Sailor Four Seasons: 8 Inks Compared

[migo984]

Mine arrived today; not disappointed!

 

Beautiful - my favourite ink brand by a long way.

 

I have quite a few Sailor-made inks. Tokiwa-matsu is my favourite, closely followed by Do-you (for its lubrication and magic cleaning properties!). Enjoy your inks.

[RayJ]

^i can't believe that you like these more than cigar. I wrote an entire page with cigar in a very wet pen and it was practically copper colored ink.

 

I have all 8, but I won't be restocking souten and maybe shigure too. Unlikely that I will finish these bottles in the next 5 years.

[migo984]

^i can't believe that you like these more than cigar. I wrote an entire page with cigar in a very wet pen and it was practically copper colored ink.

 

 

 

Cigar comes a fair way down my list of favourite colours

[AndyYNWA]

Mine arrived today; not disappointed!

Ooh! Nice!

[RayJ]

 

Cigar comes a fair way down my list of favourite colours

I'd like to see that list if possible.

[amberleadavis]

^i can't believe that you like these more than cigar. I wrote an entire page with cigar in a very wet pen and it was practically copper colored ink.

 

I have all 8, but I won't be restocking souten and maybe shigure too. Unlikely that I will finish these bottles in the next 5 years.

 

Yeah, I adore Shigure and should buy Souton since I liked Sky High, but Cigar did nothing for me.

[Nibbler]

 

Beautiful - my favourite ink brand by a long way.

 

I have quite a few Sailor-made inks. Tokiwa-matsu is my favourite, closely followed by Do-you (for its lubrication and magic cleaning properties!). Enjoy your inks.

Yes, yes, yes! I totally agree. Do-you is my favourite ink all together I think, but I love Souten. I would love some Tokiwa-Matsu.

[Hospitalier]

Yes, yes, yes! I totally agree. Do-you is my favourite ink all together I think, but I love Souten. I would love some Tokiwa-Matsu.

Just buy it, life is too short.

[Pensei]

It's funny, here we are over a year after the original magnificent review by the OP. I went back and back to those great pictures, and finally decided to get Yama-Dori. A few more visits to the pictures, and I got Shigure. I loved both. It took longer, because I thought it might be too bright, but I finally decided to get Souten. Well, that's when things, OK, I mean I, started getting really crazy, because the original review kept talking about how great Tokiwa-Matsu is, so even though I'm not much into green ink, I decided I should get that, and maybe also Nioi-Sumire. Then I came across the suggestion to get the whole set from Rakuten. I bet I'm not the only person who has been doing the arithmetic of how much better a deal that is than getting them one at a time. In my case, it works out to be less to get the whole set rather than just what I need to complete my partial set, but I'm fussing at myself for not doing it that way to begin with. Well, I'm taking the plunge with my first interaction with the international ink trade. I'll report back if anything interesting happens.

 

One side note is that in a couple of weeks, I'll have unused bottles of Yama-Dori, Shigure, and Souten to sell at a good price, as I don't feel a need to double up. They are unused because I was using samples to start. (This is a bemused comment, not an advertisement, but I'm new here, so if it's considered improper, please tell me and I'll delete the paragraph.)

[Hospitalier]

Pensei; the inks you chose first are those most likely to be depleted fastest - so maybe keep them or give them as gifts to others?

[Pensei]

Hospitalier, that's a good idea. Unfortunately, I'm fairly isolated in the hobby, if that's what we call it. It was a little different back when I was a student, but now I actually don't know even one person who would react with anything other than puzzlement to a gift of Sailor ink.

