Parker Quink Blue-Black

[mturk]

  On 3/29/2011 at 7:26 PM, TMA said:

  On 3/29/2011 at 7:19 PM, Opel said:

  On 3/29/2011 at 4:05 PM, inkobsessed said:

I really don't get it! I tried last two years two different pots of ink and also the catridges with Parker Blue Black. The ink wrote splendid but trunde to green, even a light green on some papers!. In former days it was a real blue black. I cannot understand the difference with you review. I also cannot understand why Parker doesn't make a real blue black like in former day. I asked them by mail but didn't answer.

 

Joop

 

 

I concur with this.

 

The last time I used this Quink B/B (Bottled and packed in a plastic cover—Made in France), my desk was so green I had to fight the urge to tackle it with the lawn mower.

 

Shame

 

On papers with any trace of sulphite in it from the bleaching process, Parker Quink Blue-Black can turn quite green very quickly (< two days in some cases).

 

As well, the current version of PQ Blue-Black is quite different from that of the Solv-X era Blue-Black. I have both, and the difference is very noticeable.

 

 

I had mentioned in some other thread that the entries in my Clairefountaine journals from five or six years ago had turned a weird pale avocado color. Both Quink and Waterman BB were used in these, almost exclusively, and both actually seemed to have turned this color. The only other hand-written documents from that period that I retained would have been check registers, but I haven't run across them for comparison purposes yet.

[Drone]

Thanks for the review...

 

It seems Parker stopped marketing this blue-black ink in some markets, mine included (Indonesia). I find that strange because Parker Quink is manufactured locally in Indonesia under Parker supervision by PT. Sahabat Utama. The locally made Quink boxes also bear the Sanford logo on the bottom and a laser decal bearing the Parker 'P' and PT. Sahabat's brand name. Alas, today I can find only blue, black, and red Quink in Jakarta; no blue-black (and the blue is quite hard to find too).

 

Quink here in Jakarta is very affordable, less than $2 USD per 57ml (1.9oz) bottle. Yep, you read right, less than two bucks a bottle. I am positive this ink is genuine. Quink has always been priced in this range locally. Maybe they price it like this because if they didn't, there would be plenty of fakes on the market in a week's time.

 

I had many bottles of Indonesian-made vintage blue-black (Solv-X) that I bought when I saw stocks running low. The vintage Quink blue-black is wonderful ink. Very well behaved with nice shading. Now I'm down to my last bottle.

 

So I bought bottles of "new" Quink black and blue and started mixing; comparing with the vintage blue-black. Roughly three-parts blue plus one-part black gets you pretty-much the same ink.

 

By the way, the "new" Quink blue from around here is quite typical. It seems a tad washed-out but very well behaved. It writes fine in almost every pen I've tried it in. The "modern" Quink black on the other hand is as dark as a black-hole, but flows poorly in some pens.

 

That's my take... David

[Dino71]

I should probably try Quink BB as it is readily available in my current area. In this country, it appears to be the most affordable ink, with Pelikan 4001 being only slightly more expensive.

 

On a whim, I tried the Permanent and Washable Blues about a month ago and ended up ditching both bottles. I found both to be weak, and for a safe ink, a little dry.

 

I'll buy a bottle tomorrow and see how it compares to Waterman's Blue Black.

 

Dino

[ThirdeYe]

  On 4/12/2011 at 3:11 PM, Dino71 said:

I should probably try Quink BB as it is readily available in my current area. In this country, it appears to be the most affordable ink, with Pelikan 4001 being only slightly more expensive.

 

On a whim, I tried the Permanent and Washable Blues about a month ago and ended up ditching both bottles. I found both to be weak, and for a safe ink, a little dry.

 

I'll buy a bottle tomorrow and see how it compares to Waterman's Blue Black.

 

Dino

 

Quink Blue-Black and Waterman Blue-Black are currently the same or very close to the same, FYI.

[Inkwisitor]

I've used Parker Quink blue black for around 45 years, for many of which it and Parker black were in daily use at work. It always seemed a very well behaved ink to me with consistent standards from bottle to bottle. Unless memory serves me false, however, I think the modern formulation comes out somewhat lighter than the old Solv-X version and a different shade, definitely more blue. Additionally, with my pens the broader the nib the lighter the shade on the page. In fact my Montblanc 12 with an oblique broad nib shades to quite a medium blue which I don't ever remember happening with the older bottles (there was shading but across a darker range).

