Sepia Toned Ink Comparison - 32 Inks

[amberleadavis]

This analysis is amazing. Thank you.

[fxfb60]

I loved the look of PR Sepia in this review and immediately bought a bottle. As soon as it arrived I filled a Pelikan 400NN F with it; I found it too light so I immediately emptied it. I next filled a Lamy AL Star 1.1 nib and it writes dry. I mean, DRY! Lots of skipping. Very little shading for me on any paper. I have to flush it soon. Next up, my flexy Ahab. First half page using this combo, wonderful stuff. But again, it started skipping. Then the ink flow stopped. I pushed the plunger and wet the nib. Good for a paragraph, then the same issues! I know the Ahab is adjusted well for other inks! And I had just flushed BSiAR from the Ahab, it had been doing well all week, never drying out even after days, never skipping.

 

In short, my personal evaluation of Private Reserve Sepia is that, while I absolutely love the shading it can get, it's an impossible to use this particular ink for me. My next step in desperation will be to add a surfactant to a small vial of this ink and see if it flows any better.

 

Am I alone in this? Could it be a bad bottle?

I completely agree. I love the colour and the shading but it is unusable

[Sailor Kenshin]

DC! This is amazing. Thanks for the time and effort it took.

 

I love sepia as a color, but coming from an art background, the only ones that 'look sepia' to me are the Iro and the Whaleman's. But as a big fan of brown inks in general, I would like to try 'em all.

 

PS: Meant the Iro Yama-Guri...

Edited September 29, 2013 by Sailor Kenshin

[dcpritch]

SK, thanks so much for your compliment. I have to confess a similar love for sepia tones and brown inks in general. Just this weekend I was looking at something thinking, "that looks exactly like Noodler's El Lawrence," and now I'm deciding which pen to put that into. I am amazed at how many inks have come out in the past two years that were not available for inclusion in the comparison, but at the same time I'm glad I didn't know about them or this thing would have been even bigger than it already is.

[pen2paper]

So glad this thread rolled around today.. I instantly recalled my appreciation for the lovely qualities of this PR Sepia, when I read of the Ink World's loss. Words of sincere condolence, and colorful ink world good memories to the family. Thank you all for your contributions to this endeavor. I am one of many who hope that the wonderous rainbow of PR will go forward, as healing and circumstances allow.

Good question - its an ink that is new to me. So here's what I just wrote on a sheet of Rhodia A4 lined 80g/m² paper:



I'd say that's some of the most dramatic shading I've seen; such a difference between light and dark tones.

[leomitch]

Wow! A wonderful piece of research...do you do scietific work for a living?

My hat is off to you!

 

With mouth agape in astonishment

Leo

Edited October 2, 2013 by leomitch

[dcpritch]

... I instantly recalled my appreciation for the lovely qualities of this PR Sepia, when I read of the Ink World's loss. Words of sincere condolence, and colorful ink world good memories to the family. ... I am one of many who hope that the wonderous rainbow of PR will go forward, as healing and circumstances allow.

 

p2p, I've been out of the loop for a few days. Did something happen with Private Reserve? I seem always to be the last to know things.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Thread here.

[Enoch_Root]

Wow dcpritch. I just discovered your opus. I had been hunting around on gouletpens looking at sepia inks and it occured to me I bet there are some reviews on FPN. Thank you sir for your hard work.

[dr saleem ali]

dear dcpritch, you have carried a very "scientific " study ,and tried to help out the real meaning of Sepia , your comparison and your labour desrves much appreciation ,you have done a nice job indeed .thanks.

[Sinistral1]

I'm worried that dcpritch might be sitting frozen to his desk at the office, or maybe somewhere between home and work in his car! Let's just hope he wasn't carrying and ink or pens when the cold overtook him...

[85AKbN]

Very detailed review - thanks. A quick question: that's not the dark Hakase Sepia ink, correct?

[dcpritch]

Wow dcpritch. I just discovered your opus. I had been hunting around on gouletpens looking at sepia inks and it occured to me I bet there are some reviews on FPN. Thank you sir for your hard work.

 

Thanks, I hope you found it to have been helpful.

