Ink Suggestion For Hypersensitive (Allergic) Person

[fpowner]

Hello all,

 

I like the fountain pens, but i have an allergic to ink's scent (odor) or inks themself.

 

Would you suggest an ink suitable for allergic person ?

 

 

[Wolverine1]

Well, I dont know of ink allergies, and any ink that is made for allergic persons. Maybe you should contact an ink manufacturer like Organics Studio, and ask Tyler. He might have some ideas.

 

Or I could be insensitive and ask you to just suck it up!!!! All kidding, aside, have you tried inks, or are you just assuming that the very, very, faint smell of ink will make you sick?

[applejade]

Interesting. I've never heard of allergies to fountain pen ink before, but I suppose it's possible. I think you're going to need to be more specific as to what exactly you're allergic to, if possible. "Does your ink contain X?" is a more reasonable question for an ink manufacturer than "Am I going to have an allergic reaction to your inks?" There are many many different things in fountain pen ink, I don't know which of them are airborne:

 

"In addition to water, the non-dye components (collectively referred to as the vehicle) might include polymeric resins, humectants to retard premature drying, pH modifiers, anti-foaming agents, biocides to prevent fungal and bacterial growth, and wetting agents (surfactants)."

 

Different colours use different dyes. There may be something in certain colours you're reacting to.

 

You could try Iron Gall inks. I don't know how different they are, but maybe whatever it is that's causing you a reaction isn't present in iron gall inks.

[tfwall]

Hello all,

 

I like the fountain pens, but i have an allergic to ink's scent (odor) or inks themself.

 

Would you suggest an ink suitable for allergic person ?

 

 

 

If you don't know precisely what you are reacting to, I'd recommend you get ink samples of some of the basic colours from major manufacturers. Inks like Quink and Waterman have been extensively tested and are made on stainless steel equipment under controlled conditions. They are going to be the least reactive, most benign and have the largest amount of supporting information available from the ink manufacturers.

 

Now, if you find that you are sensitive to those inks, then it might be worth poking around among the boutique brands and seeing if by happenstance one or more of them use a different enough process and chemistry that they are excluding the component(s) you are sensitive to.

 

Short story long, without knowing what you are trying to avoid, you'll need to run some exposure tests and try to find something you can work with. I think that ink samples are probably the way to go.

Edited September 22, 2013 by Chemyst

[Scrawler]

 

If you don't know precisely what you are reacting to, I'd recommend you get ink samples of some of the basic colours from major manufacturers. Inks like Quink and Waterman have been extensively tested and are made on stainless steel equipment under controlled conditions. They are going to be the least reactive, most benign and have the largest amount of supporting information available from the ink manufacturers.

 

Now, if you find that you are sensitive to those inks, then it might be worth poking around among the boutique brands and seeing if by happenstance one or more of them use a different enough process and chemistry that they are excluding the component(s) you are sensitive to.

 

Short story long, without knowing what you are trying to avoid, you'll need to run some exposure tests and try to find something you can work with. I think that ink samples are probably the way to go.

^^--This

[SeeksAdvice]

Well, there are the "bunny inks" from Scribal Workshop. Unfortunately, they aren't made from 100% pure bunny, but oh well. They also likely aren't the most durable of all inks either.

 

But, an idea of allergies would probably be something useful to know. I have terrible allergies to many organic solvents - toluene, xylene, MEK and other ketones, various ethers, most chlorinated hydrocarbons (oddly enough chloroform used for extractions never bothered me much), organic anhydrides, etc.. Have yet to meet a fountain pen ink that gave me fits, including those with decent quantities of phenol added as a preservative. Permanent markers are a whole different story.

 

I have allergies to organic solvents to the point of having to leave the courthouse when they were using things like "pipe dope," varnish, industrial adhesives, oil based paints, etc. in the building.

 

Most FP friendly inks are water based. The one possible exception is the Polar series from Noodler's. I have no idea what that stuff is based on, as it had serious freezing point depression (did fail at -18F with -24F windchill though). Guessing it has a lot of ethylene glycol or similar in it (Tardiff claimed the original formula could survive serious negative temps that bater based products shouldn't). Noodler's literature indicates that it was designed to limit the problems that water based inks have. Judging from the smell of Polar Blue, it smells almost like latex paint.

