Diamine Blue-Black R2

[Sandy1]

☞ For convenient viewing of the images, you may wish to scroll to the menu at the very bottom of this window then ensure the FPN Theme is http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/ecb8726d-1.jpg

 

☞ Please take a moment to adjust your gear to accurately depict the Grey Scale below.

As the patches are neutral grey, that is what you should see.

Mac

http://www.wikihow.c...te-Your-Monitor

Wintel PC

http://www.calibrize.com/

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/27ddb717.jpg

☞ As Photobucket no longer has the appropriate functionality to manage thumbnail images, all images are inserted - not linked. I am profoundly dismayed that Photobucket has made such an unwise decision.

Perhaps they will come to their senses, then restore previous functionality to accommodate dear readers who do not have bandwidth to burn.

 

-:||:-

Nota Bene: This ink was released in the Summer of 2012; and replaced the prior version which is without the 'R2' designation.

Comparo

:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK012_zpsb14567d3-1_zpsee7f71c3.jpg

 

Fidelity

The ink I used may be compared to the depiction on the Diamine site diamineinks dot co dot uk LINK

 

Figure 1.

Swabs & Swatch

Paper: HPJ1124.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK993_zpsda429ed7.jpg

Figure 2.

Nib-ism ✑

Paper: HPJ1124.

Depicts nibs' line-width and pens' relative wetness.

Distance between feint vertical pencil lines is 25mm.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK992_zpsa184c4d0.jpg

L ➠ R: SIL, Estie, M200, PPP, 17, Carene.

 

WRITTEN SAMPLES - Moby Dick

Ruling: 8mm.

 

Figure 3.

Paper: HPJ1124.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK996_zpsbfee0ae0.jpg

 

Figure 4.

Paper: Rhodia.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK998_zpsb1f4d091.jpg

Figure 5.

Paper: G Lalo.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK999_zps5e50399a.jpg

Figure 6.

Paper: Royal.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK001_zpsd126e595.jpg

 

Figure 7.

Paper: Staples.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK003_zpsa833d205.jpg

 

OTHER STUFF

 

Figure 8.

Smear/Dry Times & Wet Tests.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK994_zps249299a0.jpg

 

Figure 9.

Bleed- Show-Through on Staples.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK005_zpsb5fe6562.jpg

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

 

Type:

• Dye-based fountain pen ink.

Presentation:

• Bottle.

Availability:

• Available at time of writing.

Daily writer?

• Quite possible.

A go-to ink?

• When an Indigo Blue-Black ink is desired.

USE

 

Business:

(From the office of Ms Blue-Black.)

• Has a more gravitas than animation, so will suit the vast majority of business correspondence that could be hand written.
• A pleasant departure from the default Blue & Black inks so often found in most workplaces.
• A good pick for personal work product with its comfortable writing experience and high readability.
• Line quality on the print/copy papers dropped a bit as the wetness of the pens increased, (not unexpectedly), so a somewhat dry pen seems necessary if DBlBk-R2 is to be used for marginalia and annotation on such paper.
• At middling value, (light - dark), there is enough separation from material printed in Black to be used for dedicated forms use, and a bit of mark-up & editting.
• Not enough zap for error correction or grading.

Illustrations / Graphics:

• Certainly possible.
• Will slip into the niche between Blue and Purple, or Blue and Black.
• Should do nicely for labels and taut lines.
• As a watercolour, the dye/s behave quite uniformly, so soft gradient washes should hold no untoward surprises. There is a distinct remnant after the dry ink is exposed to water, so it appears unlikely that DBlBk-R2 could be sponged away entirely.

Students:

• Hmm.
• We do have a pleasant writing experience and high readability, though one would need safeguard what was written from fluids, and two-sided use of FP-hostile 'lowest bidder' paper seems quite unlikely.

