Pilot Red

[yazeh]

Pilot Red

This was the the fifth and last of blind ink testing series. The fourth I had already reviewed (J Herbin Vert de gris). Thanks @Lithium466 for the sample. 

 

It’s not easy to find. But if you need an eye searing red, it might be for you.

 

 

 

This ink writes vermillion and the colour changes depending on the paper.  It’s a difficult colour to describe. It’s very bright, so prepare your sunglasses.  😎

  

It is very wet, almost too wet. Paradoxically, very fast dry times on Rhodia, and well behaved on copy paper.

 

It’s not a colour that I could write with, but I enjoyed doing some art work with it. 

I doubt it’s a suitable ink for wet pens. 

 

It didn’t stain the clear nib creaper body but cleaning  it was a pain and easy for the Kakuno. 

 

 The ink is referred to as E. 

 

chroma:

 

 

 

Writing Samples:

Photo:

 

Comparison:

Water test:

Left side 10 seconds under running water. Sample written with glass nib, so much more than usual pen. 

 

Art Work:

Part of the Inktober yearly challenge 2024, prompt was Aware. 

Noodler's Lexington Gray/ Pilot Red

Paper is Fabriano Sketchbook (super absorbent paper_

Note how with a water brush one can lighten the ink. 

 

 

This was done on Talens Mixed media paper. You can see the different shade of pink and red, just like the Flanders' poppy. 

Other inks used, J Herbin Vert de gris, and Noodler's Lexington Gray. 

 

 

·      Pens used: Pilot Kakuno Ef, Lamy (EF/F/M/B, BB), Noodler’s Nib creeper semi flex

·      What I liked: Drawing, fast dry time. 

·      What I did not like: Very wet, colour is too bright for everyday use. 

·       What some might not like: Colour. 

·      Shading: On Tomoe  River 68 gr.

·      Ghosting: No, faint

·      Bleed through faint depending pen nib combination. 

·      Flow Rate: Very wet

·      Lubrication: slightly below average

·      Nib Dry-out: Did not notice. 

·      Start-up:  Ok

·      Saturation:  Bright. 

·      Shading Potential: It has some potential. 

·      Sheen: No. 

·      Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: Did not notice. 

·      Nib Creep / “Crud”: Did not notice.

·      Staining (pen): Did not notice. 

·      Clogging: Did not notice.

·      Cleaning: The Kakuno was a breeze, the Lamy needed a cleaning solution, so did the Nib creaper. 

·      Water resistance: Meh

·      Availability: 40 ml bottles. 

 

Please don't hesitate to share your experience, writing samples or any other comments. The more the merrier  

 

 

 

[Lithium466]

Yay for Pilot red, and thank you for the review!

Do you prefer this one over Platinum red?

[LizEF]

Thanks, @yazeh, for another great review!

 

Interesting chroma, with pink and orange.  Whoa!  We needed that "sunglasses" warning! Pinkish hint on white paper, orange on yellow paper makes sense after seeing the chroma.  Fun quotes.

 

Very cool cat hangin' on that swatch.   And the tie on that water-test kitty!   Miss Mousey is wondering if kitty didn't go a bit overboard with that one...  "Aware" is so sweet.  And In Flander's Field is so sad!  Poor mousey and kitty.  The two works go together well.

[yazeh]

2 hours ago, Lithium466 said:

Yay for Pilot red, and thank you for the review!

😊🙏

2 hours ago, Lithium466 said:

Do you prefer this one over Platinum red?

I have to get around the Platinum and Sailor. Reviewing red inks in this hot weather is not that fun😊

I prefer reds with a bit more body and deeper color. But now you've given me the impetus to test them all one after another 👍🙏🙏🙏

[yazeh]

6 minutes ago, LizEF said:

Thanks, @yazeh, for another great review!

🙏🙏🙏

6 minutes ago, LizEF said:

 

Interesting chroma, with pink and orange. 

It is in this case 😊

6 minutes ago, LizEF said:

 

Whoa!  We needed that "sunglasses" warning!

I didn't want you to see red like Smoke and the magpies 🙀

6 minutes ago, LizEF said:

Pinkish hint on white paper, orange on yellow paper makes sense after seeing the chroma.  Fun quotes.

Good  eye.Interesting how the chroma of the ink translates on differnt paperd.👍

6 minutes ago, LizEF said:

 

Very cool cat hangin' on that swatch.   And the tie on that water-test kitty!   Miss Mousey is wondering if kitty didn't go a bit overboard

She wants to cool him off and stop misbehaving 😁

6 minutes ago, LizEF said:

with that one...  "Aware" is so sweet.  And In Flander's Field is so sad!  Poor mousey and kitty.  The two works go together well.

Thanks. It's funny when you use the waterbrush on the feed, or directly in the convertor so many different results on can get. The ink reminded me of poppies, especially the flander poppies, which are often this colour rather than the bold red. Maybe it'd the tears of those who have lost have diluted the blood....😥

[Sailor Kenshin]

@yazeh and @Lithium466, I might actually have some Pilot Red.  But I never guessed THIS ink would be PR.  I guessed a Noodler's and a Lamy.

