Pelikan 4001 Dark-Green

[lapis]

1. Foreplay

As we all know, this ink has been around in our minds for at least the last eight weeks since Michael R's introduction to it. However old this news may be – I think I already coughed it out on that aforementioned site – I did do a re-check about fives minutes ago and the thing is that that information about the new Pelikan 4001 ink Dunkelgrün (in English "dark-green" on the box and on the bottle) does in fact exist and can be seen on the German site here (where Pelikan online prices in Euros are also provided) but neither on the UK nor on the US sites. So let's just get into the ink. I'm excited to see how excited you are, because several members have special hopes about the green's darkness, blueness, uniqueness etc etc. Maybe you won't like it anyway and then you can just forget about all of this jazz.

 

2. Very first impressions

Here's a line or two using swabs (for those of you who do like them) and three pens on one piece of allround paper:

That was on an Artoz Home Office Paper, 90 g/m², a premium office paper, fine ribbed, better than HP. This dark green is not quite as dark as I'd thought (thinking of evergreens, Christmas trees, mosses, deep seas etc.). But in one word, I do like the colour. In any case it'll have to end up being a darker green than the age-old 4001 Brillant green (yes, that's how they spell it in English because that's the German and French version). But this new green seems to write about as wet (or dry) as the old green so hang on and we'll soon see. Its saturation is also about the same as those of the other 4001s, namely, as I see it, saturation of a medium strain.

 

3. About the Packaging

The bottles and boxes and caps remain unchanged (since around the spring of 2013), after which time their labellings were changed. I.e. the labellings are no longer dark blue with a bright blue swirl down to the left, but instead, these are more of a light grey with a spasm of ink to the top left which seems to have just hit the glass of water. Box and bottle and capping have IMO a "quality" of mediocre. Edelsteins' are better, while those of MB, the latest CdAs and the 9 recent GvFCs are all very much better.

Otherwise the bottles (here) are exactly the same size and shape as always (30 ml = 1 fl. oz.). In other countries (notably in the UK and US), there appear to be the 60-ml bottles available instead which have the same shape (and AFAIK more exactly 62.5 ml). Here's a shot of a 30-ml bottle, together with my M800.

The front part of the box lid's flap on my box is punched in with the marking "15L", which I bet means that this bottle was manufactured and/or issued in December 2015 ("A" instead of "L" would represent "January"). Again, that's just my guess but chronologically speaking, it would fit the situation because I bought the first bottle in my store, which had just got its first delivery. In case you ask yourself what that is for, it means that if you or anybody else ever wonders how old this bottle is in, say, December 2025, you can then work out that it will be 10 years old (har, har).

4. Physical properties

■ Flow: middle, like other 4001s, practically the same as Brillant green, more than the 4001 blue-black, less than a few of the Edelsteins.

■ Lubrication: also good.

■ Saturation: middle, like other 4001s, practically the same as Brillant green.

■ Paper towel: I wouldn't call this a chromatography, but it helps to show that the dye constituents here do end up with a very homogeneous blot. I'm not at all sure here but maybe a distinct pluralism of colours in the margins of such a blot might enhance the ink's shading potential....

■ Shading: some, but nothing outstanding, practically the same as Brillant green.

■ Bleeding: practically none, practically the same as Brillant green. Of course, low-grade papers – in this sense – like Moleskine and HP copy paper can't promise anything new here (see below).

■ Feathering: none seen, practically the same as Brillant green. As just said, this too depends as always on the paper but the "best" of these (like Graf it and Clairfontaine; see below) apparently do fulfill the promise that Pelikan offers sharp and strong lines when writing with their inks....

■ Drying time: 5-7 s, with my Pelikano M nib on this paper, just like Brillant green.

■ Waterproofness: Not at all as good as Pelikan's 4001 Blue-Black which is now understood to contain at least some iron-gall. This dark-green is basically non-waterpoof just like most of the other 4001s. Here is a small note written on a piece of Clairefontaine Velouté (to the left). Later (to the right), I sprinkled a few drops of water onto the left half of this scan and completely soaked the right half in water for exactly 60 seconds.

That didn't completely wash everything out, but it also didn't leave everything completely readable, either.

