Need Help On Picking Out Ink!

[kma419]

Hi all,

 

I just purchased my first decent fountain pen, it's the TWSBI 580AL silver with an extra fine nib. It's a demonstrator pen, and I'm looking to find an ink to go with it, and I was thinking about getting either the diamine asa blue, diamine blue velvet, diamine Mediterranean blue, pilot iroshizuki Kon-Peki, or noodlers blue. As you can see, I'm going for a blue ink, and I already have the aurora black.

 

 

I'm just wondering what everyone thinks of these colors and which you like best. The TWSBI is a demonstrator, and I really want to have an elegant blue in the barrel, but I'm not sure which one would work best.

 

I'm also worried that the pen will stain too quickly, and I know it's inevitable, but I want to keep it clean as long as I can. Which ink, if any of the ones listed, would stain the least?

 

Thanks everyone!

[blINK]

I love Kon-Peki - it is one of my favorites. It's a great color and relatively low maintenance and it cleans out easily. I have it in my 580 most of the time and have not noticed any staining. Every 4 fills or so, I flush it with Goulet's pen flush. The nice thing about the 580 is that you can take it apart. This helps in the cleaning, but I don't do it too often because my thought is the less disassembly, the better. I also have Diamine and Noodler's inks. You shouldn't have too much of an issue with staining. Truthfully, unless you are going to display the pen, it will have ink in it most of the time, so were you to encounter any staining, would you really even notice?

 

Not sure where you are located but Goulet has ink samples. You may want to try some of the inks you are interested in to see what you like the best since it is largely a personal preference.

[Bo Bo Olson]

We are living in the Golden Age of inks....the Golden age of fountain pens and papers was 50-100 years ago.

 

IMO, with an EF you are condemned to using monotone boring vivid high maintenance supersaturated inks to see the line.

You can save in that way....not really, ink as long as it's in a bottle is cheap. It's the cartridges that are expensive enough to must use a EF.

You can with such an ink get away with using cheap 80g copy paper. Even so stay away from Ink Jet paper, which will feather even with an EF.

 

Let some here recommend which Noodler ink works best in EF....vivid monotone. Not shading. There are shading Noodler inks also. But being in Germany can't tell you out side of Apache Sunset and Golden Brown which are.

Golden Brown is a great shading ink.... but it takes forever to dry.

For monotone ink you will want a quick drying ink. Once you get a list from here you can look them up to see if they dry in 5 seconds which is good or 15 which is sort of slow....depending on the paper of course.

 

As you can tell, I'm not into boring ink. No matter how bright it is. If you are a left hander ignore the following, unless you are an underwriter.

 

Some day you will buy a F and with any luck one of the great M nibs...that many despair unfairly. As a 'noobie' I listened to many snobbish folks here giving advice that went from the 'learned here' to dislike M, to skinny or fat nibs. I had gone fat.

 

To my vast surprise using a nice brown shading ink MB Toffee, M was better than F or B. It opened my eyes to the much maligned M nib as it's own size and characteristics not just something between F and B.

You will need a B too.B adds pizzazz to your writing with out doing anything.

 

Once you have an F or above, you can worry about which two toned shading ink you will use on your 90g laser paper. 80g out side of the coated Rhoda, don't shade. The paper must be heavy enough that the ink sits on top of the paper for a second or three giving the ink a chance to dry in two depths making it two toned. Shading.

 

In either case I don't like Diamien/Akkerman in many feather. I'm a bit OCD/AR on that; even got a Honking Big magnifying glass to hunt for the perfect ink on perfect paper delivered by a clean line nib....hard to find.

Do remember to write it down...when you find them. ...Don't worry too much about that now.

I do like De Atramentis Royal Blue more than Waterman blue, but Waterman Blue is ok and cheaper. Waterman changed the names of their inks and I don't remember the new names.

What use to be Waterman South Sea Blue is a nice shading turquoise ink on 90g laser paper. .

 

Dry inks are Pelikan 4001...wet inks Waterman....and in modern days many of the users of Noodler inks think Waterman as a dry ink.

That shows you how wet some of them can be.

 

You need a dry ink (Pelikan 4001) for a narrower line....a wet ink (Waterman/Noodlers) for a dryer nib.

