I recently got a bottle of Noodler's eternal brown which has been quite nice and survived a dunk test just fine.
One interesting aspect of the ink though is that it is very comforting to me to know that my writing is not going anywhere. There's just something about the writing being truly permanent that creates a feeling of safety or at least that this is real.
Maybe this is just because of personal insecurity but it's still interesting. The only problem is that now I hate to use my parker quink or any other non-waterproof ink because it lacks this permanent feeling.
Anybody else notice this effect?
Full Version: Waterproof inks being comforting
How long have you been using fountain pens and how often have you lost work because you're ink wasn't waterproof?
I my highschool years I wrote with Pelikan blue almost all the time. In those 6 years exactly one accident happened, a teacher spilled some coffee on my paper while marking it. You could still read what was underneath the coffee stain.
Sure, waterproof ink is nice and has its advantages. But if you look at it realistically, normal ink is just fine for most things.
I my highschool years I wrote with Pelikan blue almost all the time. In those 6 years exactly one accident happened, a teacher spilled some coffee on my paper while marking it. You could still read what was underneath the coffee stain.
Sure, waterproof ink is nice and has its advantages. But if you look at it realistically, normal ink is just fine for most things.
I think it depends a lot on your lifestyle and work environment (I've also read geographic location, like Seattle, can be an influence).
I work in a lab, so water is always on my hands. I pour and drink multiple cups of tea a day, and have a moustache which tends to harvest drops of liquid to later rain them on a page. I have had way more than one (maybe more like thirty) wetting accidents, and I've only been FP'ing for a year.
But yes, who can deny that the water-resistant blues are more vibrant than the out-of-the-bottle eternals? See DennisU's recent experiments with mixing both sorts of inks to obtain a very lovely and practical ink. Mixing is the way to go.
I work in a lab, so water is always on my hands. I pour and drink multiple cups of tea a day, and have a moustache which tends to harvest drops of liquid to later rain them on a page. I have had way more than one (maybe more like thirty) wetting accidents, and I've only been FP'ing for a year.
But yes, who can deny that the water-resistant blues are more vibrant than the out-of-the-bottle eternals? See DennisU's recent experiments with mixing both sorts of inks to obtain a very lovely and practical ink. Mixing is the way to go.
| QUOTE (vermillionpart4 @ Mar 14 2007, 10:14 AM) |
| I recently got a bottle of Noodler's eternal brown which has been quite nice and survived a dunk test just fine. One interesting aspect of the ink though is that it is very comforting to me to know that my writing is not going anywhere. There's just something about the writing being truly permanent that creates a feeling of safety or at least that this is real. Maybe this is just because of personal insecurity but it's still interesting. The only problem is that now I hate to use my parker quink or any other non-waterproof ink because it lacks this permanent feeling. Anybody else notice this effect? |
I absolutely feel this way, and have chided myself in other posts for this exact reason. There are very few realistic reasons when I really should use permanent ink. Actually I can only think of one: when a customer gets an official bank check (certified funds) and I have to sign to approve the check as a representative of the bank. Really that is about it. Because its crazy what people do with their checks, and I'd hate for a touch of rain to wash away my signature if I felt like signing it in WFB.
What is important to me is that an ink be fade proof. I sign and initial lots of documents and papers that get thrown in a box for a minimum of two years, again, bank stuff. So far as I know, PR inks and Pelikan inks are fade proof.
HAVING SAID THAT, right now I am on a serious bulletproof kick. I'm using Noodlers Black and Legal Lapis. Which is fine, because I actually like those colors. All things taken into consideration, Noodlers Black is my favorite ink, because it is dark, rich, and bulletproof. But when I want a beautiful blue, I ain't reachin' for Legal Lapis. I'm reaching for PR American Blue!
And bulletproof'ness be damned! 
It only takes one episode of having a bunch of work wash away in a spill to persuade most people water resistant ink is a good idea. Back in the bad old days before BP, a lot of people used pencil for documents that might get wet, as most inks were somewhat less that waterproof. BP ink is somewhat more water resistant than the majority of FP ink, and there is also the conundrum -- permanent waterproof ink so that what's written doesn't wash away, but also permanent on clothing, so the inevitable ink leak ruins a nice shirt. In those days, shirts were pretty pricey, so it wasn't a theoretical problem.
I've had way too many lab books get wet over the years to risk using non-water resistant ink, and to my delight, I found that Noodlers Bulletproofs (especially Black and Luxury blue) write nicely on WET paper. A bit light, but no running or smearing, quite handy when I need to label wet samples out of a cooler.
Peter
I've had way too many lab books get wet over the years to risk using non-water resistant ink, and to my delight, I found that Noodlers Bulletproofs (especially Black and Luxury blue) write nicely on WET paper. A bit light, but no running or smearing, quite handy when I need to label wet samples out of a cooler.
Peter
I also have that feeling of security when using Noodler's Black. I have to write in patient charts using ink and having the permanency is a nice feature. The same goes for signatures and other legal documents. Granted, I don't need permanent ink for 90% of my daily writing, but it does make my life more convenient to only need carry one pen for all my daily writing. If I don't want my writing to stay put, then I use a pencil.
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