That one brand

[The_Beginner]

What's that one brand that no matter what ink color type, sheen,shimmer etc is also just that chefs kiss. That you know when you use it no complaints it's just amazing! For me personally it's Diamine. The ink is always solid and write to the point of what i need it to do.

 

What are yours?

[davisgt]

Waterman inks. Well-balanced,  well-behaved,  and Serenity Blue is an all-time favorite.  

[The_Beginner]

1 minute ago, davisgt said:

Waterman inks. Well-balanced,  well-behaved,  and Serenity Blue is an all-time favorite.  

They are good inks i've used florida blue an amazing blue no doubt in my mind

[sandy101]

Diamine is indeed an impressive producer of ink.

 

I've always found Visconti's ink to be impressive - their blue is very nice and it isn't a variation of Royal blue like most companies seem to produce.

 

Caran D'ache impresses me too - wet, but not as wet as Waterman. 

 

I also like Parker's Quink. The teal of their blue black is quite nice - and whilst the colours are not the most exciting, the ink does work very well on lower quality paper. As such it's a great ink for work as I get presented with all types of paper from students.

[nm4]

Must agree Diamine is fantastic.   Equally good IMO are the Iroshizuku inks.  
 

N

[lascosas]

Sailor (except for Storia)

[metalhead]

Pilot for pens and inks (pilot and iroshizuku). no complaints, things just work better than expected.

[Mercian]

For me, it's probably Rohrer & Klingner.

 

I have only used three of their 17(?) FP inks, but I have found all of them to be absolute winners.
The reviews that I have read of their other FP inks seem to concur with this observation.
I am still kicking myself for not buying a bottle of the LE 'Aubergine' a couple of years ago.

 

Their inks come in glass bottles with airtight metal caps; their 'erka-rapid' filling-aids fit into their bottles well, and enable me to easily fill even my Pelikan M80x pens, and; where I live, they are inexpensive too 😊

[gregamckinney]

I've never gone wrong with Omas inks.  Two of my very favorites are, unfortunately, no longer produced: Omas Roma 2000 Blue and Amerigo Vespucci Red.

 

greg

[Ron Z]

42 minutes ago, gregamckinney said:

Amerigo Vespucci Red.

 

Omas red, and that one in particular was bad for latex sacs.  I had a customer who put Omas red in a snorkel, and a month later the sac was goo.  I suggested that I wouldn't fix it under warranty if he did it again.

[lamarax]

Teranishi everything (including Taccia).

 

Herbin would be my first 'blanket' choice, but I just can't stomach its "upscale" range. Same could be said of Pelikan; the 4001 line is staple (but limited), while Edelstein sucks 😛

[The_Beginner]

2 hours ago, Ron Z said:

 

Omas red, and that one in particular was bad for latex sacs.  I had a customer who put Omas red in a snorkel, and a month later the sac was goo.  I suggested that I wouldn't fix it under warranty if he did it again.

how bad of a goo and what would cause that?

[inkstainedruth]

Probably some sort of chemical reaction with the ink and the sac material -- that would be my guess.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

ETA: It might have been related to the pH of the sac material vs. the pH of the ink (not familiar with the Omas inks, but a number of years ago someone decided to mix Noodler's Black (pH neutral, I think) with Noodler's Bay State Blue (very alkaline).  And the person put it into a pen before seeing whether the inks would work well in combination.  And the results?  They weren't pretty -- I saw the photos.  Some of the writing was one color, some the other color -- only occasionally they blended into the "blue-black" the person was aiming for.  Then?  The chemical reaction between the the two inks happened, and started coming out of the pen in solid chunks....  

I was just cringing, looking at the photos.  I felt so bad for the person.  But now I go out of my way when flushing a pen to make sure that the water eventually runs clean -- I don't want the same thing happening with any of MY pens.... 

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[gregamckinney]

I'm sure glad that I primarily use piston filling pens since I still have one bottle of that RED left.  Thanks for the education, Ron.

 

greg

[chromantic]

Diamine, for sure. They may do a stinker here and there but when you make, like, a gazillion colors, that's bound to happen.