 

You should go to Richard Binder's site. It is the bible of fountain pens, nibs, filling systems and solid advice on ink. Should you be adventuresome, you will go further than the Waterman he recommends as a safe wet ink.

 

High maintenance means you have to clean your pens more often than low maintenance which if you were only going to use just one ink....(which 98% of us do not) you only have to clean your pen every three months (Yep...got direction packets from MB& Pelikan from the '50s' that tell me that.)....instead of weekly or bi-monthly.

 

In most of us have our 5-20-50 or more inks we clean our pens every time we change inks. But if you are going to just use one ink; high maintenance inks mean you got to clean you pen every two weeks. IMO there is no reason to go OCD and do it daily or weekly. Every two weeks is good enough.

 

We have an Ink Review section. Note which inks are recommended here by other posters, and go there and look it up.

You should buy the basic EF, F, M, and B.....and EF and B can be nail nibs.....I do recommend you buy semi-vintage or vintage 'true' regular flex nibs for F & M. They have some spring to them and are very nice to write with. (I call them 'true' regular flex in most modern pens are issued with semi-nails which are harder to bend, instead of the friendlier regular flex....and many don't know their non nail nib, is only semi-nail instead of the better 'true' regular flex.

 

EF should be a nail, in one don't want the line getting any wider if one is Ham Fisted....as most of us are when we start out.

B will glide well being so wide, so one don't really miss the spring in a B nail.

 

After you have a F, and later M and B, you can get shading inks and have some fun. I don't think of monotone vivid supersaturated inks as fun.

 

When you get to Ink Reviews, do look up any Sandy1 :notworthy1: reviews you can find in the inks you wish....do also look up her work with shading inks.

You will find, not only does the width of a nib make a huge difference in what shade it shows but the paper also. It is just as astounding how a paper will change a tone of an ink. One sees the same 5 nibs on 5 papers and would never ever believe that they are all the same ink.

 

Writing is 1/3 nib width&flex, 1/3 paper and 1/3 ink and in that order.

 

You can worry about paper after you have an F or M nib, and want a shading ink. 90g paper only costs a can of Coke or a cup of Starbuck's coffee more than standard 80 g laser paper. 90g is the start to good paper. later there is 100g, 110 & 120g to have fun with. Good to better paper than 90g only costs two cans of coke or two cups of Starbucks coffee.

 

I recommend for every two inks you buy you buy some good to better paper...once you have an F nib.

 

Many come over from gel pens and want a vivid wet line, thinking shading inks as wishy-washy or pastel .

 

Often, when they get the right basic nibs in wider then super skinny, on good paper they learn to like shading. And the step after shading is the inks with sheen.

 

They are still beyond me...outside of one ink. I only have 50 inks ....and am still missing 50 to have the essential 100 mainland Euro inks, before chasing English, Japanese and American inks. .... Shading of course....or some with sheen too.

 

Helps to know where you are from, so we can point you at US Noodlers, Euro inks or Japanese to start.

Edited January 23, 2016 by Bo Bo Olson

[shawndp]

kma - congratulations on your purchase! Picking an ink is as much fun as picking a pen as the same pen with different inks will write like two different beasts. The big question is whatwill you be writing on? I have had to seriously rethink my ink choices based on the paper at hand.

 

I am a big fan of the Kon Peki - it was one of my first Iroshzuku inks and have seen it out of many EF / F nibs looking quite good when my gf uses it. It is reasonable forgiving on most papers and dry time is decent.

 

If you want to go the Noodler's route - perhaps consider Bernanke Blue - fast drying and very versatile for most written situations - I have used it in a 580 with a F nib back when I was still in love with TWSBI.

 

My final suggestion - R&K's Salix - I love this colour, I love the way it flows out of a F nib, it dries fast enough and is neither boring nor loopy... If you can order from Europe you save big $$. The catch - I believe it is an IG ink, so do not let it dry up in your pen.

 

All the best on your inky adventures!

[sandy101]

I love Diamine's Velvet blue - it is one of my favourite inks. The Mediterranean Blue is a nice blue sea colour which I also use, but the Velvet blue is classier.

 

It washes out easily, so I don't think it will give you any trouble. My Parker Sonnet has been inked with it for the last six months and it hasn't given me any trouble.

[Buzz_130]

Bo Bo gave you some outstanding advice and you should certainly head over to Richard Binder's web page and look through his references and discussions on ink.