Personal:

• Of course.
• Certain to be used for pro forma personal business letters that need a bit more oomph than a default Blue can provide. (So sorry P4RBl.)
• I am rather fussy about the 'business appropriate' inks that I use for correspondence to family & friends; and the ones I choose need to have a certain something extra. DBlBk-R2 may not have that certain something extra in abundance, but it will do the necessary - carrying the written word to the recipient without distraction - and look very good doing so.
• The Indigo aspect is quite strong, so the ink doesn't 'Grey-out' when run at light values, and doesn't 'Black-out' or become submerged at dark values.
  
• Does very well indeed from a wide range of pens onto writing papers, so one should be spared any wrangling to get an acceptable appearance - as is expected of a reliable Blue-Black ink - just ink-up then start writing.

PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE & CHARACTERISTICS

 

Flow Rate:

• A bit higher than usual.

Nib Dry-out:

• Not seen.

Start-up:

• Immediate.
• With confidence.

Lubricity:

• Very nice.
• Narrow nibs were comfy on toothy / textured papers.

Nib Creep:

• Not seen.

Staining (pen):

• Not seen after five days.

Clogging:

• Not seen.

Bleed- Show-Through:

• On HPJ1124: A few freckles from the 17 & Carene, but still OK for two-sided use.
• On Staples: Estie, PPP & Carene. (See Figure 11.)

Feathering / Wooly Line:

• A bit from the Carene on Staples, yet did very well on the soft porous surface of the Royal.

Aroma:

• Faint inky goodness.
• Barely noticed whilst writing.

Hand oil sensitivity:

• Hmm. There seemed to be a bit from the PPP on Rhodia. (Circled.)

Clean-Up (pen):

• For recently inked-up pens, the use of a pen cleaning solution did not release any visible residue after the usual regimen of water rinse, flush, short soak, flush.

Mixing:

• No stated prohibitions.

Archival:

• Not claimed.

THE LOOK

 

Presence:

• A warm firm handshake.

Saturation:

• Middling.
• A fully inked line may be achieved with little effort.

Shading Potential:

• Quite low indeed.
  
• Most often understated when it appears.

Line quality:

• Quite high for a simple dye-based ink.

Variability:

• Pen+nib combos used:
  • About as expected, considering the wide range of writers used.

  [*]Papers used:

  • Slightly less than expected.

Malleability:

• Moderate.
• Like most of the dark quite saturated inks, use of pens / papers outside the 'normal' range seem necessary to push entice DBlBk-R2 to the edge of its performance envelope to generate all that much change of appearance.
  
• The ink was readily absorbed by the hard textured surface of the G Lalo, giving a well-inked line, which in turn avoided softening the colour and drifting towards Teal.
• As ever, inks with a combination of good manners and a quite consistent appearance across a range of pens and papers could be considered possible for a daily writer ink.

Hi-Res Scans:

Originals are 60x30mm.

 

SIL on HPJ1124:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK006_zpsfe5425b7.jpg

Safari on Rhodia:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK007_zps17e8fb4e.jpg

PPP on G Lalo:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK008_zps6ecdb24e.jpg

Carene on Royal:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/INK009_zps3c95272f.jpg

 

PAPERS

 

Lovely papers:

• Cool crisp whites.

Trip-wire Papers: ☠

• Those prone to bleed- show-through.

Copy/Printer Paper:

• Quality of the written line is very good indeed, without undue line-width gain (spread).
• Very dry pens would seem necessary to enable two-sided use on 'lowest bidder' papers, but may not give as dark a line as desired, though readability should be just fine.

Tinted Papers:

• Quite possible.
• DBlBk-R2 can be from a wet pen to give a fully inked line with low likelihood of misbehaving.
• The strong Indigo aspect should allow just about any colour of paper to be used.

Is high-end paper 'worth it'?

• Not so much.
• From what's seen above, this ink shows most of what it can do on the penny-a-page HPJ1124, though some may try to tease out more shading by using papers with a smooth coated surface.

ETC.

 

Majik:

• Seems unlikely.

