapes and beach scenes. Check out her site here http://fionaverity.com.au/ I then went to store of Larry Post who have lots and lots of amazing stuff… very tempting to walk in their doors… so we went to a coffee shop down the road before I had time to look at their stock too much. Check out their very cool website here http://www.larrypost.com.au/ Anyway, my friend, local USker Chantal Vincent has been talking for months and months about the De Artamentis Ink that she uses in her lamy - it was recommended to her by Larry Post. Today I got some of it and am testing it. I know a LOT of people have issues with Noodlers Bulletproof. Personally, I never have a problem! I think the most important thing is to keep the ink flowing… and well, as anyone that visits my blog knows…my pen gets daily use!!! The ink in my pen is always flowing! Maybe once a year I do a sketch that the ink runs when I apply a watercolour… so it has served me well for many years. The owners of Larry Post told me that Lamy do not recommend Noodlers but DO recommend the De Artamentis Ink. They didn't have any of the document ink in stock but I got a bottle of the Archive Ink to try- and Chantal has lent me some of her document ink to try. I was told there is little difference between the two. I also got a bottle of the lamy ink to try - someone told me that they found it good to use. First test of the the De Artamentis Ink was VERY PROMISING!… a very wet yellow wash was a good test. But I am going to use for the next week or so and then do a full report. Very loose work today - using my amazing new Da Vinci brushes I got in Penang but having some other things on my mind so not concentrating much … there are much more important things in life than ink and brushes. Prov 27.1 Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. Liz travels all over the world and has a good understanding for the needs of artists worldwide. According to Liz Permanent inks in various colours are the Holy Grail for ink artists. She is also a great fan of De Atramentis as you can see above and on her blog. Therefore all colours can be adapted on input of USK members. I Will come back to this later. Well to the Ink testing….finally General Behaviour. The ink is well flowing in a 1,5 Italic it is extremely wet. Funnily however it is extremely quickly drying. The green ink does not shade at all (neither do DA document ink Blue and Dark Blue) The brown ink does shade, although not extremely Permanency It is a Permanent Ink and ultra-proof against Bomb Raids. For more information on permanency I have inserted a link in this article. In order to be permanent the ink has to dig in to the fibres of the paper. This induces Bleedtrough. In normal nibs the bleedthrough is very acceptable even on the cheap paper I use for testing. The advantage of this is that the ink cannot be removed without leaving traces…… Well just read on down below The Blue sheen is from the colour of the toilet cleaner the green from the sink cleaner Because I am a lazy (bleep) I copied some of the text from my previous review DA Document ink Blue down here in blue italic This ink is mentioned for doctors, lawyers etc. and for all who need a permanent ink for official Documents To be qualified as a document ink the ink has to meet certain standards. The standard in Europe is ISO 12757-2. This means that the ink has to be lightfast and may not be influenced by any outer influences. To show you the resilience of the inks I have poured several aggressive Fluids over it and… Nothing happened. It is like if the ink was carved in stone…. Amazing… It is not only bulletproof but also bombproof … I believe the ink even survives a nuclear accident or bomb attack (sorry for not testing that ) The ink is extremely lightfast. This is tested and certified with the Woll-Skala, wool scale in English. This may sound peculiar, but isn’t that strange on second glance. In history quite often the same pigments used for Dyeing wool where used for inks as well. The Woll-Skala reaches from 1 not lightfast over 5 extremely lightfast to 8 extreme lightfast. The ink “of course” is WS 8. There are other resilient inks like inks based on iron gall or soot. The problem is that iron gall inks are very aggressive to both paper and nib. (the paper of old Dutch documents from the golden age are often eaten away partially by the ink) Both iron gall and soot inks may also clog the feed of your fountain pen. The De Atramentis inks are, as far as I understand, made with nano-particles. According to the noble Fountain Pen King Sire Richard of Binderheart. Nano-particle inks can be safely used in Fountain pens. I always have one Fountain Pen filled with the ink for work and flush it once every 2 months… No problem at all For more information on permanence and safety click the link down below https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/266035-on-permanent-ink-permanency-and-safety/ Feathering Not noticeable The Green The Brown Sort of milk chocolate brown Down here are some of the technical specs (as suggested by Ann Finley 2007) (not copied in but for this ink) points 1-5 1 = 5= Fountain Pens: Online best writer 0.8 italic nib: Online Best Wrtiter 1,4 Italic Paper: Leonardo Ringbuch,average quality school note book made in Austria Drying time: Ultrafast points 5 Flow: Like a dam break points: 5 Lubrication: smooth in both pens points: 5 Bleeding: stronger in broader nibs points 0.8=4 / 1,5=3 Feathering: none