 

The bottom line is Diamine inks are generally regarded as excellent inks for the wide range of color and easy maintenance. Blues are also known to be easier to clean than reds, so you are in a good position with your demonstrator.

 

I love my Iroshizuku inks and always have at least one pen inked with Asa Gao. I use this ink in my Nakaya down to my cheapest vintage with excellent results. However, there are a few words of warning for alkaline inks like Iroshizuku and some sacs. I have not experienced any problems in this regard, a don this discussion should not matter for your pen.

 

If you want to branch out into some other inks, I find the manufacturers ink to be outstanding and never stain, Waterman is (arguably) the gold standard for easy maintenance, and the Serenity Blue is a good, professional ink. Pelikan, Sheaffer, Mont Blanc and others simply work.

 

Enjoy your demonstrator!

Buzz

[kma419]

Thank you everyone for your input! From what I understand, the extra fine nib will make it hard to use vibrant colors unless it's a super high saturated ink.

 

Does this really mean there will be more maintenance? I'd prefer to have as little maintenance as possible, and I may therefore move to the fine nib instead. I do plan on only using one color of ink for this, but I may switch to the black aurora I already have every now and then.

 

However, I've been looking at many pictures and I could not tell a difference between the extra fine and the fine nibs on the line they make. Does anyone have experience with both? In the pictures I've seen, the extra fine looks almost like something between a normal fine and medium nib, as it didn't look very thin at all.

 

For reference, I have a lamy safari with a fine nib, I do like the line it makes and would not want anything thicker and would prefer something thinner if possible. However, if that means I'll need high maintenance, I'd rather stick with the same size as the lamy. As far as I can tell, I think the lamy works fine on my spiral notebooks.

 

So to my understanding, if I use a broader nib, I can use more watered down inks which will require less maintenance? I will be using normal notebooks for school, and that will probably be the main paper I will be using. Just the classic spiral bound notebooks that are like 50 cents.

 

So far I really like the diamine inks, and the kon peki blue as well, are these all considered low maintenance and would the color still come out well in the extra fine, or would it come out better with a fine?

 

Thanks again for all your help!

 

Kevin

Edited January 23, 2016 by kma419

[fehefarx]

I absolutely love Majestic Blue. It's saturated enough to look good in an EF nib as well - I've used it in my Pilot Falcon F and it was still beautiful.

[amberleadavis]

BoBo, we have missed you!

 

KMA419, head over the TWSBI and Inky Thoughts Forums. In Inky Thoughts, be sure to look at the Newbie's Guide to Inks.

 

Personally, I use, abuse and adore my TWSBIs and the only one that has ever been semi permanently stained, was when my ex husband left BSB in a Vac-700 for over 3 months during the Las Vegas Summer. (You now know why we are divorced). BTW, I will show you my progress getting it cleaned.

 

You can use whatever ink you want in your TWSBI and absent you using BSB and letting it dry out in your pen, you will be able to enjoy it and get it clean. As you can see, any blue, looks great in a demonstrator:

 

http://sheismylawyer.com/She_Thinks_In_Ink/Inked_Today/20140503_230811.jpg

 

Well, actually, any ink looks great in a TWSBI.

 

http://sheismylawyer.com/She_Thinks_In_Ink/Inked_Today/20140513_130345.jpg

As for me, I prefer Retina Searing inks. Nevertheless, stay away from BSB.

 

http://sheismylawyer.com/She_Thinks_In_Ink/Colors/Blue/2014-Ink_127-BSB.jpg

[amberleadavis]

Oh, and you fill find the inks may look more blue when the pen is not entirely full.

 

http://sheismylawyer.com/She_Thinks_In_Ink/Inked_Today/20140705_021529.jpg

[kma419]

Great pictures! Thanks for that!

 

I've narrowed my search down to two inks, the noodlers blue, and noodlers baystate blue. I've read mixed reviews on these inks staining, but I'll honestly probably switch out between one of these blues and my aurora black, which I have heard is quite easy to clean and doesn't really stain (please inform me if this is true).

 

The things I'm looking for are obviously the least staining possible, not a lot of feathering, preferably easily washable should I spill it on myself, dries within 5-10 seconds, has a great vibrant color, and easy to maintain and clean with the least amount of issues.