Billets Doux?

• Not from yours truly.

Personal Pen & Paper Pick:

• A pick at the extreme - the Safari on the HPJ1124.
• The narrow nib is on the verge of being too dry, yet never quite flames out. That generates about the max shading potential as seems possible without the ink appearing sketchy. The narrow line also keeps the dark ink light on the page.
• As ever, HPJ1124 does what it does best: mostly stays out of the way by providing a slightly cool crisp surface for the ink to show-off.

Yickity Yackity:

• A decidedly Indigo Blue-Black is most welcome, and will look just fine with whatever pen+paper combo suits my heart's desire.
• Ah kushbaby, R2 4 U 2?

======

 

NUTS BOLTS & BOILERPLATE

 

Pens

Written Samples:

A. Sheaffer Imperial Lifetime (white dot) + 14K XF nib. (See below)

B. Esterbrook J + 2556 Firm Fine steel nib.

C. Lamy Safari (Charcoal) + Black steel F nib.

D. Platinum President Purist + 22K B nib.

E. Parker England 17 + B nib.

F. Waterman Carene + 18K stock Stub nib.

Lines & labels:

◊ OMAS Turquoise from a Pilot Penmanship + XF.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/323daf87-329f-41b0-8749-ce2473088d34_zps84eeb840.jpg

Papers:

• HPJ1124: Hewlett-Packard laser copy/print, 24lb.
• Rhodia: satin finish vellum, 80gsm.
• G. Lalo Verge de France: natural white, laid, 100gsm.
• Royal: 25% cotton, laser/inkjet copy/print, 'letterhead', 90gsm.
• Staples White: house brand multi-use copy/print, USD4/ream, bears FSC logo, 20lb.

Imaging:

• An Epson V600 scanner was used with the bundled Epson s/w at factory default settings to produce low-loss jpg files.
• Figures shown were scanned at 200 dpi & 24 bit colour.
• No post-capture manipulation of scanner output was done, other than dumb-down by Epson, Photobouquet, IP.Board s/w, and your viewing gear.

Densitometer Readings on HPJ1124:

• Red 89
• Grn 104
• Blu 139
• Lum 108

Other Inks

• This Review uses the same Written Sample format, atrocious handwriting and some pen+paper combos common to most of my previous Reviews of Blue-Black inks. Consequently, ad hoc comparisons through manipulation of browser windows is supported.
  
• As Photobucket has very unwisely changed the functionality of depicting thumbnail images, 'on-the-level' comparison of those images is a thing of the past.
  
• Should that functionality not meet your requirements, I welcome your PM requesting a specific comparison. Additional scans may be produced, but the likelihood of additional inky work is quite low.

Fine Print

The accuracy and relevance of this Post depends in great part upon consistency and reliability of matériel used.

Ink does not require labelling/notice to indicate (changes in) formulation, non-hazardous ingredients, batch ID, date of manufacture, etc.

As always YMMV, due to differences in materials, manner of working, environment, etc.

Also, I entrust readers to separate opinion from fact; to evaluate inferences and conclusions as to their merit; and to be amused by whatever tickles your fancy.

 

-30-

Tags: Fountain Pen Ink Review Sandy1 Diamine Blue-Black R2 Indigo Dark Blue BlueBlack

Edited February 8, 2013 by Sandy1

[The Good Captain]

See, I said it was a cracking ink!

[swanjun]

So, what's been changed in this 2012 reformulation?

[wastelanded]

This one tempts me, very much so. It looks a bit warmer than good old Pel BB, which would be nice sometimes. Reminds me of Skrip BB, without the hints of green.

 

In days of yore, who could imagine an entire world of blue-black inks?

 

Excellent review, as always, Ms. S. Goes without saying by now!

[Sandy1]

See, I said it was a cracking ink!

Hi,

 

Yes indeed - except for the low shading potential.

 

Bye,

S1

[Sandy1]

So, what's been changed in this 2012 reformulation?

