Noodlers Luxury Blue

[BalefireX]

http://pics.shorty.org/files/3/fpn2.jpg

 

The left half of this slip of paper was dipped in water for five minutes and swilled around... no visible bleeding.

http://pics.shorty.org/files/3/fpn3.jpg

 

The color of the first picture is more representative of the real color, at least on my monitor.

[zxc]

Thanks for the review. Looks much more...hmm...conservative than the original picture from djahughes and I can see no shading. Not an ink I'd invest in personally as I'm not that big a fan of blues as well.

[southpaw]

Thanks for the review and second opinion of this new ink.

[Guest Denis Richard]

Thank you for the review Mr.X

 

The sticky-ink syndrome is common to all the Noodler's waterproof blues I have tried, along with the dramatic color change when drying. You can add to that the "out-of-this-world" color while in the bottle.

[BalefireX]

It's an interesting ink really. Looking through the glass of the bottle, it's decidedly purple. However, the residue on the inside of the cap is a brilliant cerulean. Once on the paper and dry, it's a much deeper blue.

 

The dry color reminds me of the signature color used on documents with reproduced signatures (like letters to all customers from company presidents etc) which maybe was the intent, what with this being a bulletproof ink.

 

Here is a better sample of the color both from a Medium point and from a Q-tip (again, matched to my monitor)

 

http://pics.shorty.org/files/3/fpn4.jpg

[emrecan]

Hi Dr.X i mean Mr.X

Thanks for the nice review,nice scan and second opinion.Neat handwriting too.

 

Take Care,

Emrecan

[Bryan]

http://static.flickr.com/20/72536407_8b67d2982c_b.jpg

 

Written with my Conway Steward Elegance Deco Diamonds, Medium Italic.

 

For a larger image click here.

 

Bryan

Edited December 11, 2005 by Bryan

[southpaw]

http://static.flickr.com/c3a5.jpg

 

Written with my Conway Steward Elegance Deco Diamonds, Medium Italic.

 

For a larger image click here.

 

Bryan

The image isn't there, but the link was Bryan.

 

Thanks for the great review. I like the color of the ink. It looks like Aquamarine with a tint of Gulfstream Blue to tone it down. Nice to hear about the drying time as well.

 

At the price, I think I'll stick with the Aquamarine and Gulfstream, but nice to see another good ink from Nathan - even if a bit $ for me.

[BalefireX]

Bryan - your review is very interesting (wow high resolution picture!) because it seems that everyone who uses Lux Blue has a different experience! You say the ink isn't very saturated - from my pen it's far more saturated than it appears in your image. What pen/nib combination are you using? It dries reasonably slowly for me, as well, but my pen is quite a wet writer. I must say I envy the color and shading you're getting

[Bryan]

I should add that my CS write with about medium flow. This might explain why my sample looks less saturated and faster drying times. I usually like to have my pens write wet, I'll have to try this color in wetter writing pen...

 

Bryan

[kwinana]

This is the best blue I have ever used. Fanatastic colour, flows well and is water resistant. I like it because it does not have a purplish hue to it as do some other inks. Highly recommended. By the way ink creep occurs but is not a major issue for me!

[slimnib]

It the ink dries slowly try a blotter. I use one and it works nicely.

 

Harv

[wlwesq1]

I acquired a bottle of this in yesterday's mail and gave it the q-tip test last night. To me it's a very nice shade of blue, almost what I would call a federal blue.

 

I loaded up my Sheaffer Prelude fine point pen this morning. Definite sticking to the nib and in some spots a bit of a blue cast still after wiping the nib clean. The one thing I notice is that I'm getting ink seeping onto the nib from the space between the tines. Not sure whether it bothers me or not, but it's clear that the nib won't be staying clean.

 

I have some samples on the way from Pear Tree Pens, so I'm really looking forward to trying them.

[777]

I have a bottle of noodlers luxury blue and I wasn't very pleased with it. It may be waterproof but it's very um... picky about paper.

