Search the Community

In the 1980s, I used to do calligraphy for Ketubot (Jewish wedding contracts); Hebrew characters; about 30 lines per Ketubah. I always used an Osmiroid fountain pen, with Broad Straight nib. I cannot recall which ink I used; it was good, but I was never thrilled with it being jet black. Still, it flowed well and looked good at the time. I have seen several of the pieces in recent years, and the ink still looks good on most of them. But, as I mentioned, I cannot recall which ink I was using . . . all this, 1980 through 1990. 25 years later, I am writing another Ketubah, and here is the situation. I have found or cleaned up a couple of the Osmiroid pens with the Broad Straight nibs, and they seem to be working properly. It seems that the best ink that I have found in a local store (Atlanta) is Higgins Eternal (which says on the box that it works in fountain pens). Yesterday, I tried out the Higgins Eternal / Osmiroid combination and it seems to have been flowing well / looking good. I have been very careful to clean the pen after every sitting. So here are my questions: -- Any recommendations on using this combination? The entire document should take about 6 or 8 hours to write, so if I can keep the pen working properly for that duration, I will be happy. I can clean and reload the pen every few minutes / hours, if recommended. -- Can I expect this ink to hold up well over the years? I am not worried about water, but wonder about fading / exposure to daylight. -- Is there any other ink that the experts recommend, to use in the Osmiroid pen with Broad Straight nib? Hopefully, something that I could get quickly through eBay or an online seller. Thanks for this great forum!! Jeff