 

My suggestion would be to start with some of the "tamer" inks that don't have special purpose qualities. Maybe some of the "bunny" inks from Scribal in sample form from Goulet's or whoever else sells Scribal samples.

 

Definitely *stay away* from any of DeA's scented inks then; or, at the very least, stay away from the ones that you know would give you problems. They use essences of the items they represent. And, I'm sure you know what that means.

[nekosan]

I'm not allergic to any inks i've some across but i have found some inks to have unpleasant odors (unpleasant enough to me that I'd rather avoid them).

 

Samples are definitely good!

 

If you have a shop near you, ask if they have a sample jar open as a tester. You can dip your pen in the ink and sniff it at the same time. (Asking to just smell the ink often gets you a look of "uh-oh, a crazy person!", asking to sample it reads as normal.)

 

Some of the ink reviews here mention odors; Sandy1 in particular has very detailed reviews that include the odor of the ink. One person's experience of an odor doesn't necessarily match another's, but it 5 out of 5 reviewers mentioned that the odor was very strong to unbearable, I figure it's a good warning sign.

[dcwaites]

Inks are an interesting mix of organic compounds in solution. The major component is the dye itself, and then other compounds to help wetting, kill bugs, lubricate pen components, control ink flow, etc.

 

There are also two strands of dyes, those used for the plastics/paints industries and those used for the textiles industries. A third, smaller, strand are those dyes used for food colouring.

I understand that inks for ballpoints come from the plastics/paints group and those for fountain pen inks usually come from the textiles group.

 

You might need to see an allergy specialist to find out if you are allergic to any of these dyes.

 

Finally, I would look for some samples of the J.Herbin inks, as they are said to be made from natural sources, rather than artificial dyes.

 

If all else fails, and you are not allergic to Food Colouring dyes, you might be able to tweak some up to use in an expensive fountain pen. I have found that Queen Food Dye can be used in a Platinum Preppy without change.

[inkstainedruth]

It occurred to me that the OP might not have allergies to ink, per se -- but SITB is another matter entirely. Mold is actually a relatively common allergen.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Sasha Royale]

Now, that is insightful, Ruth !

 

fpowner, is the reaction severe, or mildly irritating ? Does your skin react on contact with the ink ?

If the allergy is to an organic component (contaminant), can it be killed ? Would the use of an

electric fan, to draw away vapors, solve the problem ?

[WirsPlm]

If it's mold-sensitivity, there's some good news! I'm also mold sensitive, and don't have problems with non-moldy FP ink. It's not always easy to tell if an ink is problematic, though, so I'm going to start putting some phenol into my inks. I got the recommended bottle from Natural Pigments, and am going to follow the suggestions here: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/171278-biocide-shootout-tests/page-2?do=findComment&comment=1965812

[amberleadavis]

If it's mold-sensitivity, there's some good news! I'm also mold sensitive, and don't have problems with non-moldy FP ink. It's not always easy to tell if an ink is problematic, though, so I'm going to start putting some phenol into my inks. I got the recommended bottle from Natural Pigments, and am going to follow the suggestions here: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/171278-biocide-shootout-tests/page-2?do=findComment&comment=1965812

 

 

I've been adding it to my inks. I'll keep you informed.

[fpowner]

Thanks very much for replies.

 

firstly, i like very much fountain pens. I did not have any problem with inks before, but in time i got this problem. i also have some problems to cleaner chemical stuffs too. They have got a terrible smells (odors).

 

I have no reaction ink on skins but my symptoms are headache, dizzy and burning on respiratory tract after using 10 -15 mins later. Their levels are near to moderate. and then i gave up using pen. problems has gone.

 

I used inks of Pelikan 4001 black and blue, Lamy black and blue, Waterman florida Blue, Aurora black, Parker blue, Pilot Iroshuzuku Asa-gao, Kaweco sepia, Diamine onxy black, ancient copper, florida blue, blue-black.

 

I think black and blue ink's component are problematic. So far Kaweco sepia is good for me.

 

my pens are faber-castell basic, Twsbi 540i kaweco sport and pilot metropolitan. all of their's nibs are medium.

 

I have no chance get ink samples.

 

i use uni-ball eye fine black, blue and red for daily writing. so far so good.

 

is platinum cartridge ink good for me ? black, blue and blue-black.