 

Are noodler's blue, noodler's baystate blue and aurora black fitting of these requirements? Or are there better options for this?

 

I also have lamy blue ink, it seems very dull and I'm not a huge fan of the color, but I've heard it's easy to clean so I use it mainly for note taking and seems to clean out very nicely.

 

Thanks!

Edited January 24, 2016 by kma419

[amberleadavis]

I love BSB, but keep it out of your TWSBI. Noodler's Blue and Aurora Black are wonderful inks. Lamy blue is boring. Buy some ink samples and try lots of stuff.

[kma419]

Oh I just realized BSB was baystate blue haha, so never mind to that. And yes, lamy blue is VERY boring.. I'll search a little more for blues, but so far I'm really liking the color of the noodler's blue. Other recommendations for easy, low maintenance and vibrant blues are welcome!

 

As for black I think I'm set with the aurora

 

Thanks for the tips!

Edited January 24, 2016 by kma419

[Noihvo]

Sailor's Doyou may not be a colour you like, but it is well own to clean out any stain on the inside of pens if you fill it up for a while. If you swish your pen around so the Doyou can touch all the cracks and crevices of the pen, I'm sure that you don't need to make a whole fill, if you don't fancy writing with it. And as to the maintenance of certain ink, I don't hink you should be afraid of any ink that grabs your fancy in that regard. As long as it was manufactured in the last decade, any ink you put in your pen should be easy to clean out as long as you fill your pen once a month or so.

 

A lot of the people here are quite… uhm…particular, about pen hygiene, but you really don't need to clean a pen that often, especially if you always use the same ink in it.

 

I say, don't worry. Give what you are curious about a try, and see where that goes. You will be surprised at where the road takes you.

Edited January 24, 2016 by Noihvo

[Bo Bo Olson]

I can use more watered down inks which will require less maintenance?"""

 

Shading inks are not 'watered down'.... :they do of course require less maintenance. They have been made that way for ages and ages.

Supersaturated inks are the 'noobies'.....not the older inks.

 

As little as ten years ago, Aurora was the blackest ink available...a tad blacker than Pelikan 4001.

Now there are many supersaturated Noodler inks blacker than Aurora.

I don't use black ink...still got most of my second bottle of ink that I bought when I came back to fountain pens some 7 years ago...In Germany of course I bought the old reliable Pelikan 4001. I would buy an Aurora black....in a heartbeat. Just to have it. I'd not waste any money on the higher maintenance 'blacker' Noodler inks.

A Problem with Pelikan 4001* Black with a EF nib on poor paper it can be a dark grey instead of the very good black I know it as.

 

*Pelikan has a second set of inks, Edelstein...softer inks, and there is Onyx that some like more. Some I like, some I don't. It is an expensive ink.

Edelstein is supposed to have some thing in it that cleans the pen too...so is easy maintenance. I like Topaz best.

Very pretty bottle...but hard to get the last drop out. Defiantly a bottle to have proudly on your desk.

Leave no bottle of ink in the sunlight.

 

You will find Pelikan 4001 royal blue as boring as Lamy blue(both are school inks).

How ever for the price 4001 Green is from my test of 15 green, greenish inks on 11 papers...the third best shading green-green and the best for price.... R&K Verdura was best with second best price, MB Irish was second with the highest price. 4001 green is a very good shading ink. I bought a bottle of 4001 green, and bought 10 other green inks in a single year!

 

On 90g laser paper Lamy Turquoise will shade. For the longest time Lamy Turquoise was the turquoise color all turquoise inks were compared too, as Lamy Turquoise was considered the basis.

Got a really great bottle. Lamy Bottles are right up there like MB bottles for grand design.

 

There is a 40 green ink test done by someone..(hopefully someone can link you...or it might be pinned in one of the two ink sections)....and believe it or not...after a few years....murky green will appeal to you. R&K Alt Goldgrun (not quite murky it's own unique shade)....is a shading ink that is a tad strange, and it might take a half a filling to like....and if well liked by those with nibs with some flex to them...from semi-flex up to superflex. 90g laser paper...yep get some....the ink too.

 

I hate talking about inks...I just filled my Ahab, with 'Ahab mod' with Alt Goldgrun.

