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Hi All This is an international Giveaway and is open to only International Enthusiasts. Indian friends, please excuse yourself from this ink is easily available in India. For rest, in my opinion, this is the best-priced ink all over the world with good colour and behaviour. You can check the review of the ink here: LINK

Dear fellow FP users After successful group buys of BAMBOO MODEL & RANGA MODEL 4C & Model 3 & Model 5 & Zeal & Model 8 & BAMBOO MODEL (ROUND 2) & DESIGNER in last two year. This is a group buy effort for - RANGA MODEL 5 (also famous as Varuna Gajendra). This is the second time for Model 5 and the first group-buy for Ranga Pens this year. The Group Buy will be available until March 5, 2017. Model 5 comes in two variants and is clipless: Flat Top ( 6.5 to 6.75 inches in length, thickness varies from 17 to 18.75 mm depending on rod) Round End (7 inches in length, thickness varies from 17 to 18.75 mm depending on rod) Available Colours are as follows: A. SpecialRegular Ebonite Colours (SE Series) Solid Forest GreenForest Green - Black Ripple (Not Available)Forest Green - Honey Ripple (Not Available)Forest Green - Khaki RippleForest Green - Mustard Yellow RippleForest Green - Teal Blue RippleTeal Blue - Black RippleTeal Blue - Khaki RippleMustard Yellow - Black RippleKhaki - Black Ripple (Not Available)Solid Cherry RedRose Red - Black RippleRose Red - Mauve Ripple (Not Available)Rose Red - Blue Ripple (Not Available)Rose Red - Forest Green RippleRose Red - Bottle Green Ripple (Not Available)Rose Red - Mustard Yellow RippleBrick Red - Khaki RippleBrick Red - Black RippleTeal Blue - Orange Ripple B. Regular Colours (RE Series) Ref 1 : Link Ref 2 : Link Solid Black MatteBrown RippleOlive RippleGreen RippleMottled BrownMottled GreenMottled Olive Brown C. Premium Ebonite Colours (PE Series) Solid BlueBlack Yellow Swirl (Not Available)Blue Pink SwirlSolid Pale GreenWhite Blue Swirl (Not Available)Pale Pink Black Swirl (Not Available)Green Yellow SwirlSolid PinkBlue Green Orange SwirlSolid Orange D. Demonstrator - Clear Acrylic (CA Series) Matte with Polished FinialsMatte with Matte Finials Prices are as follows: RANGA Model 5 (ED Version)REGULAR or SPECIAL EBONITE: US $39PREMIUM EBONITE: US $55DEMONSTRATOR: US $ 44RANGA Model 5 (CC Mechanism)REGULAR or SPECIAL EBONITE: US $65REGULAR or SPECIAL EBONITE without nib threaded to take JoWo/Schmidt/Bock: US $50PREMIUM EBONITE: US $85 PREMIUM EBONITE without nib threaded to take JoWo/Schmidt/Bock: US $70DEMONSTRATOR: US $ 70DEMONSTRATOR without nib threaded to take JoWo/Schmidt/Bock: US $ 55Finish - Polished or Matte (Bakul) Clip Option - Only Clipless Nib Option: For EyedropperAmbitious Nib 35 mm - Fine Nib - Dual Tone (included in price) Bock (With Conklin imprinted) M or B is available (extra @ 8 USD) Kanwrite Nib 35 mm Flex - Chrome Tone ( extra @ 5 USD) Nib Option: For C/C mechanism (with Schmidt K5 Converter) #6 Nib Options (included in price) JoWo Fine Nib - Gold Tone or Chrome Tone or Dual Tone JoWo Medium Nib - Gold Tone or Chrome Tone or Dual ToneJoWo Broad Nib - Gold Tone or Chrome Tone or Dual ToneJoWo 1.1 Calligraphy Nib - Dual ToneSchmidt Fine Nib - Gold Tone or Chrome ToneSchmidt Medium Nib - Gold Tone or Chrome Tone Schmidt Broad Nib - Gold Tone or Chrome ToneNo Nib - Threaded for Schmidt #6 No Nib - Threaded for JoWo #6No Nib - Threaded for Bock #6 Shipping: Via Registered Post which is included in Price and takes 2 -4 Weeks.Making Time: 4-5 Weeks after payment Additional Offer: Oliver F27 (ver 2) Kindly note that there is an offer to purchase Oliver F27 (ver 2) with this group buy for 19 USD. And there are approximate 20 colors available. The pen can be purchased only if you participate in Model 5 Group Buy. Oliver F27 is also made in India Pen and comes with #6 Ambitious fine Nib. I have updated the google forms below. Colors available for Oliver F-27 are as follows: Yellow-Pink-Red Swirl Pink-Dark Blue Swirl Blue-Black Swirl Red Cracked Ice Green-Pink-Black Swirl Red-Dark Blue Swirl Orange-Dark Blue Swirl Chocolate Cracked Ice Purple-Dark Blue Swirl Bright Green-Dark Green Swirl Sea Blue-Red Swirl Chocolate-Dark Blue Swirl Yellow-Chocolate Cracked Ice Yellow-Chocolate Swirl Green-Black Swirl White-Red Swirl Rose-Black Swirl Yellow-Bright Green Swirl Orange-Black Cracked Ice Yellow-Blue-Saffron Orange Swirl In order to participate in the group buy just fill the Google Form (Link Below) and Reply in the thread with "Form Submitted or just repost the choices in thread Link: https://goo.gl/forms/lVI5Bv7HaFbkJ3bZ2

