Rohrer&Klingner Antiktusche (antique ink)

[figosmum]

Dear all,

 

I am looking for a good ink to use with my Brause Rose dip pen (a highly flexible dip pen). Being a great fan of Rohrer and Klingner's fountain pen inks, I was wondering about their Antiktusche, as it seems to be especially designed for calligraphy.

 

Does anybody have experience they're willing to share?

 

Thanks,

Katinka

[figosmum]

Ok, guys, your silence has driven me over the edge -

 

I have placed a HUGE (7 bottles à 100ml) order for R&K Antiktusche and will blame ALL OF YOU for the space it takes up in my ink drawer. Plus, will somebody please step forward to take my husband's tonguelashing on YET MORE INK in my place. Thank you volunteers - you will get ink samples in return for that service.

 

GRRRRRRMPH!!!

[Ondina]

Geez, Fogosmum, 7 bottles of ink 100 ml? I think you've surpassed us all. I have not tried that particular one, but it looks interesting. Do you plan to use it with dip pens only, or is it suited for fpens as well? Please let us know how it goes.

[figosmum]

To my defense - it is only available in 100 ml (and those cost around 9 USD), and I'm quite willing to share. There was a 15% discount on it plus free shipping if you ordered for more than 50 CHF (=about 50 USD), so here I was with an excuse to go big. But those COLOURS!!!! I had to!!!

 

I ordered it primarily for use with a calligraphy dip pen (superflex Brause Rose, which spews overly wet lines like a seasick cobra with normal ink), but will also try using it in normal FPs. I'll keep you updated and am happy to provide samples via ink exchange, if somebody tells me where to get those vials in Switzerland.

 

AHHHHH! Can't wait!!!

 

edit to include info:

here's the R&K website for it, plus another one with colour swashes. As they claim it can be used with the Rotring Art Pen, I could imagine it works in other FPs too. We'll see.

http://www.rohrer-klingner.de/en/sites/10.htm

http://www.kunstpark-shop.de/index.htm?tusche_+_kalligraphie_rohrer___klingner_antiktusche.htm

Edited March 22, 2010 by figosmum

[Pelifan]

To my defense - it is only available in 100 ml (and those cost around 9 USD), and I'm quite willing to share. There was a 15% discount on it plus free shipping if you ordered for more than 50 CHF (=about 50 USD), so here I was with an excuse to go big. But those COLOURS!!!! I had to!!!

 

I ordered it primarily for use with a calligraphy dip pen (superflex Brause Rose, which spews overly wet lines like a seasick cobra with normal ink), but will also try using it in normal FPs. I'll keep you updated and am happy to provide samples via ink exchange, if somebody tells me where to get those vials in Switzerland.

 

AHHHHH! Can't wait!!!

 

edit to include info:

here's the R&K website for it, plus another one with colour swashes. As they claim it can be used with the Rotring Art Pen, I could imagine it works in other FPs too. We'll see.

http://www.rohrer-klingner.de/en/sites/10.htm

http://www.kunstpark-shop.de/index.htm?tusche_+_kalligraphie_rohrer___klingner_antiktusche.htm

 

Oh my. Those are beautiful colours (even on the computer screen). I'd love to try for example the Apricot and Mauriziusblau. Please let us know how you find them when on paper.

 

But are you sure they're suited for use in FP:s? My german isn't the best, but isn't "Tusche" a suspension and thus rather unkind to FP:s? Not sure about the comparability between a Rotring Art Pen and an FP, but I'd be reluctant to use it in a better pen.

[figosmum]

To my defense - it is only available in 100 ml (and those cost around 9 USD), and I'm quite willing to share. There was a 15% discount on it plus free shipping if you ordered for more than 50 CHF (=about 50 USD), so here I was with an excuse to go big. But those COLOURS!!!! I had to!!!

 

I ordered it primarily for use with a calligraphy dip pen (superflex Brause Rose, which spews overly wet lines like a seasick cobra with normal ink), but will also try using it in normal FPs. I'll keep you updated and am happy to provide samples via ink exchange, if somebody tells me where to get those vials in Switzerland.

 

AHHHHH! Can't wait!!!

 

edit to include info:

here's the R&K website for it, plus another one with colour swashes. As they claim it can be used with the Rotring Art Pen, I could imagine it works in other FPs too. We'll see.

http://www.rohrer-klingner.de/en/sites/10.htm

http://www.kunstpark-shop.de/index.htm?tusche_+_kalligraphie_rohrer___klingner_antiktusche.htm

 

Oh my. Those are beautiful colours (even on the computer screen). I'd love to try for example the Apricot and Mauriziusblau. Please let us know how you find them when on paper.

 

But are you sure they're suited for use in FP:s? My german isn't the best, but isn't "Tusche" a suspension and thus rather unkind to FP:s? Not sure about the comparability between a Rotring Art Pen and an FP, but I'd be reluctant to use it in a better pen.

 

I lack either the English or the chemistry knowledge to fully know what a suspension is, but yes, I also think Tusche is not meant for FPs. So I'll definitely only try it out in a pen I can afford to let die, should that be the outcome. By the way, Mauriziusblau is among my order, so bear with me...

Edited March 22, 2010 by figosmum

[AD356]

Nice order!! i know it takes some guts as I have a wife and know exactly what tongue lashing you are talking about . Please do tell how they react as I am always looking for ink to use with my Dip Pens. If they work out well are you will to trade some of that ink for another?