I hate reading in Inky thoughts....there are two to three new inks Every Month. As I said, we are living in the Golden Age of Inks.

It's the cheap 80g copy paper my wife bought for my copier...and never let your wife buy your beer either. Move the printed stuff I'm editing....and there is a Clairefontaine 90g Velout spiral notebook. ...well it's not quite ...but it's close for normal 'cheap'. ... call that very good quality cheap. Like Red and Black which is filled with Oxford Optic 90g if you are in or going to northern Germany or the UK.

 

1941 with the P-51 Parker came out with an ink for the P-51, that ate other pens...highly saturated and some other bad chemical problems. Or they invented the pen for the ink...don't remember right off the batch....but the hidden huge collector was made for the ink.

 

Parker Penman inks of the '90's was an ink ahead of it's self. There was no internet to tell folks to clean your pen every two weeks....so many pens died....had to be shipped back to the factory. With it's bad name, the ink died.

Very well loved by any one who has any now...still.

 

Today we know to clean a high maintenance ink.....You need both a rubber ear syringe and a needle syringe (fountain versions can be found on line.)...for all inks.

Normally you don't need anything but water to clean your pen...if it has not been sitting in the back of a drawer for a generation.

 

Many of the Noodler inks are supersaturated, (not all) and had they came out in the '90's before one learned, one "must" clean one's fountain pens...it too would have died. No one but a chosen few...knew that one had to clean their fountain pens at all....so eventually old dirty slightly clogged pens ended up in the back of a drawer until Ebay was invented.

 

But what is maintenance? It takes a bit longer to clean out a pen....one has to do it twice a month...instead of once every 3 months....if you were an one ink fella.

Which you are not.

For a demonstrator, you need to use a 1-10 mix of non- sudsing ammonia and water mix to get it squeaky clean.

 

Bay State Blue....I'd use only in your pen. Unless you want a partially 'blue' demonstrator....artfully blue stained bathroom sinks and so on.

 

Shading inks are not "second quality wishy washy inks"

They are the fun of fountain pens....if one has good to better paper, of course. good paper=high octane gas. Get your self some 90g paper...for the fun of scribbling.

Edited January 24, 2016 by Bo Bo Olson

[kma419]

Thanks BoBo! I actually just picked up some 90g paper, just waiting on my pen to arrive.

 

You said most Noodler's inks are supersaturated, so would you recommend I don't get Noodler's blue then? Honestly, I just want a nice looking blue that will require low maintenance. I'm probably way too paranoid about it than I should be, but it's not always a bad thing

 

I want something safe like my auroras black, which everyone seems to agree is a low maintenance, user friendly ink.

 

I'm thinking about the Kon peki, but that's the lightest blue I'd want to get. Any other recommendations on blues that are similar to Noodler's blue, Noodler's Baystate blue or the Kon peki?

 

Thanks!

[Runnin_Ute]

If the blue you are looking for leans more towards the turquoise family, Diamine Steel Blue and KWZI Iron Gall Turquoise are wonderful inks. I don't hesitate to put even the IG Turquoise in my 580. Right now it has Noodler's Apache Sunset in it. I have a couple of vintage Esterbrook pens with EF nibs (9550 and 9450) with the following inks - the J with the 9550 has Private Reserve Sherwood Green, although I think I will change to something else once I finish this fill. I only have a sample of this ink and would like to try it in something wider. The SJ with the 9450 has Diamine Twilight. Again, a sample, and really needs a wider nib to get it to really pop. Of course an EF when these were made back in the day (40's-50's) were probably closer to a Japanese F or EF today or an XXF in a western nib. I like to run "wet" inks through pens with nibs this narrow. But that is personal preference is all. (For a discussion of what a "wet" ink versus a "dry" ink do a search in the Inky Thoughts forum under the Inky TOD (topic of the day)

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/282789-start-here-inky-t-o-d-topics-oday/

[Bo Bo Olson]

De Atramentis Royal Blue...is a saturated blue...I don't know, but suspect it is supersaturated. It is the ink I use as a dark blue. It has a tinge towards purple, being 'royal'.

I just don't use it much in it is not a shading ink. It did knock Waterman blue out of my inks. After getting it, I gave my Waterman blue to my baker's kid.

Waterman blue is still a good ink, and one one should have at least in the beginning.