 

dear dcpritch, you have carried a very "scientific " study ,and tried to help out the real meaning of Sepia , your comparison and your labour desrves much appreciation ,you have done a nice job indeed .thanks.

 

Thanks so much. One thing that struck me when I undertook this comparison was how different sepia inks could appear. Several good sepia inks have come onto the market since my review and they are just as varied in color and style as the ones I first reviewed.

 

Very detailed review - thanks. A quick question: that's not the dark Hakase Sepia ink, correct?

 

I wish I were an expert in Hakase Sepia inks. The one I got was in a sample vial from FPNer Sam Capote, who was extraordinarily helpful and generous. I am not sure whether it was the "dark" version or not. Maybe someone who has both could do a comparison?

 

I'm worried that dcpritch might be sitting frozen to his desk at the office, or maybe somewhere between home and work in his car! Let's just hope he wasn't carrying and ink or pens when the cold overtook him...

 

Haha! I'm still alive, though it took several days to thaw out from that last cold blast. We had a full week where it never rose above 0 F and a couple of days in a row where the morning temps were below -30 F and the high temps didn't go above -10. A case of wine arrived last week with all the corks popped off due to sitting in a FedEx depot for a few hours. All completely ruined, alas. When I go outside in weather like that I carry a TWSBI Micarta filled with Noodler's Polar Blue, which always seems to write.

[Sinistral1]

Too bad about the wine, I hope FedEx offers insurance for that sort of thing. I got three bottles of ink that were either totally or partially frozen. They all are fine, but I'm ready for spring!

[dannystr78]

Good question - its an ink that is new to me. So here's what I just wrote on a sheet of Rhodia A4 lined 80g/m² paper:

 

 

I'd say that's some of the most dramatic shading I've seen; such a difference between light and dark tones.

 

This is one of the best shaders I have ever used, but it comes with a cost. It is the most difficult, balky ink I have ever used as well. It is great the first day. The second day its getting dry. The third day it dries out not just initially but repeatedly. You really have to flush the pen and start all over.

[thistle]

Fantastic review. Thank you. Was just starting to look for an amber'ish ink and I think Diamine Sepia will fit the bill.

[dcpritch]

Thanks thistle for the nice compliment - I'm glad the comparison was helpful.

[stevesurf]

This Sepia-toned ink comparison was born out of my own confusion from trying to understand the various inks I have which are labeled "sepia" or are generally thought to be sepia-toned. I discovered there is wide divergence among ink manufacturers, fountain pen users, and the non-fountain pen world about the meaning of sepia and the tone one expects from the name.

 

Here are a few definitions of sepia:

 

• Wikipedia: a dark brown-grey color, named after the rich brown pigment derived from the ink sac of the common cuttlefish Sepia

• Collins English Dictionary: a dark reddish-brown pigment obtained from the inky secretion of the cuttlefish

• American Heritage Dictionary: a dark brown ink or pigment originally prepared from the secretion of the cuttlefish, OR a dark grayish yellow brown to dark or moderate olive brown

• Barron's Marketing Dictionary: film whose color tends toward brown tones rather than shades of gray, giving the image an old-fashioned and sometimes dreamlike quality

• Princeton University Thesaurus: a shade of brown with a tinge of red burnt sienna

• Tonmo.com: a red-brown ink made from the ink sacs of cuttlefish

• My 15 year old son: "sepia - isn't that like old timey pictures?"

 

Obviously, there are lots of different thoughts on what sepia is or should be. Originally, sepia ink was derived from the ink sac of the cuttlefish. One of the inks in this comparison, Hakase Sepia, is actually made directly from cuttlefish, the only such ink of which I am aware, though the FPN community will no doubt be able to find another source or else make some of their own - we are an amazingly resourceful and industrious bunch. All the other inks are interpretations of "sepia" by the various ink manufacturers.

 

So, what's the deal with cuttlefish, you ask? Here is some interesting and helpful information from Tonmo.com: The ink of a cuttlefish is composed of highly concentrated melanin. This is the same dark pigment that we humans have, and which is responsible for skin color and the color of dark hair. It is a natural dye that cephalopods manufacture in an ink sac. When the need arises, the cuttlefish squirts this ink together with a jet of water. The result is a cloud of ink, which is used defensively as a visual screen or a distraction to predators. The ink also contains a compound, tyrosinase, which irritates predators' eyes and paralyzes their sense of smell temporarily. The color of the ink (melanin) is red, but when it is more concentrated, it becomes darker, changing to brown and even to black. Since red appears black in low-light, many night active or deep-sea cephalopods produce only red or brown ink.