Hellooooow And I am Back….. from a much-needed break or you can say Hiatus from this fountain pen hobby. I have been in this hobby for more than 5 yrs now. There has been a lot of love and appreciation given to me and it really has aspired me to become better and more responsible person. Thank you to all of the followers and supporters and especially the admin members of Fountain Pen Network. Now, I have been away from this hobby for almost good 5 months and part of that is due to some personal reasons. First, I have joined a new organization which apart from just Architectural Designing and Coordination takes up more of my time in imparting training and developing new courseware and doing a lot of research work. With the new job, I have climbed up a career ladder and thus more responsibilities (thanks to Almighty God). Secondly, my new job involves a lot of traveling to a different Country where I can’t carry most of my pens and inks and also that Country has a restricted internet policy. I couldn’t access Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram….. the apps or websites I use most often. And lastly, there was a demise of someone close to us in the Family. It was tough. Believe me... But now I am back with more determination and vigor and will take this moment to apologize to all of you who have been following my blog and who have asked me something and I have not been able to answer them in time. Also, I would like to apologize to pen fraternity in India who have sent me some ink samples and pen for review which I have not been able to do so. Thank you for showing your trust in me and my target is to catalog those pens and inks in forthcoming months. So, yeah I have a lot of news for you. I have recently purchased a lot of stuff from my travels abroad and will share those here also. There will be few upcoming Giveaways that I will organize on my Blog and also on FPN. Do follow my Instagram page small updates are also available there. Thank you again for all of the love and appreciation. I can’t wait myself for the upcoming posts. Do let me know if you have certain suggestions and recommendations that you have for me and my blog and my upcoming reviews. Again I would really like to thank all the Admins and Seniors of the FPN. Thank you all.

Hellooooow And I am Back….. from a much-needed break or you can say Hiatus from this fountain pen hobby. I have been in this hobby for more than 5 yrs now. There has been a lot of love and appreciation given to me and it really has aspired me to become better and more responsible person. Thank you to all of the followers and supporters and especially the admin members of Fountain Pen Network. Now, I have been away from this hobby for almost good 5 months and part of that is due to some personal reasons. First, I have joined a new organization which apart from just Architectural Designing and Coordination takes up more of my time in imparting training and developing new courseware and doing a lot of research work. With the new job, I have climbed up a career ladder and thus more responsibilities (thanks to Almighty God). Secondly, my new job involves a lot of traveling to a different Country where I can’t carry most of my pens and inks and also that Country has a restricted internet policy. I couldn’t access Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram….. the apps or websites I use most often. And lastly, there was a demise of someone close to us in the Family. It was tough. Believe me... But now I am back with more determination and vigor and will take this moment to apologize to all of you who have been following my blog and who have asked me something and I have not been able to answer them in time. Also, I would like to apologize to pen fraternity in India who have sent me some ink samples and pen for review which I have not been able to do so. Thank you for showing your trust in me and my target is to catalog those pens and inks in forthcoming months. So, yeah I have a lot of news for you. I have recently purchased a lot of stuff from my travels abroad and will share those here also. There will be few upcoming Giveaways that I will organize on my Blog and also on FPN. Do follow my Instagram page small updates are also available there. Thank you again for all of the love and appreciation. I can’t wait myself for the upcoming posts. Do let me know if you have certain suggestions and recommendations that you have for me and my blog and my upcoming reviews. Again I would really like to thank all the Admins and Seniors of the FPN. Thank you all.