[lgsoltek]

It's funny, here we are over a year after the original magnificent review by the OP. I went back and back to those great pictures, and finally decided to get Yama-Dori. A few more visits to the pictures, and I got Shigure. I loved both. It took longer, because I thought it might be too bright, but I finally decided to get Souten. Well, that's when things, OK, I mean I, started getting really crazy, because the original review kept talking about how great Tokiwa-Matsu is, so even though I'm not much into green ink, I decided I should get that, and maybe also Nioi-Sumire. Then I came across the suggestion to get the whole set from Rakuten. I bet I'm not the only person who has been doing the arithmetic of how much better a deal that is than getting them one at a time. In my case, it works out to be less to get the whole set rather than just what I need to complete my partial set, but I'm fussing at myself for not doing it that way to begin with. Well, I'm taking the plunge with my first interaction with the international ink trade. I'll report back if anything interesting happens.

 

One side note is that in a couple of weeks, I'll have unused bottles of Yama-Dori, Shigure, and Souten to sell at a good price, as I don't feel a need to double up. They are unused because I was using samples to start. (This is a bemused comment, not an advertisement, but I'm new here, so if it's considered improper, please tell me and I'll delete the paragraph.)

 

I came the same way! At first I bought only Doyou. Then I bought Souten, Oku-yama. Then I bought two more. Then at last I thought, oh whatever, I'm getting the whole line. So that's why this comparison exists.

[Hospitalier]

Hospitalier, that's a good idea. Unfortunately, I'm fairly isolated in the hobby, if that's what we call it. It was a little different back when I was a student, but now I actually don't know even one person who would react with anything other than puzzlement to a gift of Sailor ink.

 

FPN has been a saviour of sorts for me, with the veritable fount of knowledge and information available and with my own keen sense for research, I have been able to avoid a lot of 'unnecessary' purchases. If the cost is truly less, including delivery and potential customs charges, to buy the whole set rather than the other bottles needed 'to complete the set', then the decision is easy. But, despite my having bought all the inks together domestically in the UK (because the potential saving buying from Japan was simply too little in comparison), you should think carefully as to enjoying what you have and building your collection slowly, because how many inks can you use at any one time? And as good as these inks are, there are very many different and equal inks out there!

 

Nice swatches!

 

I dipped a cocktail stick in the ink and stroked it across the paper

Edited December 31, 2015 by Hospitalier

[Chrissy]

Someone sent me a sample of Sky High, and I bought a bottle of Souten. Interestingly, when I did simple chroma tests on them they both showed the same single blue dye components, but the Souten was a bit more saturated.

[Pensei]

Hospitalier, I agree with your second post also, and I may follow that advice. I have had a bit of a spree with Sailor inks, and now it may be time to move on a bit. As you say, there are so many inks out there. Here's a little example if it's OK to divert just a bit from the specific topic (surely a little latitude is OK a year and 175 posts later!). I've been doing my end of the month/year bill paying today (don't rush into anything!), and just by happenstance, to keep a summary of the transactions, I reached for a Lamy XF pen filled with Diamine Grey, of which I had secured a sample upon FPN recommendations. I had used it before and found it to be OK, but I had pulled an orphan piece of nice cream paper from a drawer, and Boom, a match made in ink heaven. No ink at any price could look better for business writing that this does on this paper.

[Pensei]

Do-you must have some charms other than what shows up over the monitor. Anyone care to explicate?

[lgsoltek]

Do-you must have some charms other than what shows up over the monitor. Anyone care to explicate?

 

 

It's super smooth, very wet, easy to clean. What's more, it can clean your pens stained by other inks!

Top: a stained Vista.

Bottom: after a rotation of Doyou.

 

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Edited January 23, 2016 by Lgsoltek

[margheriti]

Amazing comparison/review and your photos are just stunning. I need a bottle of Yama Dori now, but it's quite close to Emerald of Chivor, minus the sheen and gold speck, and I've already got the Chivor.

[AndyYNWA]

Amazing comparison/review and your photos are just stunning. I need a bottle of Yama Dori now, but it's quite close to Emerald of Chivor, minus the sheen and gold speck, and I've already got the Chivor.

It will sheen for you. Don't you worry...

But no gold speck.

[Pensei]

Thanks for the comment and pix, Lgsoltek.