 

Love the chroma to pieces.  It's like a sunset in one swatch!  PR is a skin-stainer (guess how I know this!), and a fun color for summer, when I prefer cheerful brights.  Of the comparison inks, I think I have the R & K, Platinum, and JH.

 

Thanks, and keep 'em coming.

 

Also love the artwork!

[yazeh]

10 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

@yazeh and @Lithium466, I might actually have some Pilot Red.  But I never guessed THIS ink would be PR.  I guessed a Noodler's and a Lamy.

 It definitely had a Japanese feel to me, for some reason.  

10 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

 

Love the chroma to pieces.  It's like a sunset in one swatch!  PR is a skin-stainer (guess how I know this!), and a fun color for summer, when I prefer cheerful brights.  Of the comparison inks, I think I have the R & K, Platinum, and JH.

Yes, I forgot to mention that. It stains fingers like Mercurochrome  

10 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

 

Thanks, and keep 'em coming.

I will  

10 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

 

Also love the artwork!

Thanks !

[inkstainedruth]

@yazeh Thanks as usual for the comprehensive review.

Interesting that on my screen the writing samples on Rhoda & Midori lean a little pink (making me think of Noodlers Park Red), the sample on Tomoe River seems closer to a "true" red (like Diamine Classic Red), and the sample on the Hammermill paper leans more burgundy/dark red.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Penguincollector]

16 minutes ago, yazeh said:

Yes, I forgot to mention that. It stains fingers like Mercurochrome  

  This was my childhood, constantly skinning my knees or scratching myself while climbing trees and Mercurochrome or Gentian Violet was the treatment of the time. Maybe that’s why I liked prepping microscope slides so much. 
 

  I have the cartridge version in my Pilot Elite Lady right now. I enjoy coloring and writing with it. I still feel weird about writing in red, but it’s a good red. I’ll add a writing sample here when I catch a moment to myself.

   The choma is beautiful, and so is your art! I love kitty and mousey.

[WalterC]

Pilot red is available in 350ml bottles on ebay ($23.98 + $8.00 shipping) and on Amazon (expensive, $47). I think the couple cartridges I have will suffice for this color.

[yazeh]

1 hour ago, Penguincollector said:

  This was my childhood, constantly skinning my knees or scratching myself while climbing trees and Mercurochrome or Gentian Violet was the treatment of the time. Maybe that’s why I liked prepping microscope slides so much. 
 

Same here. My parents nicknamed me Pink Panther  

1 hour ago, Penguincollector said:

  I have the cartridge version in my Pilot Elite Lady right now. I enjoy coloring and writing with it. I still feel weird about writing in red, but it’s a good red. I’ll add a writing sample here when I catch a moment to myself.

Same, here. Red reminds me of corrections by my teachers  Looking forward to see your sample writing and thoughts 🙏🙏

1 hour ago, Penguincollector said:

   The choma is beautiful, and so is your art! I love kitty and mousey.

Thank you, both from Pilot & I

[yazeh]

1 hour ago, WalterC said:

Pilot red is available in 350ml bottles on ebay ($23.98 + $8.00 shipping) and on Amazon (expensive, $47). I think the couple cartridges I have will suffice for this color.

Thanks for sharing the info. I agree that a couple of cartridges will more than suffice for me  

[LizEF]

3 hours ago, yazeh said:

She wants to cool him off and stop misbehaving 😁

 

3 hours ago, yazeh said:

The ink reminded me of poppies, especially the flander poppies, which are often this colour rather than the bold red. Maybe it'd the tears of those who have lost have diluted the blood....😥

[Lithium466]

5 hours ago, yazeh said:

 

But now you've given me the impetus to test them all one after another 

😈😂

I'm looking forward to your comparison for sure! 

[yazeh]

1 hour ago, LizEF said:

Sometimes Mousy feels melancholic. S/he will bounce back   

 

[LizEF]

6 minutes ago, yazeh said:

Sometimes Mousy feels melancholic. S/he will bounce back  

[yazeh]

23 minutes ago, Lithium466 said:

😈😂

I'm looking forward to your comparison for sure! 

Me too

[Penguincollector]

  There is a bundle of the red, green, and purple cartridges on Amazon for under $10 US.  So far, I have tried and liked both the red and green ones. Both are firmly in the middle of their respective color spectrum.  The sepia is one of my favorite brown shades.

[Penguincollector]

3 hours ago, yazeh said:

Same here. My parents nicknamed me Pink Panther  

😂 

[yazeh]

13 minutes ago, Penguincollector said:

  There is a bundle of the red, green, and purple cartridges on Amazon for under $10 US.  So far, I have tried and liked both the red and green ones. Both are firmly in the middle of their respective color spectrum.  The sepia is one of my favorite brown shades.

Thanks for sharing 🙏