Hi everybody... This is the second round of give-away for BRIL ROYAL BLUE I have 5 ink bottles (Plastic) - 25 ml filled with Bril Royal Blue. The review for the same is done here - LINK I am willing to give this to 5 people , only for International Friends as its locally easily available Kindly put in your names below and I will be choosing the people through random.org Below is the ink shot for your reference. Please check review for more depth.

KRISHNA GOLD RUSH The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold on eBay India Page for Rs. 550 (8 USD) each for 5 Nos. 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. NOTE THAT NEW GLASS BOTTLES HAVE ARRIVED AND THIS WILL RESULT IN BIT OF PRICE INCREASE. However old plastic bottles still remain in stock while the stock lasts. The inks that are being produced are currently limited to 27 nos. (28 earlier) : GOLD RUSH MEADOW GREEN BLUE MAGIC AFTER DARK SAPPHIRE BLUE LAKE BLUE BRONZE LEAF ORANGE CRUSH AUTUMN SINDHOOR GLORY VINE DARK ROSE NJAVAL WILD CHERRY PURPLE PEACOCK YELLOW VALLEY MELLOW BLUE VIVID VIOLET ORCHARD LILY DARK CHOCOLATE COOL BREEZE SILENT NIGHT SKY FORGET ME NOT SKY BLUE GHAT GREEN PUMPKIN GIRL PINK / BARBIE PINK (discontinued) Krishna Inks – Color Chart 1 Krishna Inks – Color Chart 2 I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in. I will be reviewing all one by one. This review is about GOLD RUSH ink from KRISHNA. This is actually like yellow golden colour. And I do like it. It does amazing job in broad nibs. Krishna Ink comes in plastic bottles in 30 ml quantity and new lot with INCREASED PRICES will come in glass bottles now. INK SPLASH Krishna Gold Rush – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm Colour is beautiful with no sheen and very little shading. DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Gold Rush – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOUR MATCH Krishna Gold Rush – Color Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Gold Rush – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Gold Rush – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View The ink is legible even in Japanese fine nibs but perform well in Broad nibs INK SWABS Krishna Gold Rush – Ink Passes on JK Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Gold Rush – Ink Swab on Jk Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Gold Rush –Scribble on JK Cedar -100 gsm WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Gold Rush – Waterproof Test Ink when rubbed with water gives away the colour easily and is not at waterproof. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Ghat Green – Ink Drying Times Ink drying are better than other Krishna inks I reviewed earlier. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Gold Rush – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm There is no feathering of this Ink as you can see from this close-up. CONCLUSION: I like the colour of the Ink. It can also be used as highlighter Ink. Performs best in Western Broad and Medium nibs along with the Calligraphy Nibs The ink has amazing flow properties and is moderately lubricated. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : LowLubrication : ModerateFlow : GoodWater Resistance : BadDrying Times : AcceptableNib Creep : NoneClogging : NoneOdor : NoneInk can be bought from : LINK (Ebay India Store)

RATNAM TARPODA Ratnam Tarpoda Ratnam Tarpoda (Big Size) was one amongst my mass-order purchase through my dear friend Pradeep who was travelling to Rajahmundry last year. I have bought lot of pens from different manufacturers and I have varied experiences across the three brands of Rajahmundry. For those who don’t know, Rajahmundry is one of the major city of Andhra Pradesh in India. And city consists of few of the oldest fountain pen manufacturers in India like Ratnam, Ratnamson, and Guider. Ratnam Pen Works ( KV Brahmam & Brothers) is the first “Swadeshi” Fountain Pen Company of India and was established in 1932. It was started by Kosuri Venkat Ratnamand is currently being run by one of his two sons, Siva Ratnam. They also manufacture handmade gold nibs including conical shape gold nib. Most of their pens are made of ebonite, however they also make silver metal pens and also gold plated silver pens. I have yet to see acrylic pen from them. The review is about their big size ebonite pen , Ratnam Tarpoda. DESIGN : 3.5/5 Here the pen is in simple, classic shaped design with rounded finials. The pen tapers down down to