 

I don't use Noodlers in if I get it over here in Germany it is a very expensive ink, where it is an inexpensive ink in the States.

 

Congress having been bribed by Fed-Ex and UPS, cut loose the US Postal Service from the Government and told them to make up the owed Government pensions themselves (the reason for the big price jumps in cost of postage) and forbid them from bribing congress them selves with campaign contributions like any other company, like UPS and Fed-Ex. That is the reason the US Postal service is so expensive.....and much more expensive when shipping over seas.

I had Richard Binder ship to my motel in the states, in the postage cost over seas was as much as the cost of what I was ordering. Micro-mesh set** and hand cleaner and pen flush.

The German Government also cut loose the Postal Service but still pays the pensions of them that earned it, so it is much cheaper to mail over seas.

 

** One of the reasons I kept using the Brown paper bag instead of micro-mesh. Do be careful with the stuff. Richard sends two junk pens for you to ruin as you learn in the deluxe set.

 

Gullete(sp) has samples of ink and some papers, that in the long run is inexpensive. Three years ago the last time I flew to the States, I had Gullete mail two major shading Noodler inks to my motel. They were there waiting for me. Apache Sunset....a red orange ink, Golden Brown....a brown shading ink that takes a long time to dry.

 

It took me a visit to three Office Supply shops, but I also got number of Southworth papers at one of the Office Supply shops. In my happy hurry, I just grabbed them All.....sigh some were Laser & Ink Jet papers. Which can not be as good as pure Laser papers. There must be a compromise made to use it in an Ink Jet printer.

 

Fugi-Xerox I believe it is makes a great paper. I've got to get some.

One can get great paper from H&P....but one needs to know exactly which one, in they make so many, when one is getting into heavier papers 100g-110-120. Do look that up here, in the paper sections, for the exact number.

 

Paper is a deep subject...but you have the years to learn paper.

100% cotton is not good for shading inks, but can be sinfully good with saturated inks. I find almost the same problem with 50%. 25% is with the right coating good for shading.

Regurgitated paper....ah recycled is printer only, in you nor the maker knows what the hell is in it.

 

You can get a sample of Clairefontaine Triumphe, a super slick paper from Gullet(sp). That is a paper that will show you a 'butter smooth' nib is not always the best thing to have. One needs a touch of tooth, or a good and smooth nib instead. Butter smooth will slide you right off that paper. It's been on my list of papers to get for the longest time.

 

Many who started off wanting all nibs 'butter smooth', later want nibs with a touch of feeling. Of course one should have a few 'butter smooth' nibs, but be open to more experience and don't lock your self into only 'butter smooth'. It is funny to read when someone roughs up their butter smooth nib to get a bit of feeling.

 

I'm pretty set with blue inks right now, from Europe. Noodlers has a number of blue inks, which you can find in the Ink Review sections.

 

Navajo Turquoise interested me a lot, Ottoman Azure (blue) ...(I don't know what it was that made me decide not to get Ottoman ink also...either there was something small wrong and I could beat it with an De Atramentis Euro ink**.( still have not got that ink either. ) The Navajo Turquoise was an ink to get...but I had 4-5 already............** oddly one can say only 50 inks, but one needs to use some of them up...to justify getting more when one is retired. It's one of the reasons I stay away from Inky Thoughts, is the urge to buy more great inks. Every month to two months there is another great ink...or a brand new ink company. Yes, we are living in the golden age of inks.

 

Too bad it's not the Golden Age of Paper....that was 50 and more years ago.

From some 30 years ago, I have 6 sheets left (now) of the 12 left of a cheap pad, that I discovered hidden in my good paper, that was always too good for a printer. In I was a Ball Point Barbarian back then, it was a cheap paper. A perfect paper with all inks and nibs. Of course there was no cover to point me in the right direction....why else does one bow down to Murphy.

I have sampled a $ a page paper that wasn't as good.

 

There are 5-6 Noodler Blue inks out side of BSB. Do look them up in Ink Reviews. If there is a review by Sandy1 pay good attention to that. She is the Mistress of Ink. Our Guru.

 

Now that you know you have to wash your pen more often, Supersaturated inks are not a problem that it could have been to one not made wise. I hope I have made you aware of the fun of Shading Inks. One needs both inks.