[Maria]

Dear Figosmum;

 

I couldn't help laugh so hard I nearly fell out of my chair, when I read this:

 

 

"I ordered it primarily for use with a calligraphy dip pen (superflex Brause Rose, which spews overly wet lines like a seasick cobra with normal ink), but will also try using it in normal FPs. I'll keep you updated and am happy to provide samples via ink exchange, if somebody tells me where to get those vials in Switzerland." :ltcapd:

 

In seeing the quill emblem, I am inclined to think this ink, like Gall Ink, is something you want to stay away from fountain pens. The damage may not be immediate in a fountain pen but, may have properties that 'eat' the internal guts of one and or the nib.

 

May want to check with a medical supply company to see if they have viles.

 

I would think calling the company representatives may provide what damages the ink would cause.

 

Sure sounds interesting though!

 

I would see if it is made similar like Moon Palace from Japan. Reason the caution, it seems someone didn't keep the threads to their McAffrey inkwell (those expensive $65.00 ones) clean and it seized up so badly, nothing has freed it from the lock. Chan-o-locks, torque wrenches, etc.

 

I'd also ask if it must be in glass jars, can plastic do, reaction to metal and anything else that may be a form of surprise down the road.

 

I'll be interested in your results also! They are lovely colors!

 

Respectfully,

Maria

[figosmum]

The inks have arrived, but I am fairly busy these days so it will take a little longer for me to post samples.

 

They are NOT FP-compatible according to R&K, and seeing their level of saturation plus the warning that they are not water-soluble, I readily believe that and won't sacrifice a pen to experiment on that.

 

More in the next few days!

 

Regards, Katinka

[figosmum]

Finally, here are the samples. They may seem a bit more vivid on-screen compared to on paper, but still are very beautiful in "real life", especially the Mauriziusblau!

 

I'm pretty happily dabbling around with them, they don't have the "spewing" problem but produce a nice flat line of ink when the nib is flexed. In some places, I marked lines as "dipped too deep" - I thought I had dipped the pen in too deeply, but actually those broadish lines come when there are still bubbles at the top of the ink from shaking the bottles, I figured.

 

One minus is the bad feathering - I can't compare with other calligraphy inks, but I used the nib with normal FP inks on Conqueror before, and the Antiktusche feathered quite some on that paper. The one I used now is great (and fairly cheap) Spanish stuff called Unipapyrus from Unipapel (I can recommend that).

 

The nib was Brause Rose #76, a really flexy nib for dip pens someone kindly suggested to me - and I love it!!!

 

At the fantastic price of less than 10USD for a 100ml bottle, I can definitely recommend the stuff and would love to see what "proper" calligraphers can do with it. I'll happily swap for whatever samples you have, once I've figured what to send them in (the smell is pretty unchemical, so I hope plastic vials will work, but I will check with R&K first).

 

Regards,

Katinka

[Ondina]

Wonderful colors and inks. R&K makes top quality inks in all its versions. Thank you for taking the time to make the examples, scan and upload then to share with us.

[AD356]

Thank you very much for the pics, and Lovely writing as well.

[JakobS]

Lovely colors, and beautiful handwriting! Thanks!

[ToasterPastry]

Wow! Great colors. I doubt this ink is suitable for fountain pens. "Caput mortuum" is almost worth just sacrificing a fountain pen to find out.

[Pelifan]

Beautiful! And the colours are great, too!

[brunico]

These are wonderful, subtle colours, and the ink is inexpensive at the side of most fountain pen inks. There's a UK source here and a Swiss source here, where you can click through to enlarge the samples.

 

Has anyone had success trying these in a fountain pen, Rotring or otherwise? Though a warning on the Swiss site says the acrylate binder is difficult to remove from tools once it has dried...

[Chevalier]

Don't try it in a FP, it might clog it up pretty badly, and cleaning might become really tricky. "Tusche" is usually something you don't want to have in your pen. Tusche is usually high pigment with a strong binding agent, the German language differentiates tinte (ink) from tusche (sumi is tusche as well). The RK Antiktusche is even worse than most others, really nice for dip pen use, but nothing I'd like to have in a FP. Who wants to fill a pen with fine sand, water and a binding agent?

[Chris H]

Wow! Wonderful!

 

Did you buy them in the States or directly from R&K?

 

Chris

[gmrza]

Don't try it in a FP, it might clog it up pretty badly, and cleaning might become really tricky. "Tusche" is usually something you don't want to have in your pen. Tusche is usually high pigment with a strong binding agent, the German language differentiates tinte (ink) from tusche (sumi is tusche as well). The RK Antiktusche is even worse than most others, really nice for dip pen use, but nothing I'd like to have in a FP. Who wants to fill a pen with fine sand, water and a binding agent?

 

„Tusche" in German means "Indian ink" or "drawing ink" - definitely not suitable for a fountain pen.

[Chevalier]

There's no fixed definition for tusche in general, but a din standard for drawing ink (Zeichentusche). Tusche contains pigments most of the time, but modern fp friendly pigment inks are called "tinte" though. There's still tinte that's unsuitable for fountain pens, but this seems to be the exception.

 

One thing is for sure, like gmrza said, you don't want tusche in a fp (except special pens like the Parallel Pens, they might be able to handle some of them).

 

This tusche thing always annoyed me, German is usually such a precise language, but the word "tusche" is an exception.