Yama - Budo - Pilot Iroshizuku

[visvamitra]

In December 2007 Pilot's created exclusive line of inks called Iroshizuku. I believe they may well be the most well known fountain pen inks in pen world. These inks are supposed to work in any pen with any nib on any paper and in any situation. I haven't tried all of them but so far the Iroshizuku inks I've tried were behaving flawlessly.

The colors were created by Kiyomi Hasegawa who after fifteen years of working in a stationary shop and communicating with Clients come to conclusion that not all fountain pen users are willing to write in black and blue. Wise woman.

The bottles are stunning although they have their issues: if the ink is left unused for some time the cap tends to stick and break when you try to twist it open. It happened to my bottle of Shin-Ryoku.

Anyway Iroshizuku line of inks counts 24 "standard" colors. Three inks were made some time ago for Tokyo stores: Edo-Murasaki, Fukagawa-Nezu and Shimbashi-Iro.After seeing the scans over blogosphere I wish these three were accesible, because they look interesting. Edo - Murasaki looks cool while Murasaki - Shikibu is of no interest to me. Even though I kind of like Fuyu-Syogun I find Fukagawa-Nezu more compelling.

Nothing indicates Pilot plans on extending the official line any time soon (if ever) so let's take a look at what's possible to obtain from dealers and online shops.

http://imageshack.com/a/img538/1595/lYAayJ.jpg

1. Ajisai
2. Ama-Iro
3. Asa-Gao
4. Chiku-Rin
5. Fuyu-Gaki
6. Fuyu-Syogun
7. Ina-Ho
8. Kiri-Same
9. Kon-Peki
10. Kosumosu
11. Ku-Jaku
12. Momiji
13. Murasaki-Shikibu
14. Shin-Kai
15. Shin-Ryoku
16. Syo-Ro
17. Take-Sumi
18. Tsuki-Yo
19. Tsukushi
20. Tsutsuji
21. Tsuyu-Kusa
22. Yama-Budo
23. Yama-Guri
24. Yu-Yake

Bottle

http://imageshack.com/a/img855/2577/9i83.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img855/5192/n2r6.jpg

Yama - budo is named after wild grapes. I enjoy this color a lot. The problem is it fades quite significantly with time. After a month you won't see saturated stunner but rather pleasant and muted color.

http://imageshack.com/a/img540/3328/saqdXg.jpg

Drops of ink on kitchen towel

http://imageshack.com/a/img633/5390/SYGGFM.jpg

Software ID

http://imageshack.com/a/img908/3164/m6pbeW.jpg

Waterproofness

http://imageshack.com/a/img661/7906/dVHw0f.jpg

Oxford Recycled ( 90g), Kaweco Sport Classic, B

http://imageshack.com/a/img540/9910/esF3u8.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img901/7917/P6pI9c.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img913/9336/3RYmSj.jpg

TWSBI 580, 1,1

http://imageshack.com/a/img540/7941/HkrbKd.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img538/2681/7enRkn.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img661/55/PleChg.jpg

Comparison

http://imageshack.com/a/img540/2277/If8Wlp.jpg

Edited May 16, 2015 by visvamitra

[dragos.mocanu]

Very nice review, thank you. I do not own Iroshizuku Yama-Budo (it's way too expensive for me), but I've tried to mix 2 R&K inks in 1:1 proportion, Morinda and Cassia, and the mix looks very like this ink (I've called it Plum - call me uninspired - , and it doesn't fade). I know that you did a review of the full R&K line at some point, is there any way you could tell me how Yama Budo compares to my mix? Thanks!

[visvamitra]

Well at the moment I don't have nor Cassia nor Morinda, so I won't be able to tell Soon I'll need to buy Morinda as it's one of my favourite reds but Cassia? I'm not its biggest fan

[dragos.mocanu]

I'm actually not a fan of either, but mix them and it's magical . Unfortunately, I don't own a decent camera, but I'll try to post a writing sample with R&K Plum if I find one.

[T4TEXAS]

I like this much more than the others, because it is mucb darker. Not for work or personal correspondance, but maybe for editing and marking.

[Uncial]

I'm actually not a fan of either, but mix them and it's magical . Unfortunately, I don't own a decent camera, but I'll try to post a writing sample with R&K Plum if I find one.

Please do; I would be very interesting in seeing it.

[lgsoltek]

You are almost done with the Iroshizukus, viz!

[lgsoltek]

I'm actually not a fan of either, but mix them and it's magical . Unfortunately, I don't own a decent camera, but I'll try to post a writing sample with R&K Plum if I find one.

I have all three. I could do a swab.

[jasonchickerson]

I love this one. It is a very, very, sheeny ink. The sheeniest ink I own by far.

[delano]

This is my absolute favorite Iroshizuku ink. Thanks for this review.

[lgsoltek]

I love that sheen but i'm not crazy for the colour.

[lgsoltek]

Very nice review, thank you. I do not own Iroshizuku Yama-Budo (it's way too expensive for me), but I've tried to mix 2 R&K inks in 1:1 proportion, Morinda and Cassia, and the mix looks very like this ink (I've called it Plum - call me uninspired - , and it doesn't fade). I know that you did a review of the full R&K line at some point, is there any way you could tell me how Yama Budo compares to my mix? Thanks!

 

So here it is, my little experiment with Cassia and Morinda. The 1:1 mix is quite different from Yama-budo. Then I tried 1:2 (C:M) and it's closer:

 

 

Maybe popping in a little Solferino will make it more like Yama-budo.

Edited May 17, 2015 by Lgsoltek

[visvamitra]

That's cool Murky :)

[Tessy Moon]

A lovely review as always Visvamitra! You always do such wonderful reviews!!

 

I also enjoyed seeing your custom mix Lgsoltek! And your ideas for the ink-mixing Murky!

 

Thank you all for sharing!

[dragos.mocanu]

 

So here it is, my little experiment with Cassia and Morinda. The 1:1 mix is quite different from Yama-budo. Then I tried 1:2 (C:M) and it's closer:

 

 

Maybe popping in a little Solferino will make it more like Yama-budo.

 

Wow, thank's a lot for the swabs, I will try adding an extra portion of Morinda and see how I like the results

[dragos.mocanu]

Oh, and by the way, regarding the very cool mixes you can achieve with R&K inks, if you mix Blu Mare and Magenta in various proportions (you really have to experiment with it, something like BM:M 2:1 or 3:1), you will get something quite similar (at least to my eyes) to Iroshizuku Kon Peki (which I know is a favorite around here).

 

Lgsoltek, do you happen to also own these 3 inks?

[inkstainedruth]

Thanks for the review.

Yama-budo is one of my favorite inks, and the first Iroshihzuku ink that I was willing to spend the bucks to get a full bottle of....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[amberleadavis]

You've had it fade in closed notebooks? That's not good.

[thudthwacker]

Finally got to try my bottle of this, and it's a really wonderful ink. It's actually very much like my current favorite ink, Sailor Oku-yama. Yama-budo is shifted more towards purple and is a bit wetter (it seems to me), but the coppery-gold sheen and general character of the inks is similar, to my eye (and hand). I confess that I think I prefer Oku-yama; the Yama-budo takes noticably longer to dry, and I see it feathering and bleeding very slightly on paper that Oku-yama has no issues with. That said, though, Yama-budo is a fantastic ink, and I'm really happy to be using it.

[chingdamosaic]

Thanks for the wonderful review!

I didn't know that Yama-budo fades, though, it would be nice if someone can show a comparison?