 

What does this have to do with fountain pen ink? In it's simplest form, fountain pen ink is a pigment or dye and a binder. Per Tonmo.com, the first ink for writing and drawing was invented simultaneously in China and Egypt, around 2500 BC. This first ink was made of lampblack (soot) mixed with aqueous binders. In the middle ages and up through the nineteenth century, ink was made from such ingredients as gum arabic, copperas (vitriol), gall apples (source of tannin), and water. Occasionally soot was used for making the ink black, or minerals and other pigments could be used for color. In the 20th century, ink became more sophisticated and is now usually made of synthetic dyes and compounds. Ink today may combine tannic, Gallic and dilute hydrochloric acid with an iron salt, phenol, and a blue or black dye. The composition may optionally include a drying agent, an adhesion promoter, a color developer and/or a preservative. Of all the ancient forms of ink, sepia is the one ink related to cephalopods. The ink sacs of cuttlefish were dried and ground to a fine powder, then mixed with shellac. This ink came into use in the eighteenth century and was quite popular in the nineteenth century.

 

Back in August I began this thread to help me gather ideas for sepia-toned inks. I got a lot of response, far more than I anticipated, and as a result came up with a list of 45 inks - whittled down to 32 - that folks seemed to want included in this comparison. So, I assembled an arsenal of sepia-toned inks, though not as many as I would have were I to raid Sam Capote's ink storage facility, which in my imagination resembles the massive warehouse in the final scene from "Raiders of the Lost Ark". I have about half of these in bottles, the other half being samples from Goulet Pens, Ryan Roossinck of Pear Tree Pens (now, sadly, no longer in business), and from helpful donations sent to me by some great FPNers.*

 

Some of the inks are clearly not within the sepia family: Diamine Burnt Sienna, Diamine Rustic Brown, J. Herbin Cacao du Brésil, Montblanc Carlo Collodi and Noodler's Golden Brown all seem to be far enough outside the spectrum to be excluded. Still, I included them in the comparison because ... well, because people asked, I have them, and the difference between 27 and 32 inks really isn't that much. Doesn't the swab sheet look colorful?!

 

Here are the inks in alphabetical order by maker, which is the way I've laid out my tests:

 

• Caran d'Ache Grand Canyon

• Carter's Harvest Brown (vintage - c. 1941)

• Diamine Burnt Sienna

• Diamine Golden Brown

• Diamine Raw Sienna

• Diamine Rustic Brown

• Diamine Sepia

• Hakase Sepia (available only in Japan)

• J. Herbin Cacao du Brésil

• J. Herbin Café Des Îles

• J. Herbin Lie de Thé

• J. Herbin Terre de Feu

• J. Herbin mix by Avetikus**

• Montblanc Carlo Collodi

• Montblanc Sepia (out of production)

• Noodler's (Art Brown) Brooklyn Brawn

• Noodler's Golden Brown

• Noodler's (Swisher) Grizzly

• Noodler's Kiowa Pecan

• Noodler's Manjiro Nakahama Whaleman's Sepia

• Noodler's (Swisher) Seminole Sepia

• OMAS Sepia

• Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Brown

• Pilot Iroshizuku tsukushi

• Pilot Iroshizuku yama-guri

• Platinum Pigment Ink Brun Sepia

• Private Reserve Chocolat

• Private Reserve Copper Burst

• Private Reserve Sepia

• Rohrer & Klingner Sepia

• Stipula Calamo Sepia

• Visconti Brown (aka Sepia)

 

For my testing, I used the following pens, picked to represent a range of nib sizes, flex, age and availability (and also ease of cleaning - 32 inks x 3 pens = 96 cleanings, and I had to be thorough each time to avoid contamination):

 

• Bexley Poseidon Magnum, 18k 1.3mm Bexley stub nib

• Kaweco Sport, steel M nib

• Mabie Todd & Co. Swan 3260, flexible 14k Swan No. 2 nib

 

