Pilot Iroshizuku Ajisai

[Sandy1]

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Grey Scale.

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Figure 1.

Swabs & Swatch

Paper: HPJ1124 24 lb. Laser Copy.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/06613692.jpg

Figure 2.

NIB-ism ✑

Paper: HPJ1124.

Depicts nibs' line-width and pens' relative wetness.

IMG-thumb:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/th_4ede2a0e.jpg

Pens: L → R: Tucky, M200, 600, Somiko, Phileas, C74 & PPP.

Figure 3.

Paper base tints:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Private%20Reserve%20Chocolate/86f3378c.jpg

L → R: HPJ1124, Rhodia, G Lalo white, Royal, Staples 20 lb.

 

WRITTEN SAMPLES - Moby Dick

Ruling: 8mm.

 

Figure 4.

Paper: HPJ1124.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/da802549.jpg

Figure 5.

Paper: Rhodia.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/3f4526f1.jpg

Figure 6.

Paper: G Lalo, Verge de France, white.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/7d9af5c8.jpg

 

Figure 7.

Paper: Royal - 25% rag.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/e490cec7.jpg

Figure 8.

Paper: Staples 20 lb. multi use.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/4dbd23d5.jpg

 

Figure 9.

Grocery List

Paper: Pulp. One-a-Day calendar page.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/3df78331.jpg

 

Figure 10.

Comparison Exemplar for Blue-Violet inks.

Paper: HPJ1124.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/49829220.jpg

 

Figure 11.

Comparison Exemplar for Blue-Violet inks.

Paper: Rhodia.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/680931a6.jpg

 

 

OTHER STUFF

 

Figure 12.

Smear/Dry Times

Wet Tests ☂

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/15a62a7c.jpg

 

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

 

Type:

• Dye-based fountain pen ink.

Presentation:

• Bottle.

Availability:

• In production when Topic posted.

Daily writer?

• Possible.

A go-to ink?

• Yes - when a high performance softly energetic Blue is desired.

USE

 

Business:

(From the office of Ms Blue-Black.)

• From what I see on the Written Samples, the use of ajisai is highly dependent on density: in the pale tones, it becomes 'floral', hence lacking the gravitas I consider necessary in a business ink; when run into the darker tones, it becomes an attractive energetic Blue, with just enough heft (if not gravitas) for lateral and downward communication.
• Not suited to dour topics, which likely require a Dark Blue or Blue-Black; as would some upward correspondence to certain people.
• Gave very encouraging results on the Staples 20lb, so may be considered when working on 'lowest bidder' paper. However, if running the ink at a high density, the likelihood of bleed- show-through increases.
• A very good choice for editing & mark-up of dark text, especially for those reluctant to use a warm alt/aux ink such as Cd'A Storm LINK
  
• Not enough zap for error correction or grading of assignments.

Illustrations / Graphics:

• As with inks whose role can be changed according to density, the use of all manner of pens, brushes, rollers, etc. seems inviting.
• Could be used for energetic figures.
• Line quality tended to diminish just a bit as density increased, but not so much to preclude use for narrow tight lines. (fussy fussy fussy)
• Shading may need to be suppressed if used for labels, text or diagrams.

Students:

• Possible.
• Even though I think the energy is a bit high for routine notes, ajisai could be used for mark-up and to make larger emphasised entries that may run several paragraphs.
• Water resistance is quite good, so is likely to survive incidental exposure to domestic fluids.
• As mentioned, good performance on inexpensive paper seems quite likely.
• Possible for hand-written assignments at high density, but would not be my first pick. (Go ahead - use-up the Majestic Blue.)