rounded bottom, while the cap also tapers but just slightly to finial which is shaped like parabolic dome. It bears lot of resemblance to one of my previously reviewed pen Ratnamson 302, which is a pen from different manufacturer, though in this case the cap finials tapers more towards top. Ratnam Tarpoda – Uncapped Ratnam Tarpoda – Dome Shaped Top and Rounded Bottom The grip section is made in black ebonite unlike the body which is made in olive ripple ebonite which is famous by name of White Tiger because of the resemblance to skin of white tiger. Ratnam Tarpoda – Capped Ratnam Tarpoda – Uncapped and Unposted Ratnam Tarpoda – Uncapped and Posted The barrel is cylindrical and tapers both ways, towards the grip section and also towards the bottom end. The grip section in black ebonite gradually tapers towards the top with flared end at the top. The grip section is short and I end up gripping threads which actually are not sharp and rather they are smooth and provide good grip. The cap is adorned with dual bands and has a stiff ball end type clip. The trims used are gold and I believe they match with the ebonite. And it opens in 4 1/2 turns. Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap with Ball end Clip and Dual Centerbands The barrel is engraved with the branding which reads “RATNAM PEN, MADE IN RJY, INDIA”. And it is filled some sort of gold paint which I believe is not neatly done as their is spillage of gold paint on barrel which eventually will wear off with time. Ratnam Tarpoda – Branding Overall it is a classic, no nonsense, elegant cigar shaped design and you cant go wrong with that. Ratnam Tarpoda – Classic Cigar Design Finishing can be improved a little. And most importantly the turns to open cap must be minimized. BUILT & CONSTRUCTION : 3/5 The quality of material used is good and is sturdy. There is no discolouration of material. The built quality is just at par with like of Ranga or Deccan pens if not better, especially finishing. I think Branding on barrel can still be improved. What I really liked was the alignment of cap with the barrel when it is closed in such a way that the ripple effect of ebonite carries to the cap from barrel. Ratnam Tarpoda – Ripple Pattern Continuation from Barrel to Cap Its a handmade pen and yes there are certain anomalies like cap finial doesn't align in line with the tapered profile of the cap. But again what do you expect from such an inexpensive pen. Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap Finial not aligned with cap Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap inner View As far as the quality of band is considered they are better than what I had on Ratnamson 302. But yes they still need improvement. Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap Center Bands One thing I really did not like was provision for 2 breather holes in the pen, otherwise it is well built HANDMADE pen at this price point. BALANCE & SIZE : 5/5 The pen is vary well balanced in both the scenarios when writing with cap posted or unposted. Yes, when cap is posted at back, the rear becomes heavy and will suit the one with large hands but it doesn’t becomes unbalanced at all. The cap posts securely and it post deep. Below are the 2 images showing the length till which the cap posts, outer limit shown by thumb. Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap Posts Deep Ratnam Tarpoda – Thumb shows the length till which the cap posts Below are the two images showing the length of pen when writing with cap posted and unposted. Ratnam Tarpoda – Writing Unposted Ratnam Tarpoda – Writing Posted Being ebonite it is light weigh and no metal is used here. Ratnam Tarpoda – Weight in gms including cap Ratnam Tarpoda – Weight in gms excluding cap Few Specifications are : Length of pen (closed) – 150 mmLength of pen (open and unposted) – 125 mm (including nib)Length of pen (open and posted) – 165 mm (including nib)Length of Grip Section – 15 mmMaximum Dia of Cap – 16 mmMaximum Dia of Barrel – 14 mmMaximum Dia of Grip Section – 12 mmMinimum Dia of Grip Section – 10 mmWeight of Pen with Cap – 28.24 gms (inked)Weight of Pen without Cap – 17.82 gms (inked) Below are the few images showing the comparison of pen with others: Ratnam Tarpoda vs Lamy Safari vs Pilot MR vs Jinhao X750 – Capped Ratnam Tarpoda vs Lamy Safari vs Pilot MR vs Jinhao X750 – Uncapped ans Posted Clearly it is not that much a big pen and hence it is comfortable for most of the users. NIB : 2.5/5 Nib used is #5 friction fit