Need a vibrant blue recommendation.

[MikeGB]

Just ordered a Visconti Homo Sapiens Lava in cobalt blue, so it seems fitting to put a nice vibrant and bold blue in it.

 

I have ordered Edelstein Sapphire with the pen but reviews and samples online seem underwhelming, so I’m looking for something else.

 

I like the deep blue of sapphire but would prefer one without red shading.

[A Smug Dill]

Would Noodler's Ink Baystate Blue be vibrant and bold enough? Some many people seem to be enamoured by the colour.

[MikeGB]

1 hour ago, A Smug Dill said:

Would Noodler's Ink Baystate Blue be vibrant and bold enough? Some many people seem to be enamoured by the colour.

I’ll have to try and find a seller. I’ve heard good things about it, just difficult to get in the UK it seems.

[amberleadavis]

I am a huge fan of BSB and no other ink is as vibrant. I use BSB often, but I would NOT put BSB in a Visconti.  BSB did manage to eat through a TWSBI Vac 700.

 

Personally, I love Diamine Sargasso Sea, but it's very saturated and not for everyone.

 

I'd suggest you start with Visconti Blue; it is a terrific ink.

 

Aurora blue is another wonderful performing ink.

 

If you are willing to put up with some clean up, consider Private Reserve DC Super Show Blue or American Blue.   KWZI has some great blues!

[Misfit]

Here are two photos of Iroshizuku Kon Peki. 
 

[amberleadavis]

[amberleadavis]

[amberleadavis]

[amberleadavis]

Here is one from @A Smug Dill.

 

[lapis]

Diamine's  MrPen RADIANT BLUE. Not sure if that was from Diamine (or e.g. Cult Pens or TWD) directly, or from MrPen (himself).

[recluse]

Blue is an elusive color (which one isn't) and there's a great variety of inks exploring all different shades of blue. Even if you limit yourself to Diamine, there's quite a few to choose from (keep in mind that 30 ml Diamine bottles have an opening, which is a bit too narrow for Homo Sapiens). I would recommend to find a way to get a dozen or two of samplers. I'm pretty sure there are online vendors in the UK that offer them.

 

For example, Visconti Blue is a good ink and it's a very nice blue. However, it is on the wet side and chances are your HS will also be a wet writer. You may love this combination or may dislike, since the color will show up too dark for your liking. There's nothing wrong with having a shelf full of bottles of "blue" but it's safer to start with samplers to save yourself from a disappointment or two.

 

[Mayo]

Pilot Iroshizuku has a very nice line of blue inks and you will probably find one of them to suit your preference, I think Asa-Gao fits your description best (though, the only one I own is tsuyu-kusa, which is a very light, gentle shading blue).

 

Diamine also almost certainly has a blue to suit your needs, like maybe sapphire blue or majestic blue. Pelikan Edelstein Sapphire also looks nice.

 

The most vibrant blue of them all likely is Baystate Blue from Noodler's, but since this is an expansive pen you probably won't be using that. The staining can be removed with bleach, though. I just got a bottle of it yesterday so not really much experience with it. Here's a scan of BSB compared to my next most vibrant blues, Birmingham Ice Rink and J. Herbin Eclát de Sapphir

 

[Carrau]

Diamine Blue Velvet is another intense blue worth a look.

 

https://mountainofink.com/blog/diamine-blue-velvet

[Carguy]

Diamine Cornflower Blue available at Cult Pens

[migla9]

Monteverde Horizon Blue

[Muncle]

I second (or third? fourth?) Visconti blue. It is nice and vibrant, and has the reddish sapphire undertones.

 

BSB while a fun ink, does have some properties that doesn't endear it to everyone.

[Misfit]

Has @MikeGB made an inky decision on the vibrant blue?

[MikeGB]

On 8/10/2022 at 3:41 AM, Misfit said:

Has @MikeGB made an inky decision on the vibrant blue?

I went with Monteverde Horizon Blue! 

[inkstainedruth]

On 8/9/2022 at 6:34 PM, Muncle said:

BSB while a fun ink, does have some properties that doesn't endear it to everyone.

True, that.  It's a little TOO eye-searing for my taste.  Plus, it stains everything and its cousin, does NOT play well with other inks, and while water resistant has no UV resistance whatsoever.  

I much prefer Noodler's Baltimore Canyon (not sure if that was an LE ink for the Baltimore-Washington Pen Show a few years back or just introduced at it).

But I'm not overly enamored of Iroshizuku Asa-Gao, either -- I found it to be very drippy, and would (after writing about a page) would watch blobs of ink roll down the nib and go splat on the page.  For that brand, give me Kon-peki or the the (sadly discontinued) Tsuyu-kusa any day of the week.

Another vibrant blue ink (similar to Kon-peki) is Edelstein Topaz, and similar to both of those is De Atramentis Sky Blue.

Oops.  Just saw that MikeGB went with Horizon Blue.  I have tried it but don't have a full bottle.  But I've seen reviews/comparisons on here which suggest that (as far as color goes) the closest match to the old Parker Penman Sapphire (which people were waxing nostalgic a decade ago when I first joined FPN) -- without the nosebleed level prices that PPS is garnering these days....  A few years ago I dragged my husband to the Triangle Pen Show, and he offered to buy me a bottle someone had for sale of PPS, and I said "Not at THAT price you're not!"  (Let's just say that buying a couple of Parker 51s -- including one in the Saturday night auction which had an oblique nib -- was only a little more expensive.... )

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

 

[TSherbs]

21 hours ago, MikeGB said:

I went with Monteverde Horizon Blue! 

@MikeGB

You like it? You get what you hoped for?