 

and what do you suggest to me fountain pen which is expensive ?

[Sandy1]

Hi,

 

I might be so bold as to suggest trying one of the Sailor 'nano' inks, (kira-guro, sei-boku), which we're told are made of wee particles, so have some ingredients that are quite different from those found in dye-based inks.

 

It is rather odd that the uni-balls are OK. Perhaps it has to do with fast dry time. That may be a hint to try those inks which dry more by absorption than by evaporation, such as Noodler's Bernanke series. (?)

 

Ah, before jumping to an expensive fountain pen, I'd rather clear-up any ink issues.

 

Bye,

S1

[fpowner]

thanks for answer.

 

i bought platinum black carbon pigment ink with platinum preppy 0.5 medium nib. so far much better than water-based bottle inks.

 

i think cartridge inks is better than bottle inks for me.

 

is platinum blue-black cartridge ink iron-gall ink ?

 

I will buy sailor highace fountain pen and sailor's pigment inks...

[Sandy1]

thanks for answer.

 

i bought platinum black carbon pigment ink with platinum preppy 0.5 medium nib. so far much better than water-based bottle inks.

 

i think cartridge inks is better than bottle inks for me.

 

is platinum blue-black cartridge ink iron-gall ink ?

 

I will buy sailor highace fountain pen and sailor's pigment inks...

 

Hi,

 

You're welcome!

 

Its very good to read that the 'carbon' inks are better for you than the aniline dye inks.

 

Too bad that there is less variety amongst the carbon inks.

 

Even though I've read that the Platinum Blue-Black is an I-G ink, other manufacturers do not put I-G ink into cartridges: The plastic allows air into the ink, so over time, an I-G ink would degrade. However, that's not to say that Platinum isn't using a non-permeable material for their cartridges.

 

Please be aware that pigmented FP inks need very good pen maintenance. Do not let them dry-out in your pens. The pen should be thoroughly cleansed before and after using pigmented ink.

 

Kindly avail yourself of the entries in the Ink Review Forum which will give greater insight into those inks.

 

Also, to remove any manufacturing residue & ink, I suggest that you give your new Sailor pen a good cleaning before use.

 

Enjoy!

 

Bye,

S1

Edited September 26, 2013 by Sandy1

[Cane]

Interesting topic. I have the same problem. It is likely that you have a condition called "Multiple Chemical Sensitivity" (MCS). Unfortunately there is no cure and it is very hard to get anyone to believe that you are sick (I have tried for 3 year's and still no luck).

 

Anyway, I to am interested in using fountain pens, but when I got sick, I stopped using everything except the "Pentel P200 Mechanical Pencil" (0.3 mm) and "Pentel Ain Stein" leads.

 

I believe that "Platinum UEF" nibs is the right one for me. Could anyone tell me if there is any other pen available with that nib, other than the "Pentel 3776 Century"? If not, is it possible to replace the nib on another pen (I guess they work together with at least some of the other Platinum pens, any other brands?)

 

Just out of curiosity. Is there any pens with small gripp? I am so used to the Pentel pens by now (the grip is tiny) and I preferred smaller gripps before I started using the Pentel pens (I basically have a size 7 hand). Pentel became the choice because of the small lead size (my average letter size is about 3mm in height) and their reliability.

 

Obviously the "Pilot Custom Urushi" is a chunky pen, and even though it is likely way to big for me, I am curious if there exist any other pens in that size? It is gorgeous and can fit the Pilot CON-70 converter (I am not a person that switch ink. Just give me a deep black permanent ink, and I am good).

Edited November 5, 2018 by Cane

[Flaxmoore]

Platinum nibs are only on Platinum pens, though Sailor makes very fine nibs as well.

 

I can’t quite tell on your question what you seek. Are you looking for something very large, or very narrow?

[Cane]

Very fine nib (Not to wet, not to scratchy. I don't care to much for feedback.), small gripp and big reservoir. Perhaps to much to ask?

 

Platinum, besides the nib that I am interested in, seems to have a good cap that prevents the pen from drying out (good thing in general, and especially if you use something like Platinum Carbon Ink?).

[eharriett]

Something else I might suggest if you some variety: purchase your inks in cartridge form. They’re sealed until you break the cartridge. You should be good with that.