Hi,

 

As far as I can tell, the colour is the most obvious change.

 

Water resistance, smear/dry times, lubricity, bleed- show-through all appear to be much the same as ye olde version.

 

Also, I reckon the R2 is now in compliance with the EU REACH standards, so may not contain biocides that would ensure extended storage - though that is speculation on my behalf, and only Diamine would know for certain.

 

Bye,

S1

[Penman222]

The Diamine Blue-Black R2 looks very similar, if perhaps a bit llghter, than the Diamine Denim I am currently using with great success in my Snorkel. More like a dark blue, less like a blue-black.

Edited February 8, 2013 by bhbarto

[kpyeoman]

I bought one of the small bottles of DBlBk at the Ohio Pen Show in November. I was wondering if it was the new formula or not, but it seems to be the old one given that mine shades. I prefer the colour of the reformulation, but it's unfortunate that it lost the shading qualities. Seems more like a deep blue now rather than a blue black?

[The Good Captain]

I bought one of the small bottles of DBlBk at the Ohio Pen Show in November. I was wondering if it was the new formula or not, but it seems to be the old one given that mine shades. I prefer the colour of the reformulation, but it's unfortunate that it lost the shading qualities. Seems more like a deep blue now rather than a blue black?

Well, the new R2 certainly isn't anything like as 'teal' as the original, that's for sure.

[inkstainedruth]

The Diamine Blue-Black R2 looks very similar, if perhaps a bit llghter, than the Diamine Denim I am currently using with great success in my Snorkel. More like a dark blue, less like a blue-black.

t

 

I had been wondering the same thing. I like Denim a whole lot, but I don't get a lot of shading out of it on most papers (except Rhodia). Could we possibly get a side by side from comparison from "The Queen of Blue Blacks"?

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[The Good Captain]

I know I am not 'She' but I have these two to hand. The Blue-Black is the R2 version.

I'm sure that Sandy will respond as well.

[lapis]

Well, the new R2 certainly isn't anything like as 'teal' as the original, that's for sure.

I'll buy that! Actually, I already did.

"Blue-black" is in my own unhumble opinion a very personal matter, but hey! that's why we're all here!!

To get down to brass tacks, I myself find some blue-blacks too blue, others too black, maybe even too gray....

... but in the end anything is better than the old Diamine, which is for me really too teally.

 

Mike

[Sandy1]

The Diamine Blue-Black R2 looks very similar, if perhaps a bit llghter, than the Diamine Denim I am currently using with great success in my Snorkel. More like a dark blue, less like a blue-black.

Hi,

 

I agree that R2 is less Blue and more of a Blue-Black (lower chroma) than Diamine Denim.

 

Denim is a really attractive ink.

 

Bye,

S1

 

 

* goes to ink-up a Snorkie with Denim *

[Sandy1]

I bought one of the small bottles of DBlBk at the Ohio Pen Show in November. I was wondering if it was the new formula or not, but it seems to be the old one given that mine shades. I prefer the colour of the reformulation, but it's unfortunate that it lost the shading qualities. Seems more like a deep blue now rather than a blue black?

Hi,

 

The R2 version was released in the Summer of 2012, but hadn't made its stateside debut until October. I speculate that Distributors / Vendors were clearing ye olde version from their inventory prior to offering the R2 version at the retail level.

 

I agree that there is a greater Blue aspect to the R2 version, which to me makes it more of a Blue-Black than ye olde version, which had the unfortunate Teal aspect.

. . (I'd often mix some Royal Blue into ye olde version to off-set the Teal.)

 

I agree that the low[er] shading potential of the R2 is a bit of a disappointment, but I hope that I can get a bit more shading with other pen+paper combos; and dilution might open-up the ink just a bit to reveal shading that could be hiding.

 

Bye,

S1

[Sandy1]

Well, the new R2 certainly isn't anything like as 'teal' as the original, that's for sure.

I'll buy that! Actually, I already did.

