Hi.
Generally I read reviews before making purchases, but I went to my local store to pick up a Waterman International Piston-Filler Converter and I needed some Permanent Blue-Black ink. As many of you already know, I can only get pen branded inks from them. Like so, the only available was the MontBlack (expensive as well <_< ). Anyway, I got a bottle of it (it's cheaper here than the US RRP as in MontBlanc's Refills website), and when I got home I loaded up FPN to check if there was any reviews of it... And I'm socked as it seems that, even though it IS permanent, it is very acidic (not good for nibs, at least SS ones). I'm now afraid of loading it on any of my pens
I have the 75 loaded up, same with the Esprit and the Senator (with other inks). This ink was supposed to go to the Genius that features an IPG, but some of you said there are many IPG fakes, so no Iridium at all on these (not sure if mine is a true IPG or not though). I'm concerned about corrosion as this pen's materials aren't that good...
Any thoughts on this matter? What should I do? To ink or not to ink (I won't blame you )?
Regards,

maia

EDIT: correction that could lead to confusion :doh:

I'd ink up -- well, I have -- but wash out the pen after use. Immediately after use.

I think that acidity can defeat the purpose of a permanent ink, since I hear rumours that it can eat its way through paper. I also don't find it madly exciting as an ink. But if I ever have occasion to write on parchment, I'll remember it.

Best

Michael

You mean between refills, right? (after the converter runs out of ink, fill it with water and let it come out the number of times necessary for it to come clean.)

Mont Blanc says to flush your pen every 4 weeks when using the permanent blue black.
I've used it without any problem despite longer intervals between flushings.

Regards,
J

I was thinking of before putting it away for a while. Jeen's suggestion to follow the manufacturer's recommended procedure is a good one. I think the chief point would be not to let it sit with the ink in it for any length of time.

Best

Michael

Acidity is an interesting topic because I read a couple websites of well-informed-seeming older gentlemen who concluded that acidity does not, indeed, do anything to harm most modern fountain pens when used responsibly, id est following manufacturers' instructions; flushing and whatnot.

When I'm in the permanent blue-black mode, this is the ink I reach for, as long as I'm using a fairly wet writer (it's a fairly dry flowing ink). This is my favorite permanent blue-black. I've never had even a hint of problem with it clogging, staining, skipping, etc. However, I do flush my pens out after 3 or 4 weeks of use, regardless of the ink I'm using.

Ok, will load the pen tomorrow morning /:)

Just to add a comment. The acidity of this ink is not its greatest problem. It is the particles in the ink. The main reason for cleaning the pen every so often, is to make sure you don't end up with a pen that dried out, or has such a high concentration of particles due to evaporation, that deposits form on the feed.

Rember, it is a permanent ink. And unlike Noodler's permanent inks, it doesn't only bond to cellulose, but to virtually any material. Let it dry out in a pen, and it may destroy the feed.

It is a very nice Blue Black, IMO, so use it, but do use it with care.

Warm regards, Wim

Okay, here comes the dumb question: how do you know that this ink is so acidic? Does it give the pH on the bottle and I never noticed?

I use quite a few pens with stainless steel nibs, and I don't want anything bad to happen, so if somebody could enlighten me, it would be great.

Thanks,
Marina.

Hi Marina,

There is a list somewhere, maybe on Greg´s pages (of Ink Sampler fame), where the pHs of many inks are listed. I have a link at home, so I´ll look it up tonight for you.

I wouldn´t overly worry about pH too much, though, if I were you. It´ll take a long time before a decent quality nib is affected by it. The real worry is in the combination of particles and the permanentness, and I happen to speak from experience here .

Warm regards, Wim

Well, I've inked the pen and everything went flawlessly. No bad startup, no skipping, no pressure needed for the pen to write. The color is wonderful and with a fine nib it's neither wet nor dry. While writing, dark blue is the color, but after it dries out all that's left is a lovely blue with a soft black shade (grey-ish), really really nice. It's what I've wanted on the ink. For the next weeks I'll see how's it in terms of residues on the converter. I'll reflush the pen every 3 to 4 weeks. One happy costumer ^_^