[cubic archon]

  On 4/13/2011 at 3:31 PM, ThirdeYe said:

  On 4/12/2011 at 3:11 PM, Dino71 said:

I should probably try Quink BB as it is readily available in my current area. In this country, it appears to be the most affordable ink, with Pelikan 4001 being only slightly more expensive.

 

On a whim, I tried the Permanent and Washable Blues about a month ago and ended up ditching both bottles. I found both to be weak, and for a safe ink, a little dry.

 

I'll buy a bottle tomorrow and see how it compares to Waterman's Blue Black.

 

Dino

 

Quink Blue-Black and Waterman Blue-Black are currently the same or very close to the same, FYI.

 

I'm quite experienced with Waterman BB - it's been my standard testing ink for every new pen ever since I started collecting them - and after picking up a bottle of Quink BB and trying that instead, I cannot tell the difference. I'd challenge anyone to be able to in a double-blind test.

 

It's quite convenient actually as Quink is a lot easier to get hold of than Waterman, and cheaper (though the bottles are not as good).

Edited April 23, 2011 by cubic archon

[Dino71]

  On 4/23/2011 at 11:17 PM, cubic archon said:

 

I'm quite experienced with Waterman BB - it's been my standard testing ink for every new pen ever since I started collecting them - and after picking up a bottle of Quink BB and trying that instead, I cannot tell the difference. I'd challenge anyone to be able to in a double-blind test.

 

It's quite convenient actually as Quink is a lot easier to get hold of than Waterman, and cheaper (though the bottles are not as good).

 

Cubic Archon,

 

Have not managed to pick up a bottle of Quink BB yet. Would the flow and lubrication be identical to Waterman BB as well?

 

Like you, Waterman BB is my standard safe ink. With any new pen I get, it's what I use first. With some pens, it's the only thing I use actually.

 

Dino

[cubic archon]

  On 4/25/2011 at 6:05 PM, Dino71 said:

Cubic Archon,

 

Have not managed to pick up a bottle of Quink BB yet. Would the flow and lubrication be identical to Waterman BB as well?

 

Like you, Waterman BB is my standard safe ink. With any new pen I get, it's what I use first. With some pens, it's the only thing I use actually.

 

Dino

If there are any differences in flow and general behaviour, I've not been able to notice them. I would challenge anyone to tell the difference in a blind test.

[DET]

As others have mentioned, I love the price, availability and performance of Parker Quink Blue-Black, but hate how terribly it fades on all the paper I write on. I like the color the way it goes down, and the way it looks for a day or two, but after a few days it looks like a washed-out turquoise or something -- kind of like the blue lines on college-ruled notebook paper, and absolutely no darkness left at all. Even my experiments mixing in some Parker Quink Black don't help much -- still fades like crazy. My current bottle is about half gone, and I won't replace it when it's through.

[cubic archon]

For the record, here is a scan of some old Waterman BB, so that people can see what effect the fading has:

 

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5188/5656683225_be539c7a98.jpg

Waterman BB sample 19 Aug 2010 Rhodia WNB by redspotted, on Flickr

 

That is some BB from August 2010 in an M P51, on Rhodia Webnotebook paper. (I can pretty much guarantee that Quink BB would look the same, for reasons mentioned above.)

 

Obviously it has gotten a lot lighter, and that sort of change happens over a few days after writing, depending on the paper - it doesn't get any _worse_ than that IME. If I look back in my journals in a couple of years' time and find that it's vanished or turned pink I will be sure to post about it on FPN.

 

I can see that that would put some people off, though it doesn't bother me really. The extreme non-water-fastness of the ink is more important in my book (ho ho).

[pmsalty]

I enjoy your reviews and always love your lettering!

Thanks, PMS

[Parker Quink Turquoise]

Recently I have obtained a bottle of the old Parker Quink Blue /Black from the 1940s.In comparing the two I would say the old Parker favours the black side of Blue /Black while the new Parker favours the blue side.

[Dino71]

  On 4/25/2011 at 8:39 PM, cubic archon said:

 

If there are any differences in flow and general behaviour, I've not been able to notice them. I would challenge anyone to tell the difference in a blind test.

 

Have been on the road so I only managed to play with Quink BB over the past few days. In terms of lubrication, Waterman feels slightly more wet, but that's splitting hairs. Flow is good and I like the way it feels on paper.