with ebonite feed. Nib is Dual tone and is well articulated with certain engraving which reads ” GENIUS IRIDIUM GERMANY”. The nib on this was better than what the Guider puts on their pens but yes not to my liking and thus I ended up grinding the nib to medium Italic and it was nib which got grind easily unlike Wality nibs. Ratnam Tarpoda – Nib unit View – Top Ratnam Tarpoda – Nib unit View – Side Ratnam Tarpoda – Nib unit View – Underside The problem is that the nib is available only in fine and no other choices. INK FILLING MECHANISM : 4/5 The ink filling mechanism is via an Eyedropper, well you can use syringe also. Ink capacity is around 3.5 ml which is substantial. Ratnam Tarpoda – Pen taken apart Ratnam Tarpoda – Eyedropper Filling Since its an ED pen, there is a noticeable increase in the inflow when the ink level goes below 3/4th and that is when you will have to refill otherwise it will burp. Its like it will gives you warning before it burps. This pen though has not burped on me at all and yeah I ensure when the ink level goes below I refill it. Below are the images of my handwritten review and the writing samples: Ratnam Tarpoda – Handwritten Review – Page 1 Ratnam Tarpoda – Handwritten Review – Page 2 Ratnam Tarpoda – Handwritten Review – Page 3 Ratnam Tarpoda – Handwritten Review – Page 4 CONCLUSION : 18/25 I recommend this pen to every collector. Its an handmade pen from first pen manufacturer of India. Also will recommend to the likes who love fiddling around with their pen and know how to live around and ED pen. I bought this pen for Rs. 1000 (approx US $16 ) which included shipping last year and I believe the price might have gone up. What I Like: Classic Cigar Design Handmade Very Good Quality Ebonite Good Balance and Size Good Ink Capacity A piece of History Value for MoneyWhat I don’t Like: Eyedropper only Only one nib option Branding HOW TO BUY: They can be easily approached via WhatsApp ( Mob No. +91 98489 18904). They will send you pics and prices and you can select whatever you like. Pay via bank transfer and they ship once the payment is received. You can also check out his Facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/Ratnam-pens-314421885386511/?fref=ts The review is simultaneously posted at my blog. For more reviews check my blog here : LINK

JK CEDAR - 100 GSM The search for that elusive paper which is good for fountain pen brought me to one of the paper which I was using to print handout for the design presentation, the paper was JK Cedar. While printing, I realised the quality of paper is good and its super white bright and then I decided to give it a shot with few of my fountain pen and inks. J.K. Paper is exporter of Branded Copier Paper to over 35 countries. They are the market leader in India in Branded Copier Paper segment. Apart from Office Paper, they also have manufacture in Packaging Boards, Printing and Writing Paper, and Speciality Paper like MICR Cheque Paper. They have two paper mill in India in Odisha and Gujarat. This review is about one of the copy paper from J.K. Paper Ltd. called J.K. Cedar. DESIGN & BUILD :Well there is nothing much to talk about as far as design or build is concerned as this is a copier paper which comes in Ream of 500 sheets. The paper is marketed for colour copying and printing purpose. JK Cedar – Premium Colour Copying and Printing Paper JK Cedars – Ream’s Rear Side The packaging is done in nice glossy coated paper which just serves the purpose right. As you can see the paper size is A4 and it is 100 gsm and the whole ream weighs around 3.12 kg. JK Cedar – A4 size – 500 Sheets Ream As far as packaging and cover is concerned it is how all the papers are packed in reams and supplied all over. So nothing much to say here. PERFORMANCE : As I have mentioned earlier and I believe most of us all know that the quality of paper as far as using with fountain pen is concerned is dependent on lot of parameters like ink resistance, shading, sheen, feathering, bleed-through, paper colour, smoothness or texture and few others. Few properties are also dependent with ink properties like shading and sheen. The paper is super bright white paper. And the quality of paper is 100 gsm. JK Cedar – Bright White Paper The paper is quite smooth and has no texture. The fountain pen actually glides over the paper. It is very smooth to write on and most of the Italic pens, which used to pick fibres in other low quality copier paper, also performed amazingly well. JK Cedar – Writing