Such Lonely Ink!

[DrDebG]

Do you ever visit those inks that you have hidden away in some drawer for a long time? Has your opinion changed?

 

I have traveled back to my home after been gone for many months, and have been reunited with my ink collection here. I had forgotten, however, my ink sample collection here.

 

I decided to fill my fountain pens with the ink samples that I had left here and compare my thoughts recorded in my "ink journal" from the first time I sampled the ink with my thoughts today. For the sake of brevity, I will omit pens and papers used, since they are the same for both samples. I also rate my inks on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the best.

 

For my first batch, I compared five J. Herbin inks:

 

 

J. Herbin Bleu Pervenche:

First Sample: April 2013: Wonderful ink with fantastic flow in all pens used. Moderate drying time. Little water resistance. Great shading and has a lovely red sheen to it. Love the color! Rating: 7

Today's Sample: Wonderful flow in this medium point on both papers. The color is very nice and is definitely one of my favorites. I love the shading and sheen, especially on Tomoe River paper. I am ordering a bottle today! Rating: 8

J. Herbin Rose Cyclamen:

First Sample: February 2015: Vibrant but pretty pink. Flows nicely. Moderate dry time, no water resistance. Doesn't shade much. Rating: 7

Today's Sample: Nice flow in this medium point on both papers. The purply-pink is almost eye searing, and would be great for markups and writing cards. I have other inks near this shade so I don't need a bottle of this now, but will consider for the future. Rating: 7

J. Herbin Eclat de Saphir:

First Sample: February 2015: Nice blue with a purple tone - definately my kind of blue. Moderate dry time, no water resistance. Rating: 8

Today's Sample: How have I overlooked this ink? I love it! The color is brilliant, yet elegant. While I have other blues in this shade, I am ordering a bottle of this today! Rating: 9

J. Herbin Rouge Bourgogne:

First Sample: August 2014: Nice red with blue undertone. It dries fairly fast, with no smearing. I like the way it shades. It flows well through this nib. Rating: 7

Today's Sample: Nice red with lovely shading. No sheen, however. While I like the red, I have others that I prefer but I may reconsider when I buy my next red. Ratiing: 7

J. Herbin Terre de Feu:

First Sample: June 2015: Fascinating color - fire earth. Love the rusty brown hue. Has some shading, but no sheen. I do like the way this flows through my pen. I'm not a huge brown fan, but I like this. Rating: 8

Today's Sample: Wow! I had forgotten all about this ink. This is an unusual color with a warm feel to it. I like the way it writes best, though. Most browns are a bit dry, but this seems to flow easily through my nib. I don't need a brown in this shade right now, but this one will top the list for my next brown. Rating: 8

 

More to come!

 

 

Edited June 12, 2016 by DrPenfection

[DrDebG]

I also had a couple Caran D'Ache inks to sample:

 

 

 

 

Caran d'Ache Delicate Green

First Sample: March 2015: A lovely, bright green with very nice flow in this wet nib. It is a bit light, but has very nice shading, but no sheen. I like this color. Rating: 7

Today's Sample: Great flow in this stub nib and wonderful shading. I love this fresh color. I am glad to have rediscovered it. I may have to get a bottle of this. Rating: 7+

Caran d'Ache Divine Pink

First Sample: March 2015: A bright, dark reddish pink with excellent flow. It shades nicely and behaves very well in ths nib. I like it but I like other dark pinks better that are much less expensive. Rating: 7

Today's Sample: While I wouldn't really call this "pink" it is a nice color. It behaves well in this pen. When I am in the market for this shade, this ink is near the top of the list. Rating: 7

Edited June 12, 2016 by DrPenfection

[Xenter]

All of your J. Herbin inks looks awesome and very vibrant, I don't own any J. Herbin inks yet and I'm tempted to get some now

[DrDebG]

A couple Noodler's samples:

Noodler's Liberty's Elysium:

First sampled: April 2015: Nice color, but nothing to write home about. The ink flows nicely in my Delta Capri broad nib, but doesn't flow well in my Faber Castell Loom fine nib. It does stain everything it touches, and isn't very easy to clean. I'm not wild about the strong smell. Rating: 6 out of 10

Today's Sample: Using Italix Captain's Commission with broad oblique nib: While I do like the color, there are others that I prefer. It does flow nicely, with nice shading and flashes of sheen. It does have a strong odor about it. It is my favorite Noodler's ink that I have tried. I will not, however, purchase a bottle because of the odor. Rating: 7 out of 10

Noodler's Heart of Darkness:

First sampled: January 2015: Dark black ink. Strong smell. Doesn't flow well in my Waterman with fine nib, but does in my Delta stub. I don't like the nib creep though. Rating: 5 out of 10

Today's Sample: Using Jinhao 450 with Goulet stub nib: I'm not wild about black inks, but I like the color of this one. It has a warm tone to it. It does behave well in this pen. It does bleed through any paper I have used it on (Staples ARC filler, Xerox copy paper, Rhodia). I really don't like the odor, however. I will not purchase a bottle. Rating: 6 out of 10

Edited June 12, 2016 by DrPenfection

[DrDebG]

All of your J. Herbin inks looks awesome and very vibrant, I don't own any J. Herbin inks yet and I'm tempted to get some now

 

 

Thank you so much! I agree. I am rediscovering J. Herbin inks and am really enjoying them.