points 5 Shading: green none points: 0 Brown some points 3 Waterproof: no need to mention here points:5 Package: Only in bottles,Wide opening for easy filling up points: 3-4 (bottle is quite nice but the not very special, Availabilty: In Europe Good, D-A webshop www.tinten-online.de, Amazon, La Couronne Du Comte (NL), USA Amazon, DA Webshop www.de-atramentis.com maybe Brian Goulet www.gouletpens.com points: EU 4 USA???.... See more under availabiltiy!!! Quality: Hand Made in Germany points: 5 Down here are the technical specs (taken from the German website in blue) dokumenten-Tinte Brown and Green. Sie ist für alle Füllfederhalter geeignet. (suitable for all FP’s) Technische Daten der Tinte: - Lichtechtheit: 8 (Light fastness) - ph-Wert: 7,5 (PH value) - Oberflächenspannung: 60 mN/m (surface tension) - Viskosität: 1,2 mPas (viscosity) - Feuchtigkeitsbeständigkeit: ja/yes (moist-/waterproof) - Temperaturbeständigkeit: ja/yes (heat proof) - Farbe: Dunkelblau (Colour Dark Blue) - Inhalt: 35 ml (bottle contents) - Die Dokumententinte entspricht der ISO 127757-2. (complies with ISO-12757-2 document standard) Caution this is a Permanent ink. Do regularly clean your Fountain Pen. I have written an article on Permanent ink in Fountain Pens down here is the link https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/266035-on-permanent-ink-permanency-and-safety/ . Please take notice and you will have years of fun from both your Fountain Pens and your inks Colour Adaption. On request of Liz Steel and others, the new colours have been developed and new colours will be developed. Liz Steel and Artists/users can give comments and suggestions on the inks. The ink can then be adapted. For example the green darker/lighter or the Brown more reddisch etc etc. Thinning Solution for Document inks. De Atramentis produces a special Thinning agent for their document inks. With this solution YOU can make your own shade of the colour. For example from Black, over Dark Grey to Light Grey… I believe that is awesome…. DA is giving it’s best to satisfy their clients. Exciting Stuff and more on Liz Steel Dr Jansen the owner of De Atramentis is a very creative and passionate ink manufacturer. He has some nice ideas · Ink Art Contest. In this ink art contest artists can send some of their Ink Art Works and can win nice prices… For Example Ink and a Diplomat Excellence A Marakesh Fountain Pen · Ink Art Gallery. On this Online gallery Ink artists can publish their works free of charge. They can even sell their work here Liz Steel was very excited about this and offered her help as a prominent USK member…. All these things are in development right now. I will pot a topic on these when it gets official. Availability All the the above mentioned colour are available over De Atramentis on the following website. www.tinten-online.de I have come in contact with the passionate owner of La Couronne du Comte, mr Dennis van de Graaf. He was enthusiastic and offered some help here. On Document and Wine inks. And…. Special Offers… I will let you know when these things will be ready at La Couronne du Comte. In Australia Larrypost.au sells De Atramentis inks. Liz Steel is a great fan of this shop. Do not let the prices disturb you. Prices are in Australian dollars. They are fair and equal As far as I understood, Goulet Pen has ordered some Document inks. For my FPN-friends in the USA this might be a way to save on shipping costs. Conclusion I am an Ink Addict. As an Addict I have become a great fan of several ink manufacturers (J. Herbin,Pelikan). As a very enthusiastic fan I am now in frequent contact with Dr Jansen. Dr Jansen is utterly friendly and passionate about inks. I always like to share my enthusiasm on Fountain Pens, Inks and shops. So I do frequently post my enthusiasm on De Atramentis now…. (Help Dr Jansen a bit on translation, he is better at ink making than at English he said) Well I believe these inks are superb again. They perfectly well and I can use more colours now at work One disadvantage: The green does not shade. The Brown does! I also have a black Document ink that I will review soon. I Will test the thinning agent too and post my version of “50 shades of grey” . I simply love De Atramentis for its creativity, the huge array of inks and being always open for their clients. And…. I love the wine inks…. They taste horribly but are of sheer beauty…. (I will post the Merlot soon) Dr Jansen was so kind to send Amberlea a bottle of Document Turquoise and Magenta. I believe Amberlea lks these colours and will test them. See you soon Peter

Dear FPN Friends, Good news for all of you who are looking for a bulletproof document ink. I already did a very popular (HOT) review on De Atramentis document ink Blue. Down here is the Link to the review https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/263866-de-atramentis-document-ink/ I can now tell you that the following colours will be available (again) soon De Atramentis Document ink Blue Dark Blue (Blue Black) Black Turquoise Magenta All the inks comply with to the ISO 12757-2 standard which makes the ink suitable for official purposes (Doctors, Lawyers, the notary etc.) The best news is…. A GREEN document ink is in development!!! These inks will be available on the German and English De Atramentis website soon. Of Course I will do a review of all the Inks separately. And I will do a handwritten comparison of the 5 document inks as soon as possible. See you soon Peter