[pen2paper]

I acquired a bottle of this in yesterday's mail and gave it the q-tip test last night. To me it's a very nice shade of blue, almost what I would call a federal blue.

 

I loaded up my Sheaffer Prelude fine point pen this morning. Definite sticking to the nib and in some spots a bit of a blue cast still after wiping the nib clean. The one thing I notice is that I'm getting ink seeping onto the nib from the space between the tines. Not sure whether it bothers me or not, but it's clear that the nib won't be staying clean.

...

"The" nib creep.. to which I said, "Oh! so This is "nib creep"!

doesn't bother me a bit, since in every other aspect it is such a pleasant, easy on the eye, blue ink.. besides eternal.

that said, my bank cheque paper is horrific.. like dragging a framing nail through dry dirt-same with all inks.

there are so many nice paper choices at reasonable cost, that Lux Blue will remain my favorite for a long time.

[mateo44]

I mixed in just a bit of Noodler's bulletproof black with luxury blue, and really liked the result. Predictably, it's a bit darker, while retaining the nice, vintage blue color.

 

I have no clue about the proportions -- I'm running this mixture in a Pilot Varsity I refilled via syringe. I put in a few CCs of luxury blue, followed by just a few drops of BPB.

[farseer911]

My history with Lux Blue, I found it to be a washed out Denim color, while I liked it on the papers I was using, I did not enjoy the color as much as Polar Blue or Eclat De Saphir by J. Herbin. More Saturated...

[jsntsmth]

You are right on. When wet the color is wonderful only to "dry to drab". There are certainly better choices for an everyday blue

[tonybelding]

I can't resist adding my two cents here, because this is an ink I really really wanted to like, and I came back and tried it several times. I was always disappointed.

 

The good: It does dry fast, quite a bit faster than other Noodler's inks I've used. It's also a very pure shade of blue, not leaning towards purple or towards green. And, it's very permanent and waterproof.

 

The bad: It feathers and bleeds more than any other Noodler's ink I ever tried -- maybe more than any ink I've ever tried. It's only good with high grade paper.

Also, it's a weak, watery, faded color. (I don't know why the scan at the beginning of this article looks so dark?) If you prefer a soft, relaxed blue, like an old pair of jeans, then you might like it. If you want a saturated blue -- which I was always looking for -- then this isn't it. It sometimes looked good for me if I wrote on a really high-quality paper (that wouldn't feather) with a wet pen (so I could get enough ink on the page). For ordinary everyday use with typical pens and paper, it wasn't what I was looking for.

 

I did eventually find the blue I was looking for, in the form of Noodler's Texas Blue Bonnet, even though it also has a few quirks that sometimes annoy me.

[fabrimedeiros]

I can't resist adding my two cents here, because this is an ink I really really wanted to like, and I came back and tried it several times. I was always disappointed.

 

The good: It does dry fast, quite a bit faster than other Noodler's inks I've used. It's also a very pure shade of blue, not leaning towards purple or towards green. And, it's very permanent and waterproof.

 

The bad: It feathers and bleeds more than any other Noodler's ink I ever tried -- maybe more than any ink I've ever tried. It's only good with high grade paper.

Also, it's a weak, watery, faded color. (I don't know why the scan at the beginning of this article looks so dark?) If you prefer a soft, relaxed blue, like an old pair of jeans, then you might like it. If you want a saturated blue -- which I was always looking for -- then this isn't it. It sometimes looked good for me if I wrote on a really high-quality paper (that wouldn't feather) with a wet pen (so I could get enough ink on the page). For ordinary everyday use with typical pens and paper, it wasn't what I was looking for.

 

I did eventually find the blue I was looking for, in the form of Noodler's Texas Blue Bonnet, even though it also has a few quirks that sometimes annoy me.

 

Tonybelding, I agree! I've been using Luxury Blue for 2 weeks now, and it disappointed me. It seems Luxury Blue has changed last 5 years.

Polar Blue is quite similar, but it feathers crazy! Even on my Rhodia paper, Clairefontaine and Oxford.

Edited July 6, 2010 by fabrimedeiros