First, I'd like to say what a great program the Ink Sampler is, you get to try out inks you're unsure of, and when you're done with the samples, you have the startings of a neat little ink mixing kit, perfect for converter-fed pens, or a convenient way of bringing ink reloads to work without trucking around an entire bottle, I'll definitely be ordering more samples, oh, and the eyedropper bottles are highly reccomended, it's worth the extra charge
The ink sampler program has definitely paid for itself in my case, as I've found that I absolutely love one of the samples, and discovered I'm not a fan of one of the other samples......
So, the inks reviewed are;
Blue Ghost; as a technician/flashlight fanatic, the sheer "gadget factor" of this ink appealed greatly to me, it's not the most practical ink, in fact, it's decidedly *IM*practical, but yet, I *LOVE* it, the fact that I have an ink that *requires* the use of a UV flashlight in order to make it visible is a great novelty factor, I'm also thinking of the many ways I could use this at work to both annoy and confound my co-workers, if I wasn't afraid of them damaging my pen, I could hand my clear Waterman Kultur loaded with NBG (gotta' love a clear pen filled with invisible ink
) and watch their perplexed faces as the pen "doesn't write", only, moments later shine my UV MiniMag across what they've just written, *OR* make nasty notes about jerkish, prima-donna customers on workorders....."Customer is an absolute jerk, should only get the bare minimum service to restore his machine to functionality"
there's nothing subtle about NBG, no shading or different line weights, it simply *IS*, the photos of NBG on Nathan's website are also slightly deceptive, it shows NBG as a drab, grayish-blue under UV lighting, it's *actually* a vivid electric blue, almost bluish-white, on plain paper or index card stock, it's a very striking ink, and remarkably well behaved, no feathering on index card stock or even cheap notepad paper that Old Manhattan feathers on, normal "brightened" copy paper seriously reduces the visual impact of this ink, it's best used on plain paper
a thouroughly impractical ink, yet incredibly fun, I *WILL* be ordering a bottle of this, just for the novelty factor alone
10/10 for the cool factor, 2/10 for practicality, adjusted score 8/10
Habanero this one I ordered on a whim, it seemed to be an interesting orangey-red (or reddish-orange?), I haven't inked up a pen with it yet, but I did drag the edge of the eyedropper pippette on the paper, it's a nice orangey line, but nothing particularly impressive, a good solid orange ink, but I really don't know how often I'll be needing an orange ink.....
okay, I mocked up a "Dip Pen" with an Apple pry tool (black plastic stick), and tried Habanero, and it's a *great* ink, nice orangey-red, good shading and color variation, this ink has a presence and personality that's just unique, it'd be a great "fun" ink, I may have to ink up one of my pens with this sometime
7.5/10, a good, fun ink
Hunter Green This one was also swipe-tested, and I wasn't impressed, it's a thick, viscous ink, absolutely *loaded* with pigments, it *IS* well behaved, doesn't feather on card stock, but it's, if anything, too *dark*, on the "dip pen" however, it took on a different feel, an almost grayish-green, a distinct "mossy" look, not bad, not bad at all, I don't hate it as much as I did originally, it's not a bad ink, just not the vivid green I was expecting, it cane out a little more "drab" than expected
This ink also flouresces when hit by UV light on plain (non brightened) paper, it doesn't flouresce on brightened paper, it appears to have three ink components making up the color on the swipe test, there seems to be a distinct yellowish cast showing through the green, almost like Year of the Golden Pig, and a distinct "corona" of what appears to be Blue Ghost, manifesting as a bluish "aura" at the edge of the swipe, visible only under UV illumination, under UV, normal writing widths appear almost identical to Blue Ghost, a similar "electric blue" component
I'd guess the reason for Hunter Green's thickness is the mix of at least two bulletproof UV reactive colors, perhaps three, if I was to guess, Hunter is a mix of Year of the Golden Pig, Blue Ghost, and perhaps Luxury Blue
of the four inks recieved, Hunter Green is the only one that *still* visibly coats the sides of the glass bottle after an hour or so of sitting undisturbed, both Habanero and Fox red have clear glass above the ink
I'm not sure if I'd buy Hunter Green, yes it's flourescence under UV is interesting, but the overall color is generally dull and uninspiring, it's not a bad ink, just not for me
7.0/10, a basic, solid (if mundane) ink
Fox Red
another interesting bulletproof ink from Noodler's, in the bottle it appears as a deep, dark blood red, but on paper, it ranges from a vaguely rust-ish red (for wet writing) to an almost pinkish red with dry writers, it's just too light for me, I want a deep, vivid, blood red
7.0/10
Final ranking (favorite to least favorite)
First place; Blue Ghost, thoroughly impractical, but *fun*
Second Place; Habanero (a complete surprise here)
Third place; Hunter Green (flourescence gains it points)
Fourth place; Fox Red (too pinkish for my taste)
Once again, thanks to Pear Tree for a brilliant ink sampler program, I'll definitely be ordering some Blue Ghost, and Habanero, but I'll pass on Fox Red and Hunter Green