 

5. Different papers

Actually, there is no unusual difference to be seen on any of these papers apart from the feathering. Some papers show that, some don't, meaning IMO that if a good paper doesn't show any feathering, then the ink can be described as "more than okay". Bleeding is exactly the same.

First off, here are 6 different types of paper, all written on using an Herbin glass dip pen:

 

And here, the reverse sides (of the same sextet in the original left-to-right order):

All in all, I would rate this ink as at least average as it can feather and bleed, but only on papers responsible for this. Whew!

I don't see any real sheen here either but that may be do to the fact that none of these are glossier than the Clairefontaine Velouté 90. A BB-nib or a 1.5-mm nib of mine didn't show any sheen, either.

 

6. Ink Comparisons

The order of significance here is -- to start off with -- irrelevant but Pelikan's 4001 Brillant green and a couple of the Edelstein gems immediately came to mind. Sure, some of the others here are way too light and/or way too brown, but I just couldn't resist. In any case I did reject a lot of greens simply because they were much too light or much too dark or much too brown or yellow... or... they didn't offer enough a hint of blue without going overboard completely to be a real turquoise instead. Croak!

 

7. Availability

Being a "Pelikan" ink, it should be available all over the world. Easily. Noting that it is not an iron-gall ink – and/or does not contain any other infiltrative idiosyncrasies as judged by governmental discrimination -- I see no stress that some countries won't allow its import.

As shown in that German link above, Pelikan's online list price here (in Germany) for a 1-oz. bottle (30 ml) is 4.30 Euros (which contains our 19% sales tax). In my store, where I bought it but, no, don't work, it came out at 3.46. Now let's say you don't live here but in the US: There (and of course, from anywhere else in the world), you should be able to buy it – as a 2-oz. bottle -- e.g. from The Goulet Pen Company for $12.00. As a comparison, the Edelstein inks (50 ml) can be had here in Germany for 14.90 Euros (list price) or 12.52 (my store), or from Goulet for $27.00. It is not only a question of country and shipping, I also swear by the price per ml. (Yes, samples can be had, too!) Working that out, wherever you live, this ink (in the Pelikan's 4001 series) is very decently priced, coming in at an almost all-time low (again, at least here in Germany). But I bet you that e.g. Hieronymus is and will remain an absolute impossibility as availability anywhere in the whole universe, even in Switzerland! Here's a very short list (for February 2016) which you yourself should always have up-to-date at hand. (These are German list prices in Euros including our sales tax of 19%.)

----------------------------------------------------

Ink List Price Bottle Price/ml

----------------------------------------------------

Hieronymus 48.20 50 ml 0.96

Vuitton 36.00 50 ml 0.72

Caran d'Ache (new) 29.50 50 ml 0.59

Iroshizuku 24.90 50 ml 0.50

Caran d'Ache (old) 13.95 30 ml 0.47

Montegrappa 14.00 42 ml 0.33

Graf von F-C (new) 25.00 75 ml 0.33

Pelikan Edelstein 14.90 50 ml 0.30

Herbin 8.65 30 ml 0.29

Akkerman (60 ml) 15.00 60 ml 0.25

Montblanc (regulars) 14.50 60 ml 0.24

Lamy T52 8.50 50 ml 0.17

Waterman 7.90 50 ml 0.16

Pelikan 4001 4.30 30 ml 0.14

Rohrer & Klingner 6.50 50 ml 0.13

Parker Quink 6.00 57 ml 0.11

Akkerman (150 ml) 16.50 150 ml 0.11

----------------------------------------------------

 

8. To sum it up, I see it like this:

■ It is (of course, as expected) a darker green than the 4001 Brillant green, but nonetheless not quite as dark as I had hoped and reckoned. IMO it could have been even darker because at the moment, all of the other three Pelikan greens are much lighter. It does have IMO a nice bluish tinge as was predicted. I myself do like it a bit but am not overwhelmed. For some of you, it may be too blue or maybe even not black enough and so on. For another look (and/or reassurance that my scanner and monitor are okay), check out Migo's contribution made just 5 hours ago. Thanks, Migo!

■ It's a similar colour to that of MB's White Forest (long gone), Diamine's Tropical Green (brand new) and a handful of others especially where there is at least that hint of blue but no brown or yellow.