on it JK Cedar – Writing on it – Rear Side JK Cedar – Written Samples with Different Ink – Close-up 1 JK Cedar – Written Samples with Different Ink – Close-up 2 As visible from above samples and even the close-ups, it is clear that there is no feathering and bleed-through in most of the ink except the Chelpark Black which shows some bleed-through on rear side and I believe the ink is not good. The paper is quite good when it comes to resisting inks (non absorbing) and provides decent amount of shading also. I see some sheen (mostly with Iroshizuku and sailor inks) which was difficult to capture as the sheen was on lower side. It has performed extremely well with most of the inks. Performance summary is as follows: Ink Resistance : HighPaper Texture : Very SmoothFeathering : NoneBleed-through : Very LowShading : HighSheen : Low VALUE : This ream of 500 sheets was bought by me at discounted price at Rs. 250 ( US $3.75) The paper can be used to print different patterns like I do before start writing ans you can also get the paper notebook bind. JK CEDAR – Plain Paper, Grid Pattern, & Dott Pattern At Rs. 0.50 per sheet ( US $ 0.01 per sheet) and that too such an amazing performance its a steal. It has fabulous value for money. CONCLUSION : If someone asks me what is best paper for fountain pens manufactured in India, I would say JK Cedar. I recommend this to all the users of fountain pen community. Its easily available on Flipkart and Amazon.

KRISHNA MANGAL The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK Krishna Mangal – Ink Bottle (old style) In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold on eBay India Page for Rs. 550 (8 USD) each for 5 Nos. 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. Now they come in new glass bottles. Krishna Ink – New Glass Bottle The inks that are being produced have now increased to 35 nos. and even certain names have changed. Krishna Inks – 35 Colors The new names are as follows: Pencil Neelambal Dark Chocolate Purple Lake Blue Vivid violet Sapphire Ruby Monsoon Sky Pink Barleria Summer Rain Silent Night Sky Bronze Leaf Wild Cherry Pumpkin Nilwanti Cool Breeze Gold Rush Orange Crush After Dark Yellow Valley Glory Vine Dark Rose Magic Blue Orchard Lily Writer’s Night Peacock Neelkurinhi Emerald Mangal Dew Leaf Njaval Meadow Green Ghat Green Officer’s Blue Black I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in seeing the limited resources at his disposal. This review is of Mangal ink which is very close to terracotta brick tiles used here in India for roofing. I am in love with this colour. It actually has grown on me. It is not that orangish that will make the ink bright but yes just gives you look of burnt brick. This did not gave me any nib creep problem like Diamine orange inks. INK SPLASH Krishna Mangal – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm I love Pastel orange colour ink. DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Mangal – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOUR MATCH Krishna Mangal – Colour Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Mangal – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Mangal – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View The ink even shades in medium and fine nibs. Ink has got no sheen and does not feather. Flow is superb. INK SWABS Krishna Mangal – Ink Passes on JK Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Mangal – Ink Swab on Jk Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Mangal –Scribble on JK Cedar -100 gsm WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Mangal – Waterproof Test Ink is not water resistant at all. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Mangal – Ink Drying Times Well surprisingly the ink drying times are quite low. Just around 20 seconds. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Mangal – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Mangal – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm - Angled View There is no feathering of this Ink as you can see from this close-up. CONCLUSION: Its a lovely colour and I can think of Diamine Ancient Copper to be of similar colour. The ink behaves very well with no crud or feathering or even staining. This ink flows really well and is moderately lubricated (of course not as great as sailor inks). However these are well worth the money. Kudos to Dr. Sreekumar. Beautiful ink which has lovely shading. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : Good amountLubrication : ModerateFlow : GoodWater Resistance : BadDrying Times : GoodNib Creep : NoClogging : NoneOdor : None Feedback and Comments are welcome. The ink can be bought from the ebay store of Krishna Pens. Link is given below. LINK TO EBAY STORE : KRISHNAPENS