 

It is in the color where differences are more stark. On Rhodia, Quink writes a darker, bluer line and dries to a teal tone that is similar to but more saturated than Waterman. Nice.

 

What I didn't like was how it looked a few days later. Quink seems to be less lightfast. My notes were a bit pale. I compared these to notes written with Waterman from last month, and the Waterman looked darker.

 

For a cheap ink though, the Quink BB is good. I've started using it at work but not for anything that requires some longevity in legibility. All in all, it's a good find!

[Dip n Scratch]

Blue Black should be exactly what it says a very dark blue as it comes out of the pen which stays the same shade when dry.

Dye-based inks are going to fade if left exposed to UV. Quink Blue can vanish with little trace in a month. You would think the blue/black might turn blue/brown. That is based on my observation on another maker's blue & black.

A month on a English window sill is a torture test. In a closed pad of Clairfontaine paper left in a drawer I would not expect there to be any change at all in the short term.

 

Parker ink is bottle ink that you are going to be able to find on most High Streets in the UK at around eight pounds a bottle. It is why people think that you can't get any colours beyond blue, black & blue/black & maybe red.

[Erik Dalton]

  On 4/25/2011 at 9:19 PM, DET said:

As others have mentioned, I love the price, availability and performance of Parker Quink Blue-Black, but hate how terribly it fades on all the paper I write on. I like the color the way it goes down, and the way it looks for a day or two, but after a few days it looks like a washed-out turquoise or something -- kind of like the blue lines on college-ruled notebook paper, and absolutely no darkness left at all. Even my experiments mixing in some Parker Quink Black don't help much -- still fades like crazy. My current bottle is about half gone, and I won't replace it when it's through.

I’ll probably be stoned for this... Because of the fading effect, and no water resistance, I changed over to Aurora Blue-Black and Pelikan 4001 Blue Black several years ago. While I have a soft spot in my heart for all things Parker and i wish things were different. I still feel better about my work and journals after switching over to Aurora and Pelikan inks.

[AL01]

  On 4/11/2011 at 11:16 PM, mturk said:

 

I had mentioned in some other thread that the entries in my Clairefountaine journals from five or six years ago had turned a weird pale avocado color. Both Quink and Waterman BB were used in these, almost exclusively, and both actually seemed to have turned this color. The only other hand-written documents from that period that I retained would have been check registers, but I haven't run across them for comparison purposes yet.

 

I have experienced this as well...

 

BUT, the ink would merely change color and not fad.

 

I find this inconsistency a little odd...

 

But I have heard the the formula for the ink has changed since this review.

[Olya]

  On 4/22/2019 at 1:50 AM, Old Salt said:

I’ll probably be stoned for this... Because of the fading effect, and no water resistance, I changed over to Aurora Blue-Black and Pelikan 4001 Blue Black several years ago. While I have a soft spot in my heart for all things Parker and i wish things were different. I still feel better about my work and journals after switching over to Aurora and Pelikan inks.

You should try the new PQ Blue Black, in the new carton packaging, because it seems very much they also changed the formula. The colour is now somewhat different, the colour does not shift or fade after writing with it and water resistance is pretty good as well. I don't know why Parker doesn't advertize their "new" old ink more, as it's completely different now.

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/338243-old-parker-blue-black-vs-new-parker-blue-black/

[pajaro]

  On 4/22/2019 at 10:06 AM, Olya said:

You should try the new PQ Blue Black, in the new carton packaging, because it seems very much they also changed the formula. The colour is now somewhat different, the colour does not shift or fade after writing with it and water resistance is pretty good as well. I don't know why Parker doesn't advertize their "new" old ink more, as it's completely different now.

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/338243-old-parker-blue-black-vs-new-parker-blue-black/

 

I am using the new quink blue black and it's very good. I like blue black generally and this one seems as good as any.

Edited April 22, 2019 by pajaro

[gmax]

The old formula Quink BB does not colour shift to teal on Smythson paper, so that change seems to be related to the paper composition.

 

The new Quink BB is a decent, well-behaved ink, although not the most inspiring colour - more of a mid/dark blue than a true BB.

[Erik Dalton]

  On 4/22/2019 at 5:54 PM, pajaro said:

I am using the new quink blue black and it's very good. I like blue black generally and this one seems as good as any.

Is it available in the US? Where did you guys get yours. I looked on amazon but I can’t tell which is which. How do you know its the new stuff?