I'm looking for a red. A really really red.

Not red black,
Not red with a shade of pink
Not brownish red

Red.

I may get sampler of a few to get a better choice.

I'd like your recommendation. I'm not giving the ones already on my list to really get your impressions!

Thanks!

nick

PS: The more I post about ink, the bigger the price of my next order! I'll have to stop posting!

Well I like and use this one, and it's bulletproof too.

http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=51375

It's a very pure red (to my eye) without being excessively bright.

Private Reserve Fiesta Red is the only red that I have. It is a deep, dark, blood red. I like it.

Waterman Red impresses me each time I see it - a solid, pure middle red with no modifiers (to my eye).

I really like Montblanc Red. I use it when I want to make a point while grading papers...

Erick

I spent some time/effort/money in pursuit of a really bright leap-off-the-page can't-be-overlooked red to use when editing others' work and have always been disappointed (there are plenty of nice deep respectable reds suitable for just writing with); some, such as Waterman Red, look exactly right while wet, but as they dry become increasingly drab. The closest I've come is the so-called red-orange here: http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...40629&st=30 You have to mix it yourself, but that's easy enough and requires only two colours. No hint of pink, nor of brown, not drab, just a really bright, noisy red that loses none of its punch when dry.

Simon

Yes, it depends on the use you have in mind for it. The Fox Red I recommended is a great "Christmas Red" for writing cards and letters. But if I were grading papers I'd probably look for a brighter red, something leaning towards pinkish red that was very "hot" and jumped off the page.

For your consideration:




This is quite a bit larger than true size (obviously). Color is pretty close on my monitor, and just looks like regular ol' red at normal size.

I second Nikita. Good stuff, really red.

Kiavonne, can you repost that pic in the Nikita thread? It would be nice to show the writing sample, as the comparison there with devil red (now known as "Djinn of the Eternal Flame") didn't include a written sample. This is very interesting about the Nikita ink. I thought it might be pale, but in fact it looks dark. Have you tried it in a variety of pens yet?

My vote is for Skrip Red (a little on the yellow side), or Widowmaker (a little on the bluer side), but both are definitely reds, not specialty-reds like Monaco Red (a bit rusty) and Caran d'Ache Sunset (a bit pinkish). The last two are GREAT inks but not what you're looking for.

I haven't tried Levenger Cardinal Red, but it sounds like a very good ink, perhaps the one you want, if you don't go for that Nikita (I would! I have too many reds!)

Here's a link to our Waterman Red review. I use this one and also Sheaffer Slovenian Red, which is a bright, true red and one of the least expensive.

Best, Ann

Wow, that is nice red. Reminds me of red velvet. I'll have to look into that one.

People have such different approaches to the red question that it might be a good idea for me to start my response by telling you what I did not choose. For a while, I was using J. Herbin's Rouge Caroubier. It is a perfect red color, the most down the middle real red I tried. But because it has a traditional saturation level, i.e., light to moderate, it did not "pop" like the red I was looking for. So, for me, a "really really red" is not just hue but also saturation. After a while, since I don't like Noodler's inks for various reasons I won't go into here, I wound up with two prime contenders: One is Diamine Monaco Red. It's a beautiful color, somewhere between cardinal red and printer's red, with the slightest hint of orange. But it is about as non-water resistant as something can get, so I keep looking for alternatives, but for color and saturation it's great. I tried PR's Burgundy Mist, because I was looking for a good burgundy. It seemed an excellent red (Burgundy Mist is a misleading name, one of PR's classic guitar names). Fiesta Red might also be a good choice; I haven't tried it, but it gets consistent mention around here.

Done.

I also posted:


At normal size, this is a fine point and this red looks like a regular red, such as you might find from a roller ball, maybe. It appears to me as a red. Just red. No orange, no pink, no brown. Just red.

I haven't tried it in any other pens, yet, I like the one it's in - the Preppy. Good for marking/editing. Does stand out.

My 2 cents, anyway.

I concentrate Waterman Red (which looks slightly magenta normally, to my eyes) and it's quite a nice dark red.

Around Christmastime, I ordered some Noodler's Empire Red, to address Christmas cards. Even though it is bulletproof, I'm not very pleased with the color. It seems a little washed out and drab. I did some more research, and next week, some Widow Maker will arrive.

It seems that all of the bulletproof inks are somewhat sedate or subdued. None of them are lively or electric. The liveliest one I know of is Hunter Green and it has a fluorescent component that might account for that, but even it is nowhere near what I'd call "bright".

Maybe this is just a fact of life with the bulletproof chemistry? If so, that's okay with me because for me the bulletproofness trumps the other characteristics. Colors is just icing on the cake.

I like Noodler's Widowmaker. It's a little on the dark side (it's not orange tinged).

In my eyes Parker Quink Red looks like true red without non-red undertones.

Caran d'Ache Colours of the Earth Sunset is noticeably pinkish. Sheaffer Skrip Red (Made in Slovenia) reacts with paper in a weird way: It becomes brownish.

Levenger Cardinal Red might be worth look.

Sheaffer Red

MB red

Or buy both and mix them together!

Kurt

Renzhe, what do you mean "concentrate Waterman Red?" What does it do to the color? Thanks.

The near-middle-spectrum reds that also "pop up," that I know of, are

Private Reserve Dakota Red (middle-spectrum, which Fiesta Red is not; the pen must be flushed if this ink dries up in the feed channel, but flushing does work)

New Sheaffer Skrip Red (my favorite; member juhtolv reports it reacts and turns brown on some paper, and I've noticed that once or twice myself)

Do any of the Noodler's reds "pop?" I like Noodler's standard Red, but does it pop enough for you?

Waterman Red

Diamine Passion Red

Levenger Cardinal

Edit: Kurt, how much does MB Red pop?

Levenger Cardinal Red is the only red I have, and I think it qualifies as "really, really red." There is a scan somewhere in the ink reviews and scans that I posted about a year ago.

Only downside -- it is scared of water.

Agree....and based on those earlier reviews, I picked up Levenger Cardinal Red, and it is the richest pure red of any of the 9 reds I have. Two that are close to it, and respectable are Caran d'Ache Sunset & Montblanc's Love Letter Red. Widow Maker Red is a bit darker, almost like a trace of purple. Empire Red is a chalky almost faded out kind of red. Fox Red has a brick/orange hue.

Thanks all!

It seems that there are 3 colors that many agree
Waterman Red
Levenger Cardinal Red
Noodlers Nikita.

I'll have to investigate all 3!