Diamine Twilight – Expanded Format

[SamCapote]

Sean, where do you put this in terms overall enjoyment ranking with Quink Permanent Blue?

[corniche]

Hello Sam,

 

You have asked the dreaded $64,000 question! I was afraid some character might come along and ask me this.

 

The truth of the matter is I'm not sure; they seem to be in a neck and neck tie with me right now. Both inks have excellent flow and lubrication, (although, I think Qpb may rate slightly better on lubrication), a nice color and generally pleasing performance... (the Qpb also fares better when it comes to shadow/B.T. issues too). I guess my bottom line answer right now is I'm not sure. I think I like Twilight's more nuanced color; however, I think the Quink performs slightly better. It might be a draw.

 

Maybe I'll do a side by side comparison and see if I can't derive at a firmer answer. :hmm1:

 

All the best,

 

Sean http://www.millan.net/minimations/smileys/ribbons/black2.gif

[bbs]

Special thanks for the comparison with some of the other Diamine blues - really helpful.

 

Great work!

 

Sue

[Tennessee Dave]

Great review. Thanks for sharing.

[marvinreader]

Excellent review!! I do really like my Air Corps Blue Black, but I may give Diamine Twilight a chance.

 

PS I'm a student, but I'm wasteful and only use one side of the page...it's faster when switching pages in the middle of an important lecture on biochemical pathways.....wouldn't want to miss any of those silly protein acronyms would we?

[corniche]

Hello Sue: No problem; glad the extra comparisons helped.

 

Hello Dave: Thanks.

 

Hello Marvinreader: Thank you very much. Yes, I would say that Noodlers Air Corps Blue-Black is probably the closest comparable color to Diamine Twilight. Yes- I remember college- I was one of those frugal but roguish louts who used a Waterman ball-point for notes so I could use both sides.

 

Thank you all,

 

Sean

[Sailor Kenshin]

I love comparisons; this reminds me to get out my own testing equipment and make a page of blue-blacks.

 

Have you ever diluted Diamine Twilight to see how it works that way?

[corniche]

Hello Sailor,

 

No, I haven't. I haven't experienced any real problems with the ink in its natural state; so I have not bothered to add distilled water, (for viscosity and flow adjustment), or pure glycerin, (for lubrication).

 

Lately though, I have been toying with the thought of adding just a pinch or dab of glycerin to aid lubrication because it does write slightly "drier" than I'd prefer.

 

All the best,

 

Sean

Edited August 15, 2011 by S. P. Colfer

[Sailor Kenshin]

Don't worry about my ink budget; I tend to buy sample vials of anything I'm interested in.

 

Would you, Sean (or anyone!) happen to know how Twilight compares to PR Midnight Blues?

 

I love the color of MB but I'm always diluting it. That's not such a BAD thing. It makes the ink go further. ;-p

[corniche]

Don't worry about my ink budget; I tend to buy sample vials of anything I'm interested in.

 

Would you, Sean (or anyone!) happen to know how Twilight compares to PR Midnight Blues?

 

I love the color of MB but I'm always diluting it. That's not such a BAD thing. It makes the ink go further. ;-p

 

Hello Sailor,

 

I would recommend you get a sample of Twilight and experience it for yourself; however, to answer your question the best way I can... I would say Midnight Blues is more of a classic blue-black/deep blue color whereas Twilight has a definite deep blue-green hue to it... I guess you could call it a Midnight Teal.

 

All the best,

 

Sean

[benborgmeyer]

Weird thing happened with Twilight. I used the ink in a clear eyedropper pen. After using, I went to clean out the blue residue, soaked it in water for a night, and in the morning the clear had become faint pink/purple. I then soaked it for a couple of days in ammonia solution. This made the pink brighter and more vibrant. The clear cap, which prior to soaking was ink free, is still clear. The section was clear, now pink. The body clear, now pink. No amount of scrubbing will clean it. Previous chromatographies had shown a violet component to the ink. I think its just weird.

 

I do use the ink regularly and like it although I find it tends to feather and bleed on cheap paper.

[Sholom]

Anyone notice a similarity between Diamine Twilight and R&K Verdigris? My old bottle of Verdigris in an Osmiroid 65 Medium Soft nib looks almost the same as Twilight in an Osmiroid 65 Italic M Straight - both fairly wet nibs. My bottle of Verdigris is a tiny drop more blue, but I also think the Verdigris has gotten bluer with time. When I washed Verdigris out of another pen, the first color that came out was dark blue and then the green component followed. I have a new bottle of Verdigris and it will be interesting to see if it is even closer to Twilight or completely different.

[meghan]

Such an awesome review! Thank you so much for taking the time to share this with us. I have just polished off a sample of this ink and loved it. It looks particularly nice in an italic nib. Thanks again!

[PelikansPlus]

Thanks for such a thorough job on this ink review! The greenish undertone is really attractive; it adds an interesting dimension to the ink. Great job!

[senzen]

Thanks for a great review! I'm really impressed by the ink's colour with different pens...

[chromantic]

Sean, been meaning to thank you for this detailed review; it was the strength of yours and Sandy1's reviews that encouraged me to try this ink and I fell in love with it the moment I tried it out.

 

The one thing I'd like to mention is the shading: on cheap paper, of course, there is none, on the hard Strathmore sketch, it's slight but noticeable, on the BnR spiral, it's unmistakable and quite lovely.

 

 

Diamine Evergreen in a Baoer 388 fine, Pervenche in a Waterman JIF fine;

the Twilight is in my trusty old Parker 45 medium

Edited June 2, 2016 by chromantic