Since I have been looking for a new blue ink, I decided to take advantage of Pear Tree Pens Sample Program
I ordered samples of the following inks
Diamine WES Imperial Blue
Visconti Blue
Private Reserve DC Super Show Blue
Noodlers Baystate Blue...

Here is a scanned sampling of the inks, each swabbed with a Qtip and then written with a clean Esterbrook nib on a Rhodia 5x5 pad...
I have to say the Baystate Blue looks like a real winner to be... it really pops off the page when dry..
The swab and writing sample were scanned then color corrected to my monitor with Photoshop CS3

Click to view attachment

What shocks me is how similar the q-tip test looks on all 4. I wonder if that's just the scan on my system or if the q-tip test really is of questionable use. I can discern differences in the writing samples quite readily.

Bay State looks outstanding (so glad I ordered a bottle), but this just shows me once more that I have to get some of that Visconti ink. The blue and the burgundy are both really great colors from what I have seen.

I have noticed the same thing.... I have always found the written sample to be so different from the qtip swab... especially if you use fine nibs like I do...
Somewhere I remember reading about doing the swap with a 1/4" wide piece of thick paper dipped about 1/2' into the ink
I might try that the next time...

Do you have any idea how water resistant the Visconti is?

Thanks for the scans, especially of the Bayside Blue. It looks like it may replace DC Supershow Blue as my new favorite blue ink!

The Q-tip scans look pretty distinctive on my monitor and I find them quite useful. Similar shades in fine or XF nibs are what I have trouble differentiating. Plus, I have lots of 3B nibs, so the big strokes are closer to the color I'll end up with. I think Ann had a good point recommending addressing various nib sizes in an ideal review. Still, the Q-tip and fine nibs are a nice range and I'm grateful that you've taken the time to share them.

Yeah, the line from the Q-tip looks much different from the pen writing, except for Baystate Blue (the only one that totally masks the lines of the paper). They seem to go like this: if you want shading, go with PR DC Supershow. If you want something that's bold and jumps out from the page, go with Noodler's Baystate Blue. If you want something in the middle, go with Diamine Wes Imperial or Visconti Blue.

Thanks Tom - I think that I will be getting a bottle of Visconti blue.

I have just changed the colour settings for my iBook and am experiencing a whole new world of colour rendering!

Chris

I am rather liking the look of the Visconti blue...plus you get the fantastic visconti bottle...