■ Wetness and saturation are both okay, nothing extravagant but both of these characteristics are better than those of a few other 4001s. This ink is easy to maintain. No creeping, no real feathering, little or no bleeding, and... it's easy to wash out.

■ Pelikan being Pelikan means that you can get it all over the world (like a few other brands of ink) and the price is IYAM more than "worthy". That alone makes me suggest that you just buy it if you happen to be into a nice "dark green".

 

Mike

[migo984]

Great review Mike. Very thorough and comprehensive and I agree with your opinions about this ink. It's nowhere near my top 20, but I like it nevertheless.

[visvamitra]

Excellent review.

[Mr.Rene]

Greetings LAPIS..

This ink replaces brillant green 4001 ink ?

Regards,

[ac12]

 

  On 2/14/2016 at 11:41 PM, Mr.Rene said:

Greetings LAPIS..

This ink replaces brillant green 4001 ink ?

Regards,

 

 

As I understand it, it will be in addition to the current brillant green. So there will be 2 greens in the lineup of inks.

[The Good Captain]

Great review! I always thought that their Brilliant Green was a bit to pale for me, so this looks to be just the ticket. We'll see, after I get a bottle.

[lapis]

Thanks everybody and now as questioned above, yes, this new ink is not here to replace the Brillant green. I wrote that here two months ago after phoning Hanover. The Brillant green will remain (FWIW)... so, as ac12 just reported, there will now be 2 4001-series greens (plus the the 2 Edelstein greens as well). (The up and coming Aquamarine as Ink of the Year 2016 might have a trace of green in it but I'll never know until I see it on paper...................................)

 

Mike

[amberleadavis]

Thanks Mike! I especially love the comparisons.

[inkstainedruth]

Thanks for the review.

This is not a green I like. So my wallet thanks you (and my husband would, too, if he wasn't at work...).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[GraniteScribbler]

  On 2/15/2016 at 11:03 AM, lapis said:

Thanks everybody and now as questioned above, yes, this new ink is not here to replace the Brillant green. I wrote that here two months ago after phoning Hanover. The Brillant green will remain (FWIW)... so, as ac12 just reported, there will now be 2 4001-series greens (plus the the 2 Edelstein greens as well). (The up and coming Aquamarine as Ink of the Year 2016 might have a trace of green in it but I'll never know until I see it on paper...................................)

 

Mike

 

My German is terrible, but this seller seems to think Brillant Green will be discontinued:

http://www.fritz-schimpf.de/Schreibgeraete/Zubehoer/Pelikan-4001-Tintenglas-30-ml-Brillant-Gruen.html

 

"Im Laufe des Jahres 2016 wird die Brilliant-Grün auslaufen und ein neuer Grünton, die 4001 Dunkelgrün, in das Programm aufgenommen. Die 4001 Dunkelgrün ist bereits verfügbar."

[lapis]

  On 2/17/2016 at 1:30 PM, GraniteScribbler said:

 

My German is terrible, but this seller seems to think Brillant Green will be discontinued:

http://www.fritz-schimpf.de/Schreibgeraete/Zubehoer/Pelikan-4001-Tintenglas-30-ml-Brillant-Gruen.html

 

"Im Laufe des Jahres 2016 wird die Brilliant-Grün auslaufen und ein neuer Grünton, die 4001 Dunkelgrün, in das Programm aufgenommen. Die 4001 Dunkelgrün ist bereits verfügbar."

That's true, what you have written: that site of Fritz Schimpf does in fact read "Sometime in 2016, Brilliant green will be discontinued and we'll have a new green tone, the 4001 dark-green in our program. The 4001 dark-green is already available". BTW Fritz Schimpf is a very good, serious, consciencious and helpful retailer. I've bought a lot of inks from him and I can recommend him in any case.

All I can say is: I repeat that Hanover told me that the Brilliant Green is here to stay. I doubt that Hanover is lying; I think instead that Fritz just figured that the new green is here to replace the old green. I myself haven't heard of many FPNers who really like the old green enough to be worried that it'll soon be gone. AAMOF there don't seem to be very many of us who love the new green, either. Whatever, stock up now... for that price, it's no real loss.

