Noodler's Zhivago

[fstop22]

Since my wife bought me a new nib for one of my fountain pens at Christmas, I have been slowly going through my inks trying them out to see which ones work best with it. Here's my experience with Noodler's Zhivago comparing the Parker Duofold Centennial with medium italic nib to a Lamy Safari with a broad nib. Of course they are vastly different in price but both are a pleasure to write with.

 

I have had to redo the colours from the scanner in photoshop to make them true to the paper.

[Pippin60]

Thanks for the review. I tried a sample of Zhivago and ended up ordering a bottle. On my Safari with an italic nib it appears almost black, much darker than your scan. I prefer it darker, its kind of grown on me.

Edited March 3, 2009 by Pippin60

[PS104]

Thank you for the review

Zhivago is definitely on my "to get" list now. It's a nice shade of green

Your handwriting is beautiful

Thank you for the hand-written review

[chkuo]

Thanks for the review, your handwriting is a pleasure to read. The color/shading looks very good, I'll have to try it sometime.

[pmsalty]

Very nice review. I've always wondered about Zhivago, now I know! You have very nice handwriting! with envy!

PMS

[limesally]

Your Zhivago looks way nicer than my Zhivago, which is mostly black with just a hint of green

 

But, thank you for your review - it looks beautiful and I love your handwriting.

PS - are you sure it's not waterproof? Or maybe we just have different definitions - some green will lift off mine when submerged in water, but the black part stays behind.

Edited March 3, 2009 by limesally

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@limesally I have just checked and Zhivago is labelled "semi" permanent. I have just wet some handwriting from earlier today and the ink stays on the paper and is quite sharp, though gets lighter, with a smudge where the lighter colours wash off.

 

I need to have a look at the colours of the scan again at home on my high resolution monitor as my work one is pretty flat.

[drifting]

Wow! As others have said, my Zhivago looks nothing like this! Mine is more a green tinted black, and yours looks very close to Herbin Vert Empire in the top part of the review, and maybe Green Marine in the bottom.

 

Once again, great handwriting, interesting review!

 

Ryan.

Edited March 3, 2009 by drifting

[drifting]

The colour discrepancy got me to thinking about the first time I filled a pen with Noodler's Bulletproof Black which, at the time, was considered by many on FPN to be the blackety blackest black around: it hit the page a washed out gray. Then I shook the bottle. Major improvement in colour. Now shaking Noodler's inks before filling my pens is such a habit, I don't even think about it.

 

So, the long and the short of it is, have you shaken the bejeezuz out of your Noodler's today?

 

The other alternatives are a colour reformulation, which would be disappointing, or a wonky batch, which would be unfortunate for you. Hope it's just dye separation, especially if you were looking for that dark dark green!

 

Ryan.

[fstop22]

Thanks to you all for your comments. Thanks to Ryan for his advice to shake the bottle and then do it again, which I did last night and refilled my pen. Straight out of the bottle the ink is almost black, most likely due to the concentrated volume. Once the pen I am using here has resumed a normal ink flow the colour is more true to the original samples I saw and bought the ink from.

[drifting]

THAT looks like the Zhivago I know and love!

 

Ryan.

[Peter from Sherwood Park]

Thank you for the review. I think this is one that I will have to try for myself. All of the scans I have seen are interesting, but how will it appear for me in my pens? Only one way to find out!

[Pippin60]

Thanks to you all for your comments. Thanks to Ryan for his advice to shake the bottle and then do it again, which I did last night and refilled my pen. Straight out of the bottle the ink is almost black, most likely due to the concentrated volume. Once the pen I am using here has resumed a normal ink flow the colour is more true to the original samples I saw and bought the ink from.

 

Yep, this is my Zhivago also.

[scribbler77]

My Zhivago comes out, with every pen I've used it in, as a slightly greenish black. To get something close to the shade in your test, I mix it 3 parts Zhivago with one part Hunter Green. This gives me a dark olive. Of course, I shake them all before filling.

[mr mobius]

Would of been nice to see how the ink looked when written with the Lamy pen after you shook it for all its worth. Especially as it looked like it was much darker with the Lamy in sample one.

 

Moby

[WendyNC]

Yep, the second example looks like mine. I love this stuff.

[oberon]

Out of my Lamy 2000 BB nib it is a good bit darker.

Oberon

[psfred]

I have always found Zhivago to be almost black in most pens. Only in my kit pen with a very wide medium nib is it anything like green, and the nit's not that "leaf green", rather a dark, murky green.

 

I do like it, should use it more (I have both too many inks and too many pens -- and too many watches -- alas).

 

Peter

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@ Mr Mobius, the repost with the Lamy section was from a Lamy Safari with a broad nib. It was from a filling when the bottle had been well shaken. I just find this ink - like Forrest Gump would say .. it's like a box of chocolates... you never know what you are going to get!! I have to say I haven't used this ink since this post as have discovered Mount Blanc's British Racing Green.