Best Ink For New College Student

[Ambrose Bierce]

I am going to be a freshman in college next year (WOOOOO!!), and I am curious what ink I should be looking to get to turn in my test with. It needs to behave well with cheap paper, be waterproof, and business friendly. I would like to avoid just using black, because that can get a little boring. The pen I am going to be using is a Pilot Metropolitan in a Medium Nib.

[Notgatherox]

Pilot Blue Black.

 

Else, consider the various Noodler's inks out there like Liberty Elysium and 54th Massachusetts.

 

Generally, if not black, blue or blue black will be business friendly.

 

 

 

~Epic

[jmccarty3]

I second the recommendation of Pilot Blue-Black.

[WayTooManyHobbies]

Just for variety, I'd suggest Rohrer & Klingner Salix. It's a nice blue iron gall, behaves extremely well on cheap paper, is waterproof, and easy to clean out of a pen.

 

EDIT: Also, it's on sale at Goulet (no affiliation), 50ml bottle for $8.95.

 

Good luck with your studies.

Edited July 6, 2015 by WayTooManyHobbies

[akustyk]

Yes, Salix is great. The advantage for you will be that your Pilot Metropolitan with Salix will give you a fine line, and will work on any paper. You'll be able to use it in your own notebooks, but also on hand-outs, exams, and other random paper, even those old-fashioned blue exam books.

 

Salix is an ink that is based on an iron-gall formula. There are other similar inks but Salix is widely available in the US, at least online.

 

Personally, I'd stay away from Noodler's inks because they tend to require some maintenance and can be temperamental.

[Ambrose Bierce]

Salix may be the way I go because I do own Scabiosa and I love it. If I am correct Salix is the blue-black sister ink to this. And the price can't be beaten right now on Goulet. Would love to see if there is any more suggestions though!

[ancalagon]

If I am correct Salix is the blue-black sister ink to this.

You are correct.

[blINK]

Salix may be the way I go because I do own Scabiosa and I love it. If I am correct Salix is the blue-black sister ink to this. And the price can't be beaten right now on Goulet. Would love to see if there is any more suggestions though!

Salix is more of a blue in my experience, even though it looks blue-black in the swabs. Mine always seems to be just blue.

 

A lot of people, myself included, mix Salix and Scabiosa for a nice purple-blue ink. This could be an option for you as well since you already have the Scabiosa.

Edited July 6, 2015 by blINK

[ac12]

I would suggest a Metro with a Fine nib. The reason is, you can pack more words on a line with a F nib than a M nib, and if you have to deal with math equations, the finner nib will let you write and read those superscripts and subscripts easier. I used a pair of Parker 45s with F nibs in college.

 

Alternatively get a Metro with a F nib, then use the pen with the nib size appropriate for the class you are in.

 

I used Parker washable black, way back then.

Today, you have a HUGE range of inks to choose from. Some people want waterproof ink, others don't care. I did not care. I did not drink around my notes, and my note were transferred into a binder once I got home. So waterproof ink is a personal choice.

[ac12]

I would suggest a Metro with a Fine nib. The reason is, you can pack more words on a line with a F nib than a M nib, and if you have to deal with math equations, the finner nib will let you write and read those superscripts and subscripts easier. I used a pair of Parker 45s with F nibs in college.

 

Alternatively get a Metro with a F nib, then use the pen with the nib size appropriate for the class you are in.

 

I used Parker washable black, way back then.

Today, you have a HUGE range of inks to choose from. Some people want waterproof ink, others don't care. I did not care. I did not drink around my notes, and my note were transferred into a binder once I got home. So waterproof ink is a personal choice.

As for ink color, black may be boring, but it works. I used black all through college.

 

As for paper. YOU need to find and get fountain pen friendly paper to use. There is paper that is absolute JUNK when it comes to writing on it with a FP, and IMHO, it is not worth the time and effort to deal with those JUNK papers.

[cybaea]

With a medium nib, iron gall is the way to go. The cellulose reactive inks will likely bleed through all but the best papers.

Also consider Diamine Registrar's ink if you can find it. A little more light fast than the Salix and works well on almost all papers.

[amberleadavis]

Pilot blue.

[agentdaffy007]

Heard good things about Pilot Blue, it is waterproof and cheap to buy.

[Arkanabar]

I have had fairly good luck with Heart of Darkness out of a fine nib (e.g., Hero 616), even with the low-grade paper I use out of stinginess and availability. I'm unsure of when or whether I've used it in other pens. It tends to feather less if you dilute it a bit (I've done so as much as 2:1 with water), but it also becomes desaturated, much like Waterman black, or my old MontBlanc-Simplo Black from the Age of Phenol (and plastic MB bottles like these).

[benay148]

Anything iron gall. As a current college student I have found that most paper that's given out is garbage. The only thing I can find that doesn't bleed and feather like crazy are iron galls. Although I always have some fountain pen friendly paper available for notes, sometimes it just isn't practical to not use handouts or provided material. Hope this helps

[Abner C. Kemp]

Pilot Blue-Black.

[SeeksAdvice]

R&K Salix fades on paper left in a file folder that was then placed in a filing cabinet for about 6 months. Even Parker Quink Black (which I consider to have terrible fade resistance in light) had better resistance under the office fluorescents lasting longer under them than the Salix did in the cabinet. Also faded badly on tags that were placed in an dark evidence vault for several months. I cannot under any circumstances recommend Salix.

If you want a well behaved blue/black, I'd recommend Sailor Sei-Boku. It's not cheap, but it also won't fade into some faint grey in a matter of months.

[cybaea]

R&K Salix fades on paper left in a file folder that was then placed in a filing cabinet for about 6 months. Even Parker Quink Black (which I consider to have terrible fade resistance in light) had better resistance under the office fluorescents lasting longer under them than the Salix did in the cabinet. Also faded badly on tags that were placed in an dark evidence vault for several months. I cannot under any circumstances recommend Salix.

 

I am looking back at my ink notes for Salix which were done 17 months ago (2014-02-16) and I am not seeing any of the fading you are experiencing. It looks perfectly fine. Of course the ink goes down bright blue and dries to a dusty grey-blue, but it hasn't changed much, if at all, since that.

[alarickc]

If you're willing to spend a bit on the ink, Sailor Sei-Boku Blue-Black nano pigment ink is amazing on the horrible paper your profs will make you work with. I've never met a cruddy exam paper yet it didn't handle perfectly. It's also completely fade-proof and highly water-resistant. The paper will break down before the ink does. A lovely proffesional looking blue-black as well. $25-30 depending on where you get it.

[Buzz_130]

If you are willing to take on the high-maintenance inks, then definitely consider the nano-pigment inks from Sailor and Platinum. Both give you a nice blue and a nice black. These inks are waterproof, fade proof, dry quickly, and work on just about any kind of paper. They work very well from Japanese finer nibs.

 

You may also consider the KWZ Inks now for sale in the US. The ones currently available are the iron gall inks, and I use two different blues frequently. My IG Blue #2 and IG Blue #3 lay down a nice blue line, and by the time I'm two or three lines down, I have to look back up to see the dark blue they have oxidized into. Great on all paper, but they are also high maintenance inks.

 

Buzz