KRISHNA MONSOON SKY The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK Krishna Ink – Monsoon Sky In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold on eBay India Page for Rs. 550 (8 USD) each for 5 Nos. 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. Now they come in new glass bottles. Krishna Ink – New Glass Bottle The inks that are being produced have now increased to 35 nos. and even certain names have changed. Krishna Inks – 35 Colors The new names are as follows: Pencil Neelambal Dark Chocolate Purple Lake Blue Vivid violet Sapphire Ruby Monsoon Sky Pink Barleria Summer Rain Silent Night Sky Bronze Leaf Wild Cherry Pumpkin Nilwanti Cool Breeze Gold Rush Orange Crush After Dark Yellow Valley Glory Vine Dark Rose Magic Blue Orchard Lily Writer’s Night Peacock Neelkurinhi Emerald Mangal Dew Leaf Njaval Meadow Green Ghat Green Officer’s Blue Black I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in seeing the limited resources at his disposal. This review is of Monsoon Sky which is the new introduction to old 28 colours and this colour is greyish blue-green. INK SPLASH Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOUR MATCH Krishna Monsoon Sky – Colour Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Monsoon Sky – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Monsoon Sky – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View This ink shades almost close to none. The ink flow is good. And has no feathering. INK SWABS & SCRIBBLE Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Passes on JK Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Swab on Jk Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Monsoon Sky –Scribble on JK Cedar -100 gsm WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Monsoon Sky – Waterproof Test Ink after water rub test leaves behind certain traces thus making ink bit water resistant and even after water wash it is still readable. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Drying Times The ink drying times hover just around 25 to 26 seconds. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Monsoon Sky – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm CONCLUSION: The colour reminds me of Diamine Teal or Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo. But unlike Iroshizuku it has no shading or sheen. It has no feathering and has consistent flow. Its an okay ink for me because of the colour but I would any day prefer my Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo because of sheen and shading and amazing flow properties. However that comes at high price. This 30 ml bottle just costs less than Rs. 100. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : NoLubrication : ModerateFlow : GoodWater Resistance : GoodDrying Times : GoodNib Creep : NoClogging : NoneOdor : None Feedback and Comments are welcome. The ink can be bought from the ebay store of Krishna Pens. Link is given below. LINK TO EBAY STORE : KRISHNAPENS

GUIDER MEDIUM ACRYLIC Guider Pen Company is one of the three fountain pen companies of Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh State of India. Other being Ratnam and Ratnamson. Guider Pen is owned by G. Lakshmana Rao currently. Guider Pen Company was started by G. Subbarao in 1946. And they manufacture the pens from various materials like ebonite, acrylic and also celluloid. This review is about one of the acrylic pen from their stable called “Acrylic Medium“. Quite an unusual name. Right ?? I thought so. This pen came in box with cardboard sleeve with no branding. The pen was purchased via discussion with him over whatsapp after he showed me the current stock and I selected few and ordered all in all 6 pens which was easy. However challenging part was asking names of each pen that I bought from him. Guider Acrylic Medium – In the Wild DESIGN & BUILT: 5/5 This is an exquisite looking pen from Guider. It come in various beautiful acrylic colours and I got two pens in different colours, one being green as shown in the picture and the other one being white pearl colour. This is a medium sized pen which is beautifully finished. Guider Acrylic Medium – Uncapped The pen is classic design with Parker style arrow clip and two centre bands. The trims