Heard Noodler's Was Subpar.

[Mullen88]

I'm new to the FP game and when in getting my first pen I was told to stay away from Noodler's inks. The merchant even went so far as to say he "would never let that ink touch his pens."

 

Any truth to this?

 

What do you all think and should I discard this recommendation?

[Pickwick]

Yes, you should absolutely discard this ludicrous statement. A high number of members use Noodler's ink including myself, and they get extremely good reviews on this forum.

[studiohead]

As much as I would say to disregard it completely. You need to make an inform choice. Noodler's inks are very different from other companies inks in that within the range there are inks with different chemical proprieties and can cause different reactions to different materials. Most other companies inks are more or less the same in terms of chemical proprieties across the full range. Certain Noodler's inks have been known to have a bad effect on certain pen materials while at the same time, certain pen companies actually recommends the use of that particular ink in some of their pens. (Not their full range) So the better question to ask is is this Noodler's range safe for such and such pen?

[Brian C]

Just curious, where did you buy the pen?

[SeeksAdvice]

I will note the following:

 

I have owned/tried: Diamine; Noodler's; MB; Iroshizuku; Sailor; Platinum; DeA; Parker; and Waterman inks. The two brands that gave me most grief with "Stuff in the bottle" were Diamine and Noodler's. My Bottle of Blue Ghost from Noodler's grew stuff without ever being opened.

That being said, I still have some Noodler's inks, and don't have any Diamine inks. Many of Noodler's inks are simply not as well behaved as other manufacturers. Qin Shi Huang for example is an interesting color, but behaves terribly. I do like El Lawrence though. Zhivago is very disappointing to me, and seems to take forever to dry.

Some of their products are also notorious for there ability to stain almost anything. Any of their "Bay State" lines are capable of causing seriously hard to remove stains. The same goes for QSH. Though, I've had Diamine Sargasso Sea give Bay State a run for its money.

[MajesticPens]

I love Noodler's, but they can be a little bit finicky. I would stay away from them a a first ink, but maybe as a third or fourth ink, GO FOR IT!

[J85909266]

Some Noodler's inks are considered more high maintenance. Baystate inks are downright challenging. Many Noodler's inks are very well behaved. You need to do your homework. The same can be said for other brands. Diamine and Private Reserve both have inks that can need some disclaimers. Other brands, as well. Noodler's gets picked on for many petty reasons, but he makes some of the best inks, period. Just do your own investigating.

[takkun]

I've heard a few people talk about Noodlers like its poison, and one stationer saying they only use the manufacturer's ink in a given pen. What's the fun in that?

 

Nathan Tardif (who was a neighbor of an old professor of mine!) is less known as a pen restorer, so I think it's safe to say he knows what he's doing. His target market are pen enthusiasts like us, so while his inks might need a bit more attention on cleaning, the sort of people that buy them aren't the kind to probably leave them sitting around for months on end.

 

Like others said, doing your homework is probably the best plan, along with keeping your pens exercised and clean. A few of his more adventurous inks might be better suited for the equally adventurous pen fanciers out there, but I've yet to have any disasters with the mildly rogue Baystate inks. If you keep away from the more exotic offerings, you'll be fine.

 

Around the internet there's been some fierce debate about the safety of Noodler's. I'm not entirely sure why--perhaps because he's a newcomer and a one-man operation without the track record of, say, Diamine, or perhaps his peculiar and outspoken political views, or maybe just because FP users are a cantankerous bunch.

 

Maybe the best testimonial I can give you is this: I'm an architecture student at UW-Seattle, and between the architecture and art departments, Noodlers and Lamy Safaris have a huge following here among mostly non-pen geeks. Everyone knows me as the 'pen guy' and therefore the go-to for problems and questions, and I've yet to see any problems.

[Arkanabar]

I would almost never say never. Noodler's inks have served me very well indeed, in three pens: my Pelikan M200, in which Noodler's Red-Black was my go-to ink for years; and a Pilot Parallel and a Hero 616, both filled with mildly dilute Heart of Darkness (to speed drying). Many Noodler's inks will require special attention.

 

Baystate colors should not be mixed with any other inks, only other Baystate colors. Mixing Baystate inks with conventional inks nearly always leads to fairly rapid precipitation of solids, and a significant number of Baystate ink fans have a pen or two that they never fill with anything else, to avoid contamination. I am led to believe that Kung te Chung and Qin shi Huang are both pigmented, which means they should get extra cleaning, and not be allowed to sit idle in a pen for long (Sailor also makes a couple of pigmented inks, and the same warning applies to them). Bulletproof and Warden inks, along with any inks that contain bulletproof components (e.g., Red-Black, among quite a few others) will stain any cotton or linen or other vegetable-fiber clothes absolutely indelibly; you are more likely to destroy the garment than remove the stain. Year of the Golden Pig has solidified entirely without provocation in at least one pen.

 

That only leaves over a hundred other colors of Noodler's inks to play with. If you want to be safe and lazy, by all means limit yourself to Waterman and Skrip inks. But if you're willing to be informed, and do your due diligence and maintenance, enjoy Noodler's and every other ink under the sun.

[swanjun]

My personal method is this:

 

* I don't put Noodler's in vintage pens.

