Best blue-black ink?

[Jerry A]

If you like Waterman ink but wish its Blue-Black was in fact blue-black, not dirty teal, mix your own - you get a marvelous, rich colour by adding Havana (yes, Havana, not black; adding black results in a greyish blue, though perhaps that's what you want) to Florida Blue - or look for a vintage bottle (years ago, Waterman made my favorite blue-black).

 

Any recommendations for the mix ratio?

[jeffbg]

I am using Noodler's Aircorp's Blue Black right now, and though it is a very nice ink it is green-black. A true dark blue-black with fantastic properties is Noodler's Blue Black. It is one of my favourite inks.

 

Alejandro

 

But I find that it dries a bit too slowly on Clairefontaine papers. Do you have that experience too?

 

- Jeff

 

 

[Mindstorm]

I've tried blue-black from Lamy, Pelikan and Sailor - didn't fancy any one of them as I think they're all to pale or lacking in luster. I bought a bottle of Noodlers Midnight Blue the other day after reading some reviews of it. I have to say that I really like this ink as it's a true blue-black without any green or gray hues in it, and it has the best saturation or luster of all the aboved mentioned inks. Give it a try!

Kind regards,

Karl

[orpheus]

I am using Noodler's Aircorp's Blue Black right now, and though it is a very nice ink it is green-black. A true dark blue-black with fantastic properties is Noodler's Blue Black. It is one of my favourite inks.

 

Alejandro

 

But I find that it dries a bit too slowly on Clairefontaine papers. Do you have that experience too?

 

- Jeff

 

+1. I'm a lefty, and I can't use any of the Noodler's inks. That's too bad, because I do like a lot of the colors. But I find I smear them no matter what I do.

 

I also found that on some papers (Clairefontaine included), Noodler's will smear even after dry. YMMV, of course.

[orpheus]

Seems there are very few people mentioning Skrip (new formula) B-B. I haven't used it, but my fiancée swears by it - and she's very choosy. It does look pretty wonderful - similar to the color I try for by mixing my trusty Watermans.

 

Does anyone else like Skrip new? Is it as safe for pens as Waterman?

[Shangas]

People, I am thinking of buying a bottle of Sheaffer Skrip blue/black ink sometime in the intermediate future. As a child, I never really liked it, but I'm looking for a nice, dark, purply ink, and I seem to remember that Sheaffer Skrip BB fitted that criterion. Can anybody tell me something about it? Perhaps a writing or ink-blotty sample, so I can see if it still looks lthe same colour that it was when I was a kid?

[chuancao]

People, I am thinking of buying a bottle of Sheaffer Skrip blue/black ink sometime in the intermediate future. As a child, I never really liked it, but I'm looking for a nice, dark, purply ink, and I seem to remember that Sheaffer Skrip BB fitted that criterion. Can anybody tell me something about it? Perhaps a writing or ink-blotty sample, so I can see if it still looks lthe same colour that it was when I was a kid?

 

SHangas:

 

I actually think Pelikan BB might fit the bill. It's beautiful and is the best Ive found!

Oh if you really want something bluer, try a little mix of Pelikan BB with Diamine BB

[simonrob]

I'm a lefty, and I can't use any of the Noodler's inks. That's too bad, because I do like a lot of the colors. But I find I smear them no matter what I do.

 

I also found that on some papers (Clairefontaine included), Noodler's will smear even after dry. YMMV, of course.

 

Does "no matter what I do" include dilution with water? Diluting to c. 3:1 ink:water (you can experiment; precision doesn't matter) results in vastly quicker drying and eliminates smudging, in my experience.

 

As for blue-black, I've been fooling around making my own the past few days by adding browns to blues; some of the evidence is in other posts. I also tried again, after ignoring it for a while, Pelikan's Blue-Black. Of the standard ink companies whose inks I've been using, this is the only one whose blue black is still a proper, unaltered blue-black of the sort that they all made 15 plus years ago (from what I've been hearing, the same may be true of Sheaffer's too). That is to say, it looks how you would expect blue to look with black added to it (the teals made by Waterman, Parker, Yard-o-lead and Diamine may be nice enough on their own terms, but why on earth do they call them "blue-black"?). It performs well (dries fast, doesn't feather, etc.), the only drawback perhaps being that, like so many low saturation inks, it looks best from a wet nib. (This isn't to say there aren't similarly dark blue-related inks I prefer.)

 

Simon

[JJBlanche]

I also tried again, after ignoring it for a while, Pelikan's Blue-Black. Of the standard ink companies whose inks I've been using, this is the only one whose blue black is still a proper, unaltered blue-black of the sort that they all made 15 plus years ago (from what I've been hearing, the same may be true of Sheaffer's too). That is to say, it looks how you would expect blue to look with black added to it (the teals made by Waterman, Parker, Yard-o-lead and Diamine may be nice enough on their own terms, but why on earth do they call them "blue-black"?). It performs well (dries fast, doesn't feather, etc.), the only drawback perhaps being that, like so many low saturation inks, it looks best from a wet nib. (This isn't to say there aren't similarly dark blue-related inks I prefer.)

 

Simon

 

Would the Sailor Blue-Black fall under the category of a classic Blue-Black? I really wanted to try the Skrip Blue-Black, but Pear Tree doesn't offer it, so I figured Sailor was a close second.

[kadymae]

Can anyone recommend me a good (dark enough and non-watercoloury) black & blue ink? I had a bottle of Lamy but it was too washed-out and I got paranoid about the iron-gall properties. I also have tested Parker´s version, but that is too close to blue....

