Invitation To Show Off Your Stuff...

[schin]

Ken, that is breathtaking!! Would I be correct to say you rotate the paper while flourishing to get the shades at different places?

[MusinkMan]

I am having so much fun experimenting with the various nibs. Can you tell me which ink is your favorite? I have 3 so far...a black Sumi, Higgins Eternal, and McCafferey's black. So far, nothing beats the Higgins as far as I'm concerned.

 

Once I find materials which work for me, I tend to stick with them and I don't experiment much.

 

Black inks -

For fountain pens, I use Aurora Black or Parker Quink.

For dip nibs, Higgins Eternal or Iron Gall ink

 

Coloured inks - Diamine or Sheaffer

 

Ken

 

 

Have you tried McCafferey's? It's strange stuff...it appears as a translucent gray as I write with it, but seems to interract with the paper fibres or something, and becomes opaque black as it dries. I enjoy writing with it, but I like the Higgins Eternal best. I'm not advanced enough to venture into colors and illuminations...at this point I'm just looking for a good stable reliable black ink to learn.

[smk]

McCafferey's is an Iron Gall ink. The Iron in such inks oxidise when exposed to air which makes them darker as time passes. Some inks achieve their darkest shade a day or so after being applied. Iron Gall inks are usually at least partially water resistant.

 

The downside is that these are somewhat acidic and one should be careful to clean and dry the nibs after each use. A dip in clean water and a wipe with a tissue is sufficient - the idea is not to leave any acidic in on the nib.

 

Salman

[MusinkMan]

Wow, I did not know that it was an iron gall ink. That explains a lot. I did notice this though...a bunch of crusty residue forms around the top of the jar and under the lid. Makes it "crunchy" when I try to screw the lid on the jar. I took the liberty of wiping this crust off, and lots of it fell into the ink, but it seemed to float. I skimmed it off with a spoon.

 

Question...should this ink be "shaken" before using? Or is that a bad idea? And how do you deal with the residue that collects around the rim and on the threads of the jar?

[caliken]

Ken, that is breathtaking!! Would I be correct to say you rotate the paper while flourishing to get the shades at different places?

Thanks, schin.

 

Yes, as the nib has to be pointing at, or near to, the direction of the stroke, I turn the paper for the horizontal shades - stopping and starting again, after repositioning the paper.

 

Incidentally, you show excellent control over the fine hairlines, in your flex-nibbed writing.

 

Ken

[smk]

The residue is oxidised Iron and will not dissolve back in the ink. You can wipe it off and pick out any pieces fallen into the ink. Some old Iron Gall recipes included instructions for 'freshening up' the ink by adding a drop of vinegar (since its acidic) to the ink every so often. I guess the timing depended on exposure to air but am not sure.

 

In addition to the crusty stuff around the rim, you will have some sediment in the ink - this is normal. This too is oxidised Iron and should not be stirred or shaken back into the ink. You can prevent, or reduce the amount of residue around the rim of the inkwell if you wipe off any excess ink before putting it away.

 

FPN member fibredrunk has shared a number of Iron Gall recipes here on FPN which contain a lot of information on their characteristics too. Her posts make for very interesting and informative reading even if you have no interest in making your own inks.

 

Salman

[MusinkMan]

Excellent, thank you Salman! I will check out her stuff.

[MusinkMan]

Well, I am excited...got a few things in the mail from John Neal's. Yet another oblique holder (now I have 3. Whoopee!). Some Nikko G nibs, some Gillot 303 nibs (thanks for your special way of teaching me about those, Caliken), and my nice new Michael Sull Spencerian book. I probably should have started with the book rather than suffered through all the experimentation and failure of trying to figure it out by "looking". I'm very excited. I feel as though Father Christmas has visited me in March. Deck The Halls! LOL!

Edited March 30, 2013 by MusinkMan

[Stompie]

Musinkman, I like those Nikko and Zebra nibs! Very smooth!

 

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj229/Popsjill/pens/DSCN1333_zps3bcc1f9b.jpg

[schin]

That's looking good Stompie, and what a beautiful pen!

 

Thanks Ken, it means a lot coming for you, I still have a ways to go but at least I'm on the right track.

