Date Code On J. Herbin Inks

[nmp]

Hello dear members of FPN,

 

I would like to know whether there are any ways to identify when the particular bottle of J Herbin has been manufactured.

Also is there a shelf life to their inks (non-shimmer one, I am looking at Poussiere De Lune with interest). This is assuming that the ink itself was not sun-bathing on a window display or the bottle otherwise tampered with.

 

I am also looking at PR Ebony Purple, but am wary of catching a bad sample, now that their inks are manufactured after the passing of the original owner (who presumably knew the secret sauce to make these colors tick). Read enough to know that I may also get one sample with slime/sludge/mold etc.

 

Thanks in anticipation,

 

[nmp]

To be honest, I would like to know if this database exists for other inks too, and if not, I would advise request the experienced members to pool together their knowledge in some way.

Edited April 12, 2018 by nmp

[amberleadavis]

I know that my recent purchase of the sparkly purple ink (which you should seriously try) has batch versions. Did I mention that I love the ink.

 

OH, and Diamine grape, which is beautiful, is a stainer.

[Runnin_Ute]

OH, and Diamine grape, which is beautiful, is a stainer.

 

Yep. I experienced that too.

[dan in montreal]

The J. Herbin inks I have had the longest are still OK after a few years. I think my oldest must be 5 years old (Éclat de Saphir). They seem pretty stable.

There is no manufaturing info on the bottle. Above the bar code on the bottom of the boxes, there is a number: "réf. 130" - and 2 digits after that. Café des îles = 130 46, Orange Indien = 130 57, Lie de thé = 130 44 and so on. I think these numbers simply indicate the color, not the manufacturing batch / date, as some were bought more recently than others (months / years - I don't really keep track of these things).

Edited April 13, 2018 by dan in montreal

[nmp]

Thank you, Amber Runnin_Ute and Dan for pitching in with your thoughts.

 

Amber, Do you mean Pearlescent Purple or some such? I would rather not use any shimmer inks before I ...

 

1/ develop *regular* cleaning schedules for my pens

2/ Finish existing ink stock completely. At the moment I have too many. I've burnt my fingers a little, duplicating some colors - black 3 , couple of orange-browns which are almost identical, couple of teals, a blue-black (Pilot BB350) and IG Blueblack. A red and pink variant too. And a deep green.

 

Ciao, keep the opinions coming.

[Chrissy]

I haven't found a way of working out when J.Herbin inks might have been manufactured. They don't put dates on their bottles like Montblanc do. Sometimes it might be better too not know how old an ink is.

[nmp]

Interesting observation that..

Sometimes it might be better too not know how old an ink is.

[ENewton]

My bottle of Poussiere de Lune, which I bought three years ago, has a serial number on the back label. I don't know how old the bottle of ink was when I bought it off the shelf of a local brick and mortar, but I assume older bottles of Poussiere de Lune have lower serial numbers than mine, and newer bottles have higher serial numbers than mine.

 

Indications of shelf life, where given, are probably quite conservative. If something goes wrong with the product, a company can say it is not responsible after the declared date. In addition, the revenue stream of company will be greater if users are willing to discard and replace products prematurely; "planned obsolescence" can be achieved either by causing a product to last only a certain amount of time or by convincing customers to replace a product that really doesn't need to be replaced.

 

I read, in an interview with the ink maker at Sailor, that a bottle of ink should not be kept for more than two years.

[nmp]

Thanks for your inputs, ENewton