 

All the Stipula inks I've used have been solid performers.

 

Iroshizuku are definitely on the wet side and you have to take that into account but otherwise solid, as well.

[Mercian]

14 hours ago, lamarax said:

Herbin would be my first 'blanket' choice, but I just can't stomach its "upscale" range. Same could be said of Pelikan; the 4001 line is staple (but limited), while Edelstein sucks 😛

 

I say, steady on! 😁

 

Personally, I love them - but then I use them in Pelikan's own pens, in which they work beautifully.

And e.g. my 1954 Pelikan 400 writes with such a 'wet' line that the Edelsteins' capacity for shading is suppressed, and they instead come out as brilliant, gem-like colours 

 

Even if you don't have any Pelikan pens, have you ever tried the blue/black in the range - Edelstein Tanzanite?

namrehsnoom reviewed it (linky) using a Lamy Al-Star in every nib grade  - and he loves the stuff.

 

visvamitra reviewed it (linky) and said that, while he dislikes its colour, he has to admit that its behaviour is superb.

 

If you like 'cheerful' ink colours, the Topaz, which is a bright cerulean blue, is another 'winner'.

 

 

[lamarax]

4 hours ago, Mercian said:

Even if you don't have any Pelikan pens, have you ever tried the blue/black in the range - Edelstein Tanzanite?

 

I do actually have a few (none vintage tho). Funny that you mention Tanzanite, as I consider Pelikan's own, lowly 4001 blue-black to be the ink of inks. The exact opposite could be said of Faber Castell; their 'upscale' "Graf von..." label, I find much, much better than their standard issue (I smell a... strong connection with Pelikan manufacturing-wise, as their characteristics are suspiciously similar 😉).

 

That said, OP's question regards brands as a whole. Every brand has its ups and downs undoubtedly. The only brand, or rather maker, under multiple labels that I've experienced to be steadily flawless is Teranishi. That includes their own "Guitar" line, as well as Taccia inks for which they're responsible. No wonder they're 'top dog' worldwide providing aromatic compounds to the perfume industry.

[Mercian]

3 hours ago, lamarax said:

Funny that you mention Tanzanite, as I consider Pelikan's own, lowly 4001 blue-black to be the ink of inks.

 

You are very far from alone in having that opinion 😁

 

3 hours ago, lamarax said:

That said, OP's question regards brands as a whole. Every brand has its ups and downs undoubtedly.

 

Indeed!
Although I really like e.g. many of Pelikan's offerings, there are many that don't inspire me at all (e.g. the red & brown inks in the 4001 range, and a few of the Edelsteins whose colours don't please me), or of which I have read unenthusiastic/disappointed reviews (some of the less-expensive pens).

And e.g. my own two Pelikanos (post-2010 version) have proved to be much less-well built than are my Lamy Safaris.

[lamarax]

4 hours ago, lamarax said:

No wonder they're 'top dog' worldwide providing aromatic compounds to the perfume industry.

 

I find it a bit ridiculous to quote myself, but here goes:

 

Please excuse me in advance fellow FPN dwellers for venting. There's this notion, or rather perception, that the businesses involved in supplying this peculiar hobby -especially those in Japan- are some obscure creaky ol' traditional shopes, manned by decrepit humpback pensioners who are in love with the "art" and just can't let it die.

 

Example: the story about Tomoegawa paper making machines breaking down, and that nobody could be found in the realm to forge the ancient intricate cogs needed to bring said machines back to life. Well,

 

 

Tomoegawa is a public listed multinational, with several factories around the world and a widely expanded portfolio, which simply found out that producing a variable of paper introduced for mass printing catalogues in the 80s, is no longer worth it for its shareholders, as the big picture has moved on. We're not relevant.

 

Sorry pen aficionados, I hate bursting our collective bubble.

[MHBru]

Iroshizuku for inks, without a doubt.  Great colors and behavior,  I also have a fav brand for pens… also without a doubt… Pelikan, esp the 800 series.