As I´m using a vintage Parker Duofold, I´d like to have something soluble as well. I´ve read that for example Noodler´s bulletproof versions can stain the barrel.

Thanks!

Ville

 

I'd like to give a shoutout to Platinum Blue Black ink. It's more like a dark cobalt blue, but it flows well even in balky pens and while not advertised as such, is extremely water resistant. A casual spill is not going to rinse it all away.

 

 

[simonrob]

Would the Sailor Blue-Black fall under the category of a classic Blue-Black? I really wanted to try the Skrip Blue-Black, but Pear Tree doesn't offer it, so I figured Sailor was a close second.

 

Yes. It's fairly close to Pelikan's blue-black, but perhaps a bit more black. Sailor's Blue, while a lot bluer, would probably qualify too, for that matter (a mix of the two might be best of all).

 

Simon

[lak611]

Montblanc is the best I think (Lamy is the same stuff).

 

Again, you have to be careful and differentiate MB bottle ink from cartridge ink. I would NOT recommend the bottle ink to someone who has a vintage, sensitive, or corrosion-vulnerable pen, because the bottle ink is iron gall. The cartridge ink, however is not. It is wonderful in every respect and perfectly safe for all FPs. If you have a pen that does not take int'l cartridges, I would go so far as to recommend buying a bunch of MB cartridge packs and draining them into a bottle -- it's that good. I would not, however, under any circumstance recommend the bottle, iron gall ink, unless you're sure your pen can take it, and you are committed to rinsing it out very frequently (once a week, even if you use the ink continuously).

 

QM2

I like Parker Quink blue-black. Does it contain iron gall? Is it safe to put ink containing iron gall in a new pen? What does the iron gall do that damages vintage pens?

 

[CharlieB]

Would the Sailor Blue-Black fall under the category of a classic Blue-Black? I really wanted to try the Skrip Blue-Black, but Pear Tree doesn't offer it, so I figured Sailor was a close second.

 

For Sheaffer Skrip Blue Black, try Pendemonium.Com or ISellPens.com or PenHero.Com.

[Robert Hughes]

Quink blue-black is not an iron gall ink. Neither is it waterproof. Bottled Lamy and MontBlanc blue-blacks (among others) are iron gall inks and are waterproof.

 

Is it safe to put ink containing iron gall in a new pen? What does the iron gall do that damages vintage pens?

Do a search on "iron gall", you're bound to pull up scads of information on FPN. Iron gall inks have been around for 1000 years, but their acidic properties caused them to go out of favor when fountain pens became popular, as metal parts tend to corrode more readily than with more modern inks. Either new or vintage pens can experience corrosion when iron gall inks are left in the pens, unattended. I typically wash out a pen right after using this type of ink for safekeeping.

 

A few hours of use in your Conklin or Pelikan will not hurt your pens. Just drain them out and rinse after use.

Edited May 27, 2008 by Robert Hughes

[lak611]

Quink blue-black is not an iron gall ink. Neither is it waterproof. Bottled Lamy and MontBlanc blue-blacks (among others) are iron gall inks and are waterproof.

Thanks, Robert. Is the Noodler's Bulletproof ink iron gall? I was thinking of ordering this ink, since it appears to be the only waterproof ink available. Now that you mention it, I should have remembered about iron gall. I used to work in a chemical lab. Edited May 27, 2008 by lak611

[Possum Hill]

Quink blue-black is not an iron gall ink. Neither is it waterproof. Bottled Lamy and MontBlanc blue-blacks (among others) are iron gall inks and are waterproof.

Thanks, Robert. Is the Noodler's Bulletproof ink iron gall? I was thinking of ordering this ink, since it appears to be the only waterproof ink available. Now that you mention it, I should have remembered about iron gall. I used to work in a chemical lab.

According to Noodler's own information, the bulletproof inks are made with dyes that bind tightly to cellulose when the ink is dry. They are not iron-gall inks and are available in several colors. Noodler's bulletproof inks have been extensively discussed in many threads, so a quick search should turn up about anything you want to know about them.

[lak611]

According to Noodler's own information, the bulletproof inks are made with dyes that bind tightly to cellulose when the ink is dry. They are not iron-gall inks and are available in several colors. Noodler's bulletproof inks have been extensively discussed in many threads, so a quick search should turn up about anything you want to know about them.

The latest thread I saw about Noodler's ink says that it creeps on nibs. I do not want an inky mess when I uncap my pens.

 

Does any other company make a waterproof blue-black or dark blue ink?

 

[Garageboy]

You wont get an inky mess, you just get some ink on both tines

[lak611]

You wont get an inky mess, you just get some ink on both tines

Ok. Some of the other posters made it sound a lot worse, like it was really a mess.

[el3ssar]

Would the Sailor Blue-Black fall under the category of a classic Blue-Black? I really wanted to try the Skrip Blue-Black, but Pear Tree doesn't offer it, so I figured Sailor was a close second.

 

Yes. It's fairly close to Pelikan's blue-black, but perhaps a bit more black. Sailor's Blue, while a lot bluer, would probably qualify too, for that matter (a mix of the two might be best of all).

 

Simon

 

I'm currently using a mix of Sailor blue black and Sailor black (2 drops of black in a cartridge of blue-black), since I found the blue-black a bit light for my taste.

 

The mix is good and looks like a conservative blue-black (without any green or teal in it) but I'm looking for something with a bit more blue, like a deep blue without any purple or green in it, kind of PR American blue with some black in it or maybe PR Supershow blue I guess...

 

I'll try a Sailor blue and Sailor black mix next time