 

While we're speaking about MacCaffery's.. can I butt in and mention OMG THERE'S MOLD IN MY INK! I bought a MacCaffery's inkwell and transferred some of the ink in there and I noticed some mold on the side so I wiped it off. But then I realized the ink was receding day by day, I thought perhaps it just evaporated but that's weird as the inkwell is airtight... but eventually I found out the bottom of the well is a lumpy solid presumably a lump of mold and that's why the ink was receding EWWWWGHGH.

 

What the heck is this iron gall ink? Is this normal? Should I throw away the rest of the bottle?

[Stompie]

 

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj229/Popsjill/pens/DSCN1334_zps0ed85c62.jpg

[schin]

[Stompie]

LOL, Hey, I am an old guy! Patience is not a virtue with me as Time is a precious commodity! :roflmho:

[smk]

 

While we're speaking about MacCaffery's.. can I butt in and mention OMG THERE'S MOLD IN MY INK! I bought a MacCaffery's inkwell and transferred some of the ink in there and I noticed some mold on the side so I wiped it off. But then I realized the ink was receding day by day, I thought perhaps it just evaporated but that's weird as the inkwell is airtight... but eventually I found out the bottom of the well is a lumpy solid presumably a lump of mold and that's why the ink was receding EWWWWGHGH.

 

What the heck is this iron gall ink? Is this normal? Should I throw away the rest of the bottle?

 

Don't throw the ink away if it is working fine. You can stop the mold from forming by adding a few drops of Alcohol to the ink - an alternate is to bring the ink to a slow boil which also stops the fermentation process. I wouldn't recommend boiling the McCafferey's ink since we don't know what other chemicals might have been added.

 

Be careful not to dip your nibs in other inks to avoid contaminating them.

 

Salman

[MusinkMan]

This thread is a tremendous source of education for me! I'm loving it!

[Stompie]

This thread is a tremendous source of education for me! I'm loving it!

 

 

and I just enjoy all the constant references to alcohol!!! :roflmho:

[mvarela]

Since I can't really show off much of what I do, I'll show off some stuff I got today

 

I had been eyeing some silver ink to work on a little project, and finally decided on Winsor and Newton silver calligraphy ink. By chance, I found a box of 12 gouache tubes for 5Eur, and had to try them as well

This is what the silver (slightly diluted) looks like:

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8523/8602756743_447b4ea0d7_c.jpg

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8110/8602757333_cd7f99a519_c.jpg

 

Since I was writing on black, I only tried the white gouache, but the other colors should prove fun too!

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8253/8603858352_1cd26ed677_c.jpg

Edited March 30, 2013 by mvarela

[schin]

 

While we're speaking about MacCaffery's.. can I butt in and mention OMG THERE'S MOLD IN MY INK! I bought a MacCaffery's inkwell and transferred some of the ink in there and I noticed some mold on the side so I wiped it off. But then I realized the ink was receding day by day, I thought perhaps it just evaporated but that's weird as the inkwell is airtight... but eventually I found out the bottom of the well is a lumpy solid presumably a lump of mold and that's why the ink was receding EWWWWGHGH.

 

What the heck is this iron gall ink? Is this normal? Should I throw away the rest of the bottle?

 

Don't throw the ink away if it is working fine. You can stop the mold from forming by adding a few drops of Alcohol to the ink - an alternate is to bring the ink to a slow boil which also stops the fermentation process. I wouldn't recommend boiling the McCafferey's ink since we don't know what other chemicals might have been added.

 

Be careful not to dip your nibs in other inks to avoid contaminating them.

 

Salman

 

 

Can I use rubbing alcohol..? Do I have to keep adding it or just put it once?

[smk]

Can I use rubbing alcohol..? Do I have to keep adding it or just put it once?

 

Rubbing alcohol (Isopropyl Alcohol) is fine, I use Methylated Spirits from our local pharmacy. Adding a few drops should stop the mold from growing, you only need to add more if the mold keeps growing.

 

S.

 

Edit: take out the moldy bits using a toothpick or two.

Edited March 30, 2013 by smk

[MusinkMan]

This thread is a tremendous source of education for me! I'm loving it!

 

 

and I just enjoy all the constant references to alcohol!!! :roflmho:

 

 

Hahaha...is that what you have in that bottle of "Stompie's Homebrew"?

 

Why don't you let me "borrow" some ink...a large bottle. LOL!