used are golden colour and they beautifully complement with the green acrylic. The fit and finish of the pen is amazing with no visible lathe marks and even the two bands are equally placed. The pen is thickest at the centre of barrel apart from cap and tapers down to rounded bottom. Guider Acrylic Medium – Capped Guider Acrylic Medium – Uncapped The cap clip has conical dome shaped crown above the clip band in the same acrylic. Guider Acrylic Medium – Top Crown Shaped End and Rounded Bottom The cap has no breather hole like many Indian Pens. The pen opens in 2 & 1/2 turns which is unlike many ebonite pens made in India. I see the momentum going towards less threads now. Branding is only done on the clip and the nib. Guider Acrylic Medium – Uncapped : Close-up showing the clip in vintage Parker style Guider Acrylic Medium – Cap Top View Showing Branding on arrow clip Guider Acrylic Medium – Cap Side View showing the centre-bands Guider Acrylic Medium – Cap Inner View I really like the built quality of the pen, acrylic used is strong and it has taken one or two falls and yet nothing has happened, however I need to be more careful as it is acrylic. Beautiful product from Guider and full marks to Guider on turning this beauty. Below are few images showing the comparison between Guider Acrylic Medium with other pens: Guider Acrylic Medium vs Jinhao X-750 vs Lamy Safari – Capped Guider Acrylic Medium vs Jinhao X-750 vs Lamy Safari – Uncapped Pen is just slightly bigger than Lamy safari by almost 7 mm . Kudos to guider for such a beauty. BALANCE : 3.5/5 The pen is around 125 mm including nib and fits perfectly in my small hands. The pen is very well balanced when writing unposted. The pen cap doesn’t post deep and thus making it a large pen when cap is posted at back at 173 mm and honestly, to me it feels a bit uncomfortable and awkward even though it is surprisingly balanced. i would have preferred more if the cap would have posted more deep. Guider Acrylic Medium – Writing Unposted Guider Acrylic Medium – Writing Posted The pen being acrylic doesn’t weigh much. Below are the images showing the weight of pen with or without the cap. Guider Acrylic Medium – Weight without the cap and with ink filled Guider Acrylic Medium – Weight with the cap and with ink filled Few Specifications of the pens are as follows: Length of Pen – Capped = 146 mmLength of Pen – Uncapped including nib = 125 mmLength of Grip Section = 18 mmLength of Barrel = 91 mmLength of Pen – Cap Posted = 173 mmDia. of Barrel @ centre = 13 mm (avg)Dia. of Cap = 14 mm (avg)Dia. of Grip Section = 10 mm (avg)Weight of Pen including Cap and Ink filled = 23.53 gWeight of Pen without Cap and Ink filled = 14.47 g NIB & INK FILLING MECHANISM: 3/5 Nib is #5 Gold Colour Steel Nib which writes fine and was a big, bigg, biggg disappointment. I will actually give only one mark for the nib for actually being there. The feed is ebonite. I actually grinded the nib to oblique italic to suit my handwriting and now it writes like a dream with amazing ink flow via ebonite feed. I am actually really fortunate that nib grind turned out to be blessing in disguise for the (bleep) nib provided along with this pen. I have been writing with this pen for past one month and it has not burped on me even though i have been careful of topping up the ink when ink level goes really low. Guider Acrylic Medium – Nib Unit Top View Guider Acrylic Medium – Nib Unit Side View Guider Acrylic Medium – Nib Unit Underside View The pen holds approx around 2 ml , an advantage being of an eyedropper fill mechanism. Guider Acrylic Medium – Eyedropper Ink Filling Mechanism I wish the nib could have been better. Below is the handwritten review showing the writing sample also: Guider Acrylic Medium – Handwritten Review -Page 1 Guider Acrylic Medium – Handwritten Review -Page 2 Guider Acrylic Medium – Handwritten Review -Page 3 Guider Acrylic Medium – Handwritten Review -Page 4 CONCLUSION: 11.5/15 I recommend this beautiful pen to people who can tune or change the nibs on their own, not that the nib is difficult to change, it actually is an easy job provided you have a standalone spare nib and also to people who don’t mind using the Pen with eyedropper fill mechanism. I bought this pen for Rs. 1000 (approx 15 usd) including shipping which was not a bad deal. What I Like: Classic Design Well Finished Beautiful Acrylic Material Lot of Ink CapacityWhat I don’t Like: Bad Steel Nib For other posts kindly check my blog : mehandiratta