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I have a couple of Cross Solos. They're nice pens. The first one (Red, F nib) was from an estate sale of a friend of mine who had died suddenly, and (once I figured out which style converter to get for it) is a nice writer (and is a nice memento of my friend). Then I picked up a light blue one (B nib) a few years ago at OPS (when they still were at the old site). Keep hoping that someday I'll luck into a yellow one and a purple one (by the time I got back to the table where I got the blue Solo, it was the only one the guy had left). I remember reading somewhere that they were made for Cross in Japan but don't remember now if by Pilot or Sailor. Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

pour that tequila

Here are some shots I snapped of my Asvine P36.

My pen of the day is a Pilot Prera Iro-Ai with green ends, and a CM nib, filled with Levenger Always Greener.

So far today it's been the Sheaffer Star Wars Pop R2-D2 pen, M nib, still with diluted vintage Skrip V-Black; and the Parker Vector Shrek Puss in Boots pen, M nib, newly refilled with Robert Oster Bishop to King (which, interestingly enough, has become fully purple in the bottle now -- when I first got the ink, it would go down cerulean blue and then color shift, and seemed to vary on how fast it would shift to purple depending on the paper...). Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth edited for typos

Thanks a lot 🙏 Thanks! I'm seriously thinking of giving this ink another chance. Maybe I'lll do a redux, just to make sure

Well, I guess that would be a no-brainer if you were to ever be a guest on The Late Show and doing "The Colbert Questionnaire"....

A pleasure, I thought you'd be interested as you do often monochromatic art to show case different layers of the ink. It's quite fun. Some even fill the water brushes with different ratios of water/ ink ( I still haven't done that). I've realized one has to use pens with wet/ wide feeds to draw enough ink. I sometimes have to resort by putting the brush directly in the convertor (if the pen is dry) to achieve different gradients of colour

I can confirm that Pilot is releasing a <S> (Signature) nib for the C823. My thread in the Japanese pen forum has photos of this nib. I have asked a Pilot vendor to have his nib technician evaluate it for me, if they get one in. David

I’m assuming this is likely an English J, or possibly a later Relief, but I’ve never seen one like it before, so was interested in anything more I can learn about it, what year, model name, etc. is anyone familiar with these? The shape and feel is similar to a J, with gold plated furniture. The imprint is:“Esterbrook” (nothing else) “Made in England” It has a (later?) Relief nib - which tells us little really. Overall a pleasant pen that reminds me of both its better known siblings!

Oh, you'll like it, I think. It's very complex. Brown, greyish brown, greenish brown, murky green - it can't make up it's mind! (Of course, it's also quite dark, so I'm not sure how well you'll like that part, but I think you'll enjoy the complexity.)

@yazeh thanks for this wonderful review of an exotic ink. I can’t think of a good use-case for writing with such an ink, but it sure is amazing for drawing, as you illustrate so well with your polar bear pics. The effect you get is something like a cyanotype drawing … quite lovely! In this case I would definitely choose the DA ink … much whiter (unless there was indeed something wrong with your sample).

Thank you all for the nice and encouraging comments. Looks intriguing … I will have to take a look at R&K Sepia. I haven’t tried many of their inks, but the ones I used were all good-looking and performed well. And a grey-brown mutation… that’s something difficult to resist. I haven’t really experimented with water brushes yet, but seems like something to look into. I’ve noticed that there are a fair bit of youtube videos out there discussing the technique. I will take a closer look at those to get an idea of how that stuff works. Thanks for the tip.

Famous Ukrainian actor Mykola Yakovchenko in the role of the Cossack Shevchyk, from a photo from 1963. (Andrew Lensky custom to Pilot Falcon w|custom SUEF nib, Taccia Nakabayashi Ukiyo-E II, Double A(A4)) Full review: (ground SF to SUEF modern) Pilot Namiki Falcon GT | Andrew Lensky | design | photography | writing tools (lenskiy.org)

Thanks! This was gifted to me by a generous FPNer. I remember your review of Bayou Nightfall - a very intriguing color! Inks are always more fun when there's some complexity to them. Nope. Darker, wetter, or at least better lubricated are preferred, but I'll review any ink anyone wants to send me, and sometimes, I like the challenge. (When someone says it won't work in an EF, I feel the need to test their theory - so many misperceptions exist about EF nibs - but I also enjoy being contrary just for fun! )

Pilot Falcon <SF> 14K nib Ground to <SUEF> Detailed: (ground SF to SUEF modern) Pilot Namiki Falcon GT | Andrew Lensky | design | photography | writing tools (lenskiy.org)

You're very welcome! Don't we all - it's that time of year! I'm afraid I agree, though - Caran d'Ache Delicate Green or Robert Oster Green Lime are my choice for this bright spring green. And there are plenty of others, should one want a slightly different hue... Hope you enjoy! Tell us what green you chose!

A nice surprise to see this ink in the EFNIR series, good choice @LizEF. This is one of my favourites from the Papier Plume New Orleans Collection of inks, together with Bayou Nightfall. I know these inks are on the dry side, but they have so much depth and complexity that I can totally live with that. In my opinion, they are not a perfect match for the EF nib, but look at their best in much broader nibs where they open up more.

Hi, I am pretty new to the forum. Found it while I was searching how to fix my Pelikan M200 pen which was damages in "man in the middle" type of random attack. I am very fond of fountain pens since my elementary school. My parents had few lying around while I was a kid they didn't use so I started pretty early. One of them was an old Pelikan, traditional style. I have no idea what happened to it over the years. That would be a nice find. In the meantime, I use M200 daily. Mario.

Thanks for the review @LizEF - I need me some spring colour in my life at this time. Looks a nice yellow-green to me, but not special enough to put it on the wish list. On the other hand, this review makes me decide to put some green inks in my pens, and experience that spring feeling for myself.

Using two Shaeffers today: 1) a blue, fine Tuckaway with Birmingham Locomotive ink 2) a black Saratoga with a medium Triumph nib with Organics studio Blue Crab ink being carried around in a new pen case I crocheted.

Two weeks from now I should look and hope....thanks.