[DrDebG]

Here is a Pilot Iroshizuku sample:

 

 

Pilot Iroshizuku Ku-Jaku:

First sampled: May 2015: A lovely shade of peacock - yet not really peacock - more like the shade of a glacial fed stream in the Rockies - some might even call it a dark aquamarine. It flows well, has a moderate drying time and is only slightly water resistant. Nice ink. Rating: 8 out of 10

Today's Sample: Used my Aurora Ipsilon with fine nib and writing on Staples ARC paper for this sample. While some do not like blue-greens, they are one of my favorites if the green is not too overbearing. Ku-Jaku is right on the border. I would like it to be a bit darker in this pen. But, it flows nicely in this dry nib. I have several other inks in this shade, but when I am needing another, I will definitely consider this. Rating: 8 out of 10

Edited June 12, 2016 by DrPenfection

[DrDebG]

[DrDebG]

[DrDebG]

[amberleadavis]

So, what has changed your mind. I noticed that in all cases, your ratings either stayed the same or improved (as in no ink received a lower rating). Why do you like some inks better now?

[DrDebG]

So, what has changed your mind. I noticed that in all cases, your ratings either stayed the same or improved (as in no ink received a lower rating). Why do you like some inks better now?

 

Excellent question! As I said in my post, when I came back home I remembered that I had a whole bunch of ink samples - some that I hadn't used in a long time. I wanted to see if my opinion of them had changed much.

 

Truthfully, while my ratings may have stayed the same or even slightly improved with the Noodler's inks (i.e. Noodler's), I still don't care for them. When I first sampled them (and there are others I haven't included), I didn't really like the formulation - they didn't behave as well as others. Now, the formula doesn't both me so much as the smell. And the same is true for scented inks and some non-scented inks. The smell really affects me now. Of course, hay fever season doesn't help either.

 

For other inks, this has been a time of fun rediscovery. Some, such as Delta Blue, did not impress me before because it was like so many other blues, even though it was a very nice color. Now, the behavior of the ink is what I really like about it. The same can be said of J. Herbin Eclat d'Saphir. Before I thought it was "meh". Now I really like it. And I never thought I would like "baby poop" Terre de Feu. But after using other brown inks, I like the flow of this one.

 

And in other cases, I "shelved" samples because of "bad press". Diamine Autumn Oak is a good example. I had read that many Diamine inks can clog pens, including Diamine Autumn Oak. I did see "nib crud" on my nib before. So rather than "toss" out an ink that I may like, I have just adjusted how I use the ink. Now, I use many inks that can produce "nib crud" (i.e R & K Helianthus and others). I just know now to put a smaller amount in my converter, and not leave the ink for any length of time in the pen.

 

So, maybe I have just grown up a bit in my ink usage. And it's o.k. to be wrong sometimes.

 

Thanks for asking!

[amberleadavis]

Oh, I understand. When I first bought bottles of ink, I bought a lot of PR inks. Then I gave them away when I started doing fade tests. Now, I have replaced many of those bottles.

[Sandy1]

Hmmm...

 

Hi,

 

There is a lot to be said for love at 2nd sight. But ex-beaux are just that. And that Halley's Comet should not be ignored.

 

Even after extensive sampling, at our next meeting more than a few inks in my array cause me to think, 'Oi! Where have you been hiding?' Yippee!

 

[Pass the tsuki-yo, that lean Newhaven Duofold and a sheaf of onion skin.]

 

Bye,

S1

Edited June 16, 2016 by Sandy1

[DrDebG]

Hmmm...

 

Hi,

 

There is a lot to be said for love at 2nd sight. But ex-beaux are just that. And that Halley's Comet should not be ignored.

 

Even after extensive sampling, at our next meeting more than a few inks in my array cause me to think, 'Oi! Where have you been hiding?' Yippee!

 

[Pass the tsuki-yo, that lean Newhaven Duofold and a sheaf of onion skin.]

 

Bye,

S1

 

Love your perspective! I am having that "Yippee"! experience with J. Herbin's Eclat de Saphir right now.

[Fabienne]

Me too, with Eclat. When I first tried it, I thought "Meh". On second try, very different indeed. Love the color, the flow, the ease of wash out in the pen. Great stuff. I think you just end up getting smarter with age.

[Sandy1]

 

Love your perspective! I am having that "Yippee"! experience with J. Herbin's Eclat de Saphir right now.

 

 

Hi,

 

I've admitted to having a fling with bottled Lamy Blue.

 

May all inks in your remuda keep you hollering 'Yippee'.

 

[Pass the Visconti Blue, a Sheaffer 444+XF and a pad of Triomphe.]

 

Bye,

S1

[DrDebG]

 

 

Hi,

 

I've admitted to having a fling with bottled Lamy Blue.

 

May all inks in your remuda keep you hollering 'Yippee'.

 

[Pass the Visconti Blue, a Sheaffer 444+XF and a pad of Triomphe.]

 

Bye,

S1

[AmaranthMoor]

Wow--that is some great shading on the Diamine Autumn Oak! I might just have to get a sample of that...... >u>

[inkstainedruth]

This thread makes me think I should revisit some inks. But I have a bunch of samples I haven't tried, and have too many pens in rotation again as it is....

I did get *one* pen flushed out today. But too many of the others have *just* enough ink in them that I don't want to just dump the ink out.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[DrDebG]

Wow--that is some great shading on the Diamine Autumn Oak! I might just have to get a sample of that...... >u>

 

Yes, it does shade nicely on decent papers. I tried it on cheap notebook paper and forget it. Also you need a wet nib which my Lamy Studio has. If I used it in my Safari fine point, I doubt there would be any shading. Try a stub nib.