* I will put any Noodler's ink in a cheap ($50 or less) pen.

* If a Noodler's ink has done well in the cheap pen, then I'll put it in a more expensive modern pen.

[TheGreatRoe]

To me this is a bit like a bartender telling you to stay away from craft brews. It probably means the retailer doesn't have enough knowledge of Noodler's inks to know better.

It's impossible to make a sweeping statement like the retailer did about Noodler's ink. There's more than 150 varieties (including special runs and past inks) of Noodler's and many of them are specifically made to have unusual properties. If you're not willing to put in the time (or can't) to pick the right ink, then maybe it's best to stay away from Noodler's. However, if you're willing to put in a little time to learn about the which inks you want, Noodler's can be tons of fun for a lot less money than many other inks.

As a beginner, I'd stay away from anything in the Bay State line, or Qin Shi Huang. However, the majority of Noodler's inks, behave just fine. On this forum you will find tons of reviews of Noodler's inks, and can use those to pick colors you like with properties you're comfortable with.

[Cyber6]

It's impossible to make a sweeping statement like the retailer did about Noodler's ink.

 

 

Is actually quite possible... the retailer just did that...

 

 

What is impossible (to me at least...) is to make a sweeping statement like that and have any credibility... Nope. EVERY brand out there has an ink that might not play well with one pen or another. The beauty of this hobby is to experiment and have fun with it.

 

And as someone said (above)... a good set of cheap pens is useful to try inks..

 

 

 

C.

[TheGreatRoe]

 

 

Is actually quite possible... the retailer just did that...

 

 

 

[Sandy1]

Hi,

 

It is my opinion that as Noodler's inks are highly variable, a person considering a Noodler's ink should be informed as to an ink's properties, the most suitable pen type/s, and the degree of vigilance and pen maintenance required to enjoy them without problems.

 

Noodler's has gone a long way to support that by providing us with a table of those properties. http://noodlersink.com/noodlers-ink-properties/

 

FPN Members continue to support enjoyment of products available by sharing opinions, knowledge and experience in this Forum and Ink Review Forum.

 

You are amongst some very good people who want you to make a solid well-informed choice.

 

Be informed, choose wisely, then enjoy.

 

Bye,

S1

Edited January 30, 2015 by Sandy1

[mirosc]

I can understand the merchant completely.

 

Given the fact that there are numerous users out there that never clean a pen and don't know much about ink and pens in general plus the fact that there are indeed problematic inks from Noodlers - it's just easier to tell someone to stay away from Noodlers if there is the chance that he's showing up some days later with a clogged pen and asks for refunds.

 

Well, he could have taken his time and inform the buyer (take this but not that, when doing this take care of that, when having done that look for this and aaaalways remember that,...), with the chance that the buyer says: if it's so complicated I'd rather stay with my ballpoint :-)

 

Even more: I guess he doesn't stock Noodlers. One more reason to recommend against those inks.

 

[NinthSphere]

Yeah, I wouldn't trust such a blanket statement. Most of my inks are Noodler's & I haven't had problems in any of my pens. What I would suggest (& do myself) is to look into reviews for inks that interest you, Noodler's or otherwise, so you have an idea of what a particular ink brings to the table.

[Mullen88]

Thank you all for your insight.

 

I am definitely not lazy and do extensive research on products before buying them and was astounded when he said this because of all the positive reviews online. The wide range of colours and the intriguing packaging had me wanting some Noodler's ink and now after being reassured by all of you kind fellows I will definitely be buying some.... of course after more research into each's individual properties.

 

Again, thank you, I had my doubts about his view.

[Mullen88]

Just curious, where did you buy the pen?

 

"Simply The Best" here in Victoria, BC. It truly is a great store, the owner just seems to have had a bad experience with Noodler's.

[Randal6393]

A lot of testimonials about Noodler's. A bit short on which inks play well in the sandbox. Here's my list of inks that I use on a regular, daily basis:

 

Noodler's Black Never without it, often in three or four pens at once.

Noodler's Bad Belted Kingfisher. Lovely blue, helps that it is Bulletproof, meaning that I can confidently address envelopes.

Noodler's Walnut A lovely, well-behaved brown ink.

Noodler's Gruene Cactus Really interesting green ink, bright and joyful.

Noodler's Navajo Turquoise Enjoyed for the depth of the color. Reminds me of the real, pure-quill turquoise jewelry of the Southwest.

 

There are several Noodler's inks that have poor qualities, from my point of view: Whale Sepia, the Eternal inks, Rome Burning.

 

And I am looking for a good red, now that Black Swan in Australian Roses has gone purple on us. Red, Nikita, Red-Black, and even Qin Shi Huang seem well-behaved. I've tried samples of all these, but they are just not exciting to me. Nikita is too carmine, Red-Black is too dark, QSH is too bright and not solid enough. But, Shah's Rose and Ottoman Rose look promising.

 

Best of luck to you, enjoy,

[bone215]

Mullen

Since I am unfamiliar with many inks and am still exploring I don't buy any bottles until I have purchased a sample vial and tried it in my pens on my papers. I do not know enough about inks so the smaller samples allow me to play.

I think exploring inks is fun. There are still some brands I haven't yet tried, let alone all the different colors within brands.

Good luck and have fun.