"Blue-black" is in my own unhumble opinion a very personal matter, but hey! that's why we're all here!!

To get down to brass tacks, I myself find some blue-blacks too blue, others too black, maybe even too gray....

... but in the end anything is better than the old Diamine, which is for me really too teally.

 

Mike

+1

 

I don't have any clearly defined boundaries for Blue-Black inks, other than they must be Blue-centric. As I no longer give a rodent's rump about what name is given to an ink, I categorise inks as I choose; and encourage others to do the same. As we've seen, pen+paper+saturation can alter the perceived colour of an ink, so I defer to each person's opinion. (My perception of the Turquoise - Blue boundary is profoundly vague and inconsistent.)

 

Bye,

S1

[Sandy1]

Hi,

 

Here's few written comparisons in addition to those so graciously provided:

 

• Pen for all samples is the Platinum President Purist + [Asian] B nib. That pen is a bit dry and the nib a bit wide, so shading is encouraged; and it displays well on the monitor.
• Paper is Rhodia 80gsm, which also encourages shading.
• Originals are 60x30mm scanned at 150dpi. (Photo*ucket Beta is still not giving desired results.)

Ye Olde BlBk:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/YeOldPPPRh027_zps74b7dfaf.jpg

Da New R2:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/PPPRh024_zps477e9cff.jpg

 

Diamine Denim:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Diamine%20Blue-Black%20R2/DDenPPPRh025_zpsac116339.jpg

 

Bye,

S1

[Runnin_Ute]

My bottle arrives tomorrow from Goule, after trying it out of a sample vial. I found comparing with a couple of others I have tried that 54th Massachusetts was the "blackest", PelBlBl in the middle and This was the "bluest" of the 3. Maybe that was due to the pen I had it in (Phileas Medium) - at least in part. I used the 54th Mass in my AL Star (fine) and the 4001 BlBl in my Philieas fine.

[Sandy1]

My bottle arrives tomorrow from Goule, after trying it out of a sample vial. I found comparing with a couple of others I have tried that 54th Massachusetts was the "blackest", PelBlBl in the middle and This was the "bluest" of the 3. Maybe that was due to the pen I had it in (Phileas Medium) - at least in part. I used the 54th Mass in my AL Star (fine) and the 4001 BlBl in my Philieas fine.

 

Hi,

 

Thanks for sharing your experience with those three inks.

I agree with your relative description of them.

 

It is good to read that you liked the sample of R2 so much that you bought a bottle.

 

If you happen to use R2 on 'lowest bidder' paper, please let us know about the bleed- show-through. Such papers are quite inconsistent, so I'd appreciate a wider sampling than I can achieve.

 

Bye,

S1

[kpyeoman]

I bought one of the small bottles of DBlBk at the Ohio Pen Show in November. I was wondering if it was the new formula or not, but it seems to be the old one given that mine shades. I prefer the colour of the reformulation, but it's unfortunate that it lost the shading qualities. Seems more like a deep blue now rather than a blue black?

Hi,

 

The R2 version was released in the Summer of 2012, but hadn't made its stateside debut until October. I speculate that Distributors / Vendors were clearing ye olde version from their inventory prior to offering the R2 version at the retail level.

 

I agree that there is a greater Blue aspect to the R2 version, which to me makes it more of a Blue-Black than ye olde version, which had the unfortunate Teal aspect.

. . (I'd often mix some Royal Blue into ye olde version to off-set the Teal.)

 

I agree that the low[er] shading potential of the R2 is a bit of a disappointment, but I hope that I can get a bit more shading with other pen+paper combos; and dilution might open-up the ink just a bit to reveal shading that could be hiding.

 

Bye,

S1

 

I'm torn about whether to buy or not. I'm pretty sure the sample I got recently from Goulet's is R2, but it's pretty close to Majestic Blue that I own and quite enjoy.

[cedargirl]

That's a nice color.

And very thorough review.

Thank you