Favorite Black Ink?

[WJM]

Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Black has been my go-to black ink for years, one and switched to from Parker Quink Black (wasn't black enough), and looked no further. There are, I suppose, even darker blacks, but this one satisfies me enough. The price is also good.

 

One other black I sometimes use in my Chinese pens is the very cheap Hero Ink Black No. 64 (also known as No. 204 from what I've learned), which in color is similar to Pelikan (perhaps even a little bit darker), and where I live it costs about $1 per 59ml bottle so it's a pretty good deal.

Edited November 10, 2017 by WJM

[ParkerDuofold]

Hi Steve, et al,

 

Another vote for Aurora here.

 

It's a deep, rich black with great flow and lubrication that also flushes out reasonably well.

 

 

My second choice is Lamy Black; same basic benefits as Aurora; albeit a touch paler and a little drier, but it's water resistant.

 

Be well and enjoy life.

 

 

- Anthony

[ErrantSmudge]

Another vote for Aurora Black followed by Lamy Black for best non-Noodler’s blacks.

[dan in montreal]

I'm surprised some have have had problems with J. Herbin Perle noire. It's worked very well in every pen I have.

 

Even though it's not what you are looking for, my second choice would be Noodler's Black - I've used the stuff for years with zero problems (if ever you have a change of heart).

[mirosc]

J. Herbin Perle de Noir for best overall behavior (even if not the blackest black, but definitely black enough to not be mistaken as anything else)

Edited November 10, 2017 by mirosc

[stevekolt]

Thanks all. I received my bottle of Aurora black ink today. Very pleased with the ink. Having to wrestle with the interior plastic cap/seal not so much...

[ParkerDuofold]

Thanks all. I received my bottle of Aurora black ink today. Very pleased with the ink. Having to wrestle with the interior plastic cap/seal not so much...

Hi Steve,

 

I know, that inner seal sticks much better to the lip of the bottle than it seems to stay inside the cap.

 

Take a couple of Kleenex and wipe out/off the cap and the seal thoroughly. Place 3 drops of CA (super glue) at the 12, 4 & 8 o'clock positions; place seal back inside the cap and press down until it is properly seated all around... press down in place for 30-60 seconds. Problem solved.

 

Another way to avoid this problem is to wipe off the lip of the bottle real good before replacing the cap... ...but I also know that method is not always guaranteed... especially with the Aurora caps.

 

Be well and enjoy the ink.

 

 

- Anthony

[ParkerDuofold]

Just to follow-up, Steve... and make sure we're on the same page... use small drops placed inside the cap.

 

Btw, I love your avatar... there's something about staring down the barrel of that long nose that always cracks me up. (Although I am simple-minded and easily amused).

 

 

- A.C.

 

EDITED to correct typo.

Edited November 11, 2017 by ParkerDuofold

[IndigoBOB]

Thanks all. I received my bottle of Aurora black ink today. Very pleased with the ink. Having to wrestle with the interior plastic cap/seal not so much...

 

 

Nice!

[Chrissy]

I haven't tried Aurora Black, but I have J.Herbin Perle Noire and it's enough black ink for me. I'm not a great user of black inks as there are so many other colours out there.

[UDog]

As a writer, I only use black for first drafts, and I only use Noodler's Dark Matter. But an interloper has made its way onto the scene—Iroshizuku Take-Sumi. I can't explain why I like it...je ne sais quoi.

[Zdenek]

Aurora black.

[SUNIL GARG]

I use 3 Black inks nearly everyday. MB Permanent Black. Sailor Kiwa Guro & Iroshizuku Take Sumi.

 

All three are great inks in their own ways. But if one has to go for just 1 then Kiwa Guro is my favourite.

Dark, permanent, yet behaves like Take Sumi when it comes to flow. Wonderful.

[TSherbs]

I keep coming back to Aurora. Like coming home.

[torstar]

Aurora.

[vectorbundle]

Despite your restriction, I have to add another vote for Noodler's Heart of Darkness. It extremely black and it dries quickly on Rhodia and Clairefontaine paper. It is perfect for left-handed writers like myself.

[torstar]

If Aurora's blue wasn't so purply I might have considered using no other inks but Aurora for black or blue.

 

But as it is...

[inkstainedruth]

Another vote here for Heart of Darkness (yeah, I know, that's not what you want to hear). I think it's a little better behaved than Noodler's Black -- HoD dries faster and is less smudgy. And is pretty water resistant. As for the other suggestions....

I have no experience with Aurora Black or J Herbin Pearl Noire. My only experience with Kiwa-guro was in a Preppy set up as a rollerball and it was not a happy experience -- the flow was terrible.

Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Black does have some water resistance (more than I expected). As for Take-sumi? Well, it's just different.... Not the blackest black. But it has a character to it that is almost tactile. I can't really explain it, but I almost expect the line to feel like velvet on the page....

The *blackest* blacks I've run across are Noodler's Old Manhattan -- exclusive to Fountain Pen Hospital in NYC -- and Organics Studio Charles Darwin; but I'm not sure I'd necessarily recommend either because they both have a tendency to spread (which I suspect may be part of the reason they *look* so black on the page. And OSCD also has horrible bleed through issues, even in a pen with a fine hooded nib (although it dries super fast...).

Another ink that I can't really recommend (even though waterproof) is De Atramentis Archive Black. I've loved most of their standard inks. But nearly all the Document inks I've tried also spread a lot; and (just to be different) Archive Black had poor flow -- but it *was* waterproof....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[hh1990]

Hi Steve, et al,

 

Another vote for Aurora here.

 

It's a deep, rich black with great flow and lubrication that also flushes out reasonably well.

 

 

My second choice is Lamy Black; same basic benefits as Aurora; albeit a touch paler and a little drier, but it's water resistant.

 

Be well and enjoy life.

 

 

- Anthony

 

I am with Anthony on this one.

[VivienR]

My personal favorite non-waterproof black is Caran d'Ache Carbon. J. Herbin Perle noire is second in the line. Recently brought Pelikan Edelstein Onyx, mainly for the bottle, so no experience with that so far.

I have Platinum Carbon black for "bulletproofness", but it's a high maintenance ink for sure.