What would be a good fade test to perform on the inks I have at my disposal? Eight hours direct sunlight? More? Less?

I put a note in my window for two months the last time I did a fade test (in winter) and I think it should at least be one month.

Great questions, I went back to notes I made about 10 years ago in old notebooks that were nothing special in terms of paper. The ink was Mont Blanc blue. These notes were opened and closed many times, but never left in direct sunlight for any length of time. The ink looks fine without noticeable fading. Not a "test" per say, but 10 years of reality and holding.

I journaled in the 1950s (I was a crummy kid then). I used the Skrip washable blue the nuns made us use in our Sheaffer school pens. The journal has been folded up in a desk drawer all this time, room temperature and dark. It has almost faded away to illegibility.

In an effort to find a good journaling ink, I tested my ink collection several ways: in the desk drawer; in a sunny window, on a porch, exposed to the elements; on a sheltered porch. Some of the tests went for five months. I have posted the results in other threads.

Some inks show fading in a week or two, depending on latitude and time of year. I have tested no ink that will fade noticeably in eight hours -- maybe if you stick it to the outside of the space station . . .

Of course, my torture tests don't necessarily predict what a given ink will do in actual use. I just assume they do.

Paddler

Paddler,
Do you have links to any of the other threads? This is a subject that's been on my mind...I've been going back through some journals from only about ten years ago, back when I got my first inexpensive cartridge fountain pen. These journals have been closed up, away from sunlight, but the pages on which I used that pen are faded to the point where some almost look like they were never used. I had no idea that ink did that, and now it worries me - I've been using mostly fountain pens for my journals these past few years. Some are done with Noodler's bullet proof inks, but plenty of others are done with Waterman inks or Private Reserve. I'd hate for all those entries to just vanish! But if it's too late for those, at least I can plan ahead and not use easily-fading ink for longterm documents in the future.

Elizabeth

I find some inks fade more readily than others, iron galls often fade to 1/3 their original over two months of direct sunlight (12 to 18 hours a day during the summer). You should see the state of the paper!

Nothing that noticeable on the Private Reserve inks I've tested over 4 months. Noodler's seems the best though, with no change at all that I can tell, even after 12 months.

I currently have some Quink Black that I'm testing with no noticeable results as of yet.

Kris

I think if I were making a sign to go outside, I would use house paint, not a fountain pen. That's what I've done for lawn art plywood shapes.

Elizabeth,

I don't have links to those threads. Sorry. They would be scattered through the last 18 months of the Inky Thoughts forum.

Some of the best that I've tested:

Levenger's cobalt blue. This is extremely resistant to UV light. It is not water resistant at all. Some people report a tendency to smear even after it is dry. I have not had this problem.

Levenger's Raven Black and Levenger's Amethyst survived five months on an unprotected porch (direct sun and indirect rain). The Amethyst turned green but was still legible.

J. Herbin's Encre Noire. This is very fade resistant. It is also water resistant. I have journaled with this stuff and dip pens for years.

Waterman black survived four months of summer sun in good shape - minimal fading. It was legible after an 18 hour soak in cold tap water. Four months on an unprotected porch (full sun and indirect rain) washed it out.

Quink blue black fades quickly and washes out easily.

Sheaffer blue (cartridges made in Slovenia) and permanent black Quink survived 52 days on an unprotected porch. They faded, but were still very legible.

I haven't been able to make Noodler's bulletproof inks fade or wash out.

I haven't tested any Private Reserve inks.

Paddler

FWIW, it has always been my understanding that if you want fade resistance, black ink.

For fade tests I would write out a few lines on note paper for the inks testing and tape it up to the window. I would also guess it would take several months to get a decent test going.

You could take it to a tanning booth.