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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