Thinning Ink?

[LBpens]

What can you use to thin an ink that is too thick and doesn't flow well in certain pens? I know I've heard this before but can't recall. Thanks

[yogalarva]

My guess would be to just try diluting it with a bit of water... But it sounds like you are looking for something else and I'm sure someone smarter than me will know what it is. :-)

[grainweevil]

I want to say 'Photo Flo' but best wait for someone who knows what they're talking about!

 

Cheers, Al

[LBpens]

It seems to me some household product was recommended, I'm thinking maybe 409? Plus, I would need to know how much to add to say, 50ml of ink.

[vossad01]

What you are ultimately looking for is a wetting agent or surfactant. Searching on FPN you find various household products suggested that contain some surfactant, the most common in my recollection being dishwashing soap (technically dishwashing detergent because pure soap would not have surfactants) though other products have also been reported with success. The recommendation I recall was dipping a toothpick in the detergent and then touching that to a converter full of ink. In general this route will be highly experimental as you try cleaning products to see what works for you and introduces other ingredients into your ink as well.

 

Whatever you do I would recommend starting with smaller amounts than your 50ml bottle at least until you get the hang of it. And even then make changes incrementally. It is easy enough to add surfactant, but there is no way I know of to go the other direction. If you add too much you can ruin the ink.

 

The Photo Flo @grainweevil talks about is the main surfacant I have seen mentioned on FPN. Working with a surfacant removes the variables introduced by the other ingredients in whatever household product you use. Sandy1 documents the use of Photo Flo a bit in this post. That thread also looks to be one that talks about using Dish Soap. The stuff (Photo flow) is not particularly expensive but given how little you need it is unfortunate you cannot really buy a small quantity closer to what you will actually need, which is why I offer it over on the Ink Sample Exchange if you are interested.

 

If you just want to make the ink smoother or more lubricated to a degree rather than making it wetter, I have read some post on adding glycerin(?) but have not tried it.

[dcwaites]

You may need both water (to dilute the ink and make it thinner) and a wetting agent like Photo Flo to make it flow better.

Note Sandy1's instructions linked above. You end up using only a very dilute solutio of Photo Flo.

 

I would start with small amounts of ink and work up from there. I typically start with 10 drops of ink and add other ingredients drop by drop till I am happy. Then I will make a 5 or 10ml batch and adjust as necessary. That way I don't ruin a whole bottle of ink.