Best Black List

[peroride]

Is it just me or are retailers getting better at sharing information comprehensively for the good of the community?

 

This recent updated list from JetPens (no affiliation) just hit the sweet spot particularly the end table:

 

The Best Black Fountain Pen Inks

 

It saves hours of fora searching, video reviews, etc etc

[OCArt]

Yes, the ink lists that JetPens is producing have been really helpful to me as well.

[txomsy]

Yes, me too. I find I often agree with their picks, although not exhaustive, they offer reliable and good guidance.

[TSherbs]

The JetPens and Goulet websites have quality comparitive information, but JetPens goes even further in choosing bests in certain categories. Goulet seems not so eager to differentiate on terms of quality among their offerings. 

[Karmachanic]

32 Black Inks

https://macchiatoman.com/blog/2017/12/11/ink-comparison-32-black-inks

[inkstainedruth]

@perorideNice to see that my favorite black ink (Noodler's Heart of Darkness) is on JetPens' list.  

@Karmachanic Interesting blog post -- I wouldn't have thought to do an rgb comparison.

Thanks to both of you for posting the links.

 

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[TSherbs]

49 minutes ago, inkstainedruth said:

@perorideNice to see that my favorite black ink (Noodler's Heart of Darkness) is on JetPens' list.

 

same same

[txomsy]

Thanks for the links, they are certainly useful. I'm considering whether to continue with X-Feather (which now is more expensive due to import duties) or moving on, and these links do really help.

[JulieParadise]

Most people ask for the blackest black, but my new favourite is a "soft black", of that is ever possible: Teranishi/Guitar Taisho Antique Black. (It is still not clear to me what the real name of these inks is, as there are 'Roman' variants that seem to be sold by or exclusives for Stilo e Stile or some other shop.)

 

I have had this very dark-brown-bordering-black in several pens now and just love it. It looks almost black, and it is dense, but there is a slight tinge to it, a certain softness, just like a faded black would have. I like this look a lot.

[arcfide]

1 hour ago, JulieParadise said:

I have had this very dark-brown-bordering-black in several pens now and just love it. It looks almost black, and it is dense, but there is a slight tinge to it, a certain softness, just like a faded black would have. I like this look a lot.

 

I also find a lot of merit in the soft blacks, or at least ones that can provide some more dynamic range. Unlike you, I think I tend to look for cooler tones rather than the brown-leaning blacks, but there are some terrific dark, dark greens or teals that come off really nicely and are basically blacks. 

[TSherbs]

2 hours ago, arcfide said:

 

I also find a lot of merit in the soft blacks, or at least ones that can provide some more dynamic range.

Me too (I keep saying this). Right now, I am a big fan of Parker Quink Black: soft black (with tinges of purple) that works in every pen that I have put it in.

[Mercian]

36 minutes ago, TSherbs said:

Right now, I am a big fan of Parker Quink Black: soft black (with tinges of purple) that works in every pen that I have put it in.

Your experience of Quink Black is different to mine 🙁

 

The Quink Black I’ve bought has always been green-tinged.
But then I’ve only ever bought it in cartridges, and I know that Parker used to make two different versions of Quink Black; one ‘Black’, and one ‘Washable Black’. Maybe I have the ‘other’ version of Quink Black to yours?

 

Ironically, while it works well in most of my Parker pens (including my 75s), I have found that it won’t work in my Parker 45s🤷‍♂️

[A Smug Dill]

17 hours ago, JulieParadise said:

Teranishi/Guitar Taisho Antique Black. (It is still not clear to me what the real name of these inks is, as there are 'Roman' variants that seem to be sold by or exclusives for Stilo e Stile or some other shop.)

 

https://guitar-mg.co.jp/haikaraink_en

 

Officially, “Guitar Taisho Roman Haikara Ink” made by Teranishi Chemical Industry Co. Ltd (analogous to “Shikiori Tsukuyono Minamo ink” made by The Sailor Pen Co. Ltd.).

 

Teranishi makes other art products under the Guitar brand than just fountain pen ink:

Source: Teranishi Chemical Industry

 

The “Roman” part has nothing to do with Italy or Rome; it's a corruption of the transliteration of the English word “romance” or “romanticism”.

https://www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/culture/Taisho Roman.html

 

”Haikara” seems to be transliterated from “high-colour”, possibly as in saturated dye load.

 

So, I guess if we typically consider “Sailor Shikiori Yonaga” and “Sailor Yonaga” to be proper references to the ink product, then analogously “Teranishi Guitar Antique Black” and “Teranishi Antique Black” would be equally as proper. Even if Teranishi subsequently introduces a different product line of fountain pen inks, it's still unlikely that the black ink in that will be named Antique Black.

[arcfide]

14 hours ago, Mercian said:

Your experience of Quink Black is different to mine 🙁

 

The Quink Black I’ve bought has always been green-tinged.

 

Parker and Waterman Black are both really interesting inks because their component dyes are essentially more of a violet/blue mixed with a yellow-ish color, leading to a cool toned ink that some people see as very blue/purple, but which also could be green depending on the paper and saturation and so forth. 

 

To my eyes, when I see it, it comes off more blue than green, especially compared to Japanese Black inks, but I think the potential for either tinge is there, given its chromatography. 

[max dog]

I'm really liking Pelikan Brilliant black for it's good water resistance.  It's good that it is not a pigmented permanent ink and yet yields decent water resistance.  I was looking for a good dye based ink without the worry of pigments clogging the feed, and Pelikan Brilliant black fits the bill good.  I'm surprised the water resistance test results here does not rate the Pelikan higher.  

[AmandaW]

I'm a fan of soft blacks too, all of them, but top of the list would be those than are brown-ish.

 

Sigh. OK. Teranishi/Guitar Taisho is on the Bucket List.

[A Smug Dill]

25 minutes ago, AmandaW said:

Teranishi/Guitar Taisho is on the Bucket List.

 

Did you try the sample of Antique Black? What do you think of it?

[AmandaW]

6 minutes ago, A Smug Dill said:

 

Did you try the sample of Antique Black? What do you think of it?

I don't think I have it.

 

In the most recent samples I have Modern Red, Gentle Green, Nostalgic Honey and Opera Rose.

 

It's not among among swatches from earlier either. I am pretty careful, but not infallible, of course.

[A Smug Dill]

13 minutes ago, AmandaW said:

I don't think I have it.

 

In the most recent samples

 

There are three more, in the small zip-lock bag containing the unused ink cartridges for the Daiso Air-Seal pens, if I recall correctly. Last-minute additions that didn't make it into the fully-packed cardboard mailer.

[AmandaW]

4 minutes ago, A Smug Dill said:

 

There are three more, in the small zip-lock bag containing the unused ink cartridges for the Daiso Air-Seal pens.

Of course there are. So that adds Melancholic Blue and Antique Black. And Taccia Hokusai Koiai. Three more swatches to do. And an empty pen to do justice to Antique Black.

 

Thankyou. It could have taken me months years to find those since I would have been waiting to need another Daiso cartridge.