 

Mike

[namrehsnoom]

Thanks for the great and very detailed review - like you said: looks almost identical to Diamine Tropical Green. Water resistance seems a bit better though. I like the color better than the 4001 Brilliant Green, but that's just a matter of taste. Not enough of a temptation though to get this one besides the bottle of Diamine Tropical Green I already have. There are too many other inks to choose from...

[Abner C. Kemp]

Thanks for the review, I've been waiting to see this ink. As you say, it's not bad -- not dark enough or different enough for me to justify a bottle but it looks nice.

[GraniteScribbler]

  On 2/17/2016 at 5:43 PM, lapis said:

That's true, what you have written: that site of Fritz Schimpf does in fact read "Sometime in 2016, Brilliant green will be discontinued and we'll have a new green tone, the 4001 dark-green in our program. The 4001 dark-green is already available". BTW Fritz Schimpf is a very good, serious, consciencious and helpful retailer. I've bought a lot of inks from him and I can recommend him in any case.

All I can say is: I repeat that Hanover told me that the Brilliant Green is here to stay. I doubt that Hanover is lying; I think instead that Fritz just figured that the new green is here to replace the old green. I myself haven't heard of many FPNers who really like the old green enough to be worried that it'll soon be gone. AAMOF there don't seem to be very many of us who love the new green, either. Whatever, stock up now... for that price, it's no real loss.

 

Mike

 

Thanks for the clarification (and for the great review)!

 

I'll probably add a bottle or two of Brillant Green to my next order, just in case it does go away.

[grainweevil]

fwiw, I notice today that Pure Pens also seem to believe that this is going to replace Brilliant Green in the 4001 line up. One of their other hats is pelikanpens.co.uk, so one kinda supposes they know of what they speak.

[Tyrosh22]

Thank you for this review!

[Diderot]

Excellent review, thanks.

 

[Bo Bo Olson]

I do have some White Winter...a bit too dark and saturated to shade.

I find 4001 Green to be a good shading ink....didn't say great.

I was doing a paper sample check to see which to spend the fortune on of some 15 slightly different gmund papers from 90-170g.

After buying my first bottle of 4001 Green, I ended up getting some 12-14 green inks in a year.

 

Of my 3 green-green inks, all shade.

R&K Verdura beat MB Irish by a nose and 4001 by a neck. I made a mistake in ordering and ended up with two bottles of R&K Verdura. Murphy takes off every fifth Monday of the month, I've heard.

 

Murphy was drinking his morning cup of coffee when I stumbled across a different box and bottle of 4001 Green, and had thought Pelikan had replaced the old green with the new one....and was a bit that the ink was not shading as much as the old one...it was a bit darker as rumor said.

A wet B will defiantly will give you another tone when checking it on those G-mund papers.

It was not a new formulation as I miss read here on the com....but in a slightly different bottle.

So much for Plan A.

 

I hope my computer can read your pictures in the morning....but luckily I can remember my Winter Green.....got to use some of that .....Oh...it's in Cobweb corner and it did not get into that 14 paper test with all the other greens. No rest for the weary....

[lapis]

"White Winter" and "Winter Green"... you mean MB's White Forest? Not trying to "correct" anything, just tryin' to see if I know what you meanasay.

 

Mike

[Bo Bo Olson]

Yep, White Winter-----green.

If I remember correctly it came out two years in a row.***..I do have three bottles but would have to look to see if the three I have are the same year or back to back.

 

***could be that is two of the winter brown inks that came out back to back...got one of each...if I remember right.

Or both of those shades came out back to back.

 

I really got to start using up those inks....can't be 'saving' my 'good' inks that long.

 

For my birthday I received a gift voucher, to my pen shop. So next week, I'll be getting this ink and Graf von Castell dark green too.

A friend remembers ones obsession.

 

I can remember when I had no 'green' inks and no wish for one. I was going to chase purple. Then I bought Pelikan brilliant green. With in a year I got 11 green inks.....could be a couple more in I don't think I counted that MB Swift ink.

 

Well, there might be another Pelikan limited ink too. I've been such a good boy and didn't buy an ink in a full year.

The thrill of falling off the wagon!