Personal:

• Of course!
• This is definitely one of the 'bright eyed' Blues, so is wonderful for breezy diet cola chatter. (I'm blonde, but no poking the fun, OK?)
• The latent energy of ajisai may become a bit tiring and even distracting, like a Jack Russel who's been drinking sweetened coffee, so I keep letters written in ajisai rather short - it is hard for me to remain 'breathless' for more than a few pages.
• There is very high potential to manipulate/explore the ink's shading as well as density, consequently choosing pen wetness, nib shape/width can be quite an adventure.
• As the ink is quite energetic, I tend to use the mono-line nibs in narrow-to-middling width. (Yawn.)
• For me to use this ink with wide nibs, it needs to be paired with greater ruling: the 1.1mm MS nib really needs about 9mm and/or greater row spacing.
• Billets doux? Not so much, but some heavy breathing seems possible.

PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE & CHARACTERISTICS

 

Flow Rate:

• Ever so slightly on the dry side. (!)

Nib Dry-out:

• Not seen.

Start-up:

• Immediate.
• With confidence.

Lubrication:

• Excellent.
• Use of narrow nibs on hard textured paper is rarely a joy, yet ajisai made it tolerable.

Nib Creepies:

• Not seen.

Staining [pen]:

• Not seen.

Clogging:

• Not seen.
• Seems unlikely.

Bleed- Show-Through:

• Other than the C74+MS on Royal, two-sided use would be quite alright.

Feathering / Woolly Line:

• Can appear in 'ink pools' when there is high density.
• (See the HiRes image of the C74 on Royal.)

Smell:

• Absent.

Hand oil sensitivity:

• Not apparent.

Clean Up:

• Thorough and prompt with plain water.

Mixing:

• No stated prohibitions.
• I see no reason whatsoever to mix into this ink.

Archival:

• Not claimed.

Smear/Dry Times & Wet Tests:

• Please see Figure 12 above.

☞ That, dear reader, is an admirable performance profile.

 

THE LOOK

 

Presence:

• Quite variable, though not mercurial or volatile.
• Bright eyed and fleet of foot.

Saturation:

• On the low side.

Shading:

• Unpredictable.
• Can be quite attractive.

Variability:

• Pen+nib combos used:
  • High - both width and wetness.

  [*]Papers used:

  • A bit higher than one might expect.

  [*]Malleability:

  • High. Very responsive.
    
  • Greatly influenced by the % coverage on the page, and the density of the line.
  • Even the wily practitioner may be served up a few surprises along the way.
  • Choice of paper may alter the Look by means of base-tint; and in concert with with the pen, may generate or suppress shading.
  • Unless pen and paper can be predetermined, I consider the unpredictability of ajisai to be a limiting factor when/if considering it for a daily writer ink.

Hi-Res Scans:

Originals are 60x30mm.

 

As I do not wish to earn the sobriquet 'Queen of The Bandwidth Bandits', these are IMG-thumbs only.

 

Tucky on HPJ1124:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/th_9c99be5c.jpg

M200 on Rhodia:

(Unexpected shading.)

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/th_93c1a5df.jpg

600 on Rhodia:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/th_95cd5e32.jpg

Somiko on G Lalo:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/th_dd7b8adf.jpg

C74 on Royal:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/th_fa23c999.jpg

 

FIDELITY

 

Is the name appropriate?

• As with most floral names, I consider ajisai or 'hydrangea' to be vague but evocative, which may well suit this ink.
• It should be noted that the packaging depicts a very pale tone and an almost lavender colour, which I found misleading. (See cartouche at the start of the Review.)
• In addition, swabs of this ink appear quite different from the written samples. (I hope that is conveyed in Figure 1.)

OTHER INKS

 

• To enable ad hoc comparison, my Reviews of Blue inks from 10 August 2010 onward share the same Written Sample layout, atrocious handwriting, and some papers & pens. Manipulation of web browser windows allow for simultaneous viewing of Written Samples of several inks. In this case, the common pen is most likely to be the M200+EF.
  
• That said, if you feel a specific aspect deserves to be depicted in a separate Topic or Post, your PM will be welcomed.

S1's Swab Swami

 

Please note: As ajisai is greatly influenced by the pens used, comparison on the basis of swabs is exceptionally flakey. I was tempted to exclude these, but . . .

 

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/351ab6ee.jpg

From Left