 

If you absolutely want to use BSB, get a Blue Esterbrook, a lever fill pen, because it don't matter if a rubber sac get died blue. There are folks that have cheap pens that are Reserved for Only BSB. But you must be careful not to stain your bathroom sink/desk/floor/cloths/hands with it.

For many years I read the BSB horror stories.

 

I am very glad you got some 90g paper....now all you need is a good shading ink.

 

There are threads on that. Once a long time ago I started one, where many shading inks were mentioned. Look up my name, 'shading inks' one must put the '...' because unless you go to google, the com's search is very old and clunky.

After you have that list, do look in the Ink Reviews and for contributions by Sandy1.

I would suggest a western F or a M for shading inks (semi-vintage or vintage 'true' regular flex if you can)....some like a B.

Some inks are great with semi-flex, others are too wet. You have time to read about that. The good thing about our hobby, is there is not tests, so it's fun.

 

And there is a tomorrow, so there is no burning hurry. Take your time and enjoy. The more time you take, the more you will enjoy....and the better buys you will make.

 

Whoops!!!! Forgot to warn you about the staining power of red inks....Sigh, purple inks too....but one needs purple inks, . Not quite so bad as red inks. One don't need red inks unless one is a teacher. Just treat a purple ink like a supersaturated ink and don't leave it in a pen for more than a couple of weeks.

As soon as the purple inked pen is empty, wash it out....could be a bit careful and use 1-10 mix of non- sudsing ammonia as a wash.

Actually that mix is not all that complicated and one can store it.

Part of the eventual high maintenance program. Do the mix, shake, then clean 5-6 times with regular water. Remember to buy that rubber ear syringe....the greatest tool we have.

 

 

This is a very fine shading ink. An Iron Gall ink is to be treated like a supersaturated one in cleaning. No big deal. It is 'wishy-washy'/pastel It should be in your first 10 inks.It is loved by most that have ever tried it.

"""My final suggestion - R&K's Salix - I love this colour, I love the way it flows out of a F nib, it dries fast enough and is neither boring nor loopy... If you can order from Europe you save big $$. The catch - I believe it is an IG ink, so do not let it dry up in your pen.""""

Edited January 25, 2016 by Bo Bo Olson

[Arkanabar]

Noodler's Blue is the blue among my Six Essential Writing Colors. I really like the color. I usually use it in pens dry and fine enough that I don't have to worry much about feathering, which is endemic to the cheap paper I buy. It seems rather fade resistant. As for water resistance, it isn't, particularly. Blue Eel, which I tend to think is the same ink with added lubricant or surfactant, is definitely very fade resistant.

You can use whatever ink, in whatever pen, you like. There are effects you can get, that may or may not matter to you. Are vibrant colors important? They are typically more evident in wider pens, and when you use inks with heavier dye loads. Do you want shading? You'll need harder, more ink-resistant paper, a wetter pen, and less saturated inks. Do you want sheening, for an ink to display a halo or appear to have different colors at different angles? I have to admit, I don't actually understand how that one works. You're going to have to decide for yourself what properties are important to you.

For me, I need legibility above all, and then fade resistance. So I seek inks which have enough contrast, aren't so bright as to make reading more difficult, and don't feather too much. I sample Amber's fade resistance spreadsheet to narrow my field, check out colors in her "share your swabs" threads, read reviews, and I test the finalists for fussiness (by using them in pens) and fade resistance (by hanging a sample in the window).

In spite of that, right now I'm using some 30+ year old MontBlanc Simplo Black ink with SuperCleaner SC21. This is the least saturated black FP ink I've ever used, and I'm using it in my dad's remarkably fine and relatively dry Parker "51". It's dark enough, and fade resistant enough.

Baystate Blue is one ink I'm not going to use. It has two flaws that make it unacceptable to me: first, it forms nasty precipitates when it mixes with other inks, say in a pen I have not cleaned with sufficient vigor and thoroughness, and second, it fades swiftly. And by that, I mean to invisibility, faster than just about any other ink known to man.

Figure out what you like. While there are those who swoon for bright vibrant colors, or shading, or sheening, or line variation, you don't have to. What you like is for you to decide. Once you have, look at the reviews and swab threads, decide what you like, and ask people to help you find it. The enthusiasts will.

[amberleadavis]

Thank you for the shout out Arkanbar!