Finally, I used the following papers to test each ink:

 

• cheapo/no name 20lb. copy paper

• Office Depot "Double A" copy paper, 22lb., 80g/m

• Rhodia No. 18 A4 pad, lined, 80g/m

• Original Crown Mill Classic Laid paper, A5 size, in cream

• 25% rag content paper for swab tests and line tests

 

I'm not a huge fan of swab tests because first, we don't write with Q-Tips and second, the color can look significantly different when flowing from a pen. Still, the swab tests are a good indication of tone and they are bigger and bolder than anything I could produce with a fountain pen, so I have included them for your reference.

 

 

Figure 1: Cotton swab squiggles (25% rag paper)

For some reason, the Hakase Sepia appears lighter in this swab test than it actually is. See the next two images below for a more accurate depiction of its tone.

 

 

Figure 2: Cotton swab blocks (25% rag paper)

 

 

Figure 3: Cotton swab 1-2-3 pass. The horizontal line swabs for each ink are done with one, two and three passes, top to bottom. I used a premium 25% rag content paper for this part of the test, mostly to avoid bleed through (only Noodler's Whaleman's Sepia and Seminole Sepia bled through, and very minimally). Please don't abuse me for not staying inside the lines - its harder than you think.

 

 

Figure 4: Line test. Line test for each ink was done using - from top to bottom - the Bexley, Kaweco and Swan pens (once with a light touch using the EF tip of the Swan nib and then with the Swan at moderate flex), again using a premium 25% rag content paper.

Note the feathering above displayed by Noodler's Brooklyn Brawn (slight), Noodler's Grizzly (moderate) and Noodler's Whaleman's Sepia and Seminole Sepia (heavy). No other inks feathered on the 25% rag content paper. These inks also bled through on this paper.

 

 

Figure 5: Swan flex patterns (25% rag paper)

 

 

Figures 6, 7 and 8: Boxes drawn with Bexley stub / Swan flex patterns (Rhodia paper)

Note the feathering above displayed by Noodler's Brooklyn Brawn (slight), Noodler's Grizzly (moderate) and Noodler's Whaleman's Sepia and Seminole Sepia (heavy) No other inks feathered on the Rhodia paper.

 

 

 

Figures 9 and 10: Smear/Dry times. The smear/dry time test was done on Office Depot "Double A" paper, using in each instance the Kaweco Sport with a steel M nib, at four second intervals. I believe that if this test were done on Rhodia or comparable smooth, "high end" paper the results would have been much different, so if you have further questions about that I refer you to the excellent ink review forum.

 

 

 

The writing samples and wet tests are in a separate thread - Part 2 - due to the number of images and bandwidth issues.

 

In conclusion, I am quite surprised by the dramatic array of tones in inks that are labeled "sepia" and in others generally considered to be within the sepia tones - everything from yellows, greens, reds, browns, greys.

 

______________________________

 

* Special thanks to Sandy1 for her invaluable advice as I struggled to put this comparison review together, and to Avetikus, BiggieD, encephalartos, meghan, Mrs. Goulet Pens, rroossinck and Sam Capote for help with samples of the sepia inks I didn't have - you were incredibly helpful and selfless, and really made this a team effort! If only you could have helped me clean pens.

 

** J. Herbin mix by Avetikus is as follows: 5ml +/- JH Perle Noire; 3ml JH Gris Nuage; and a 30ml bottle of JH Lie de The, all mixed together.

 

 

I was just searching for an Omas Sepia ink review, and came across this WONDERFUL review, timely for Autumn and Halloween

[dcpritch]

Thanks Steve, I'm glad to know the Sepia review is still helpful, especially in light of all the inks that have on the scene since I first did the comparisons. By the way, I was using OMAS sepia in a pen earlier this week, for the first time in a while, and was reminded how great it is. It remains one of my standbys.

 

Cheers, David

[stevesurf]

I'm glad Omas Sepia is a good ink; it looks like it will be nice on either white or ivory paper. Yes, sometimes we're so preoccupied by new formulations that we need to get reacquainted with old friends. Next ink I'm dusting off for use is MB Collodi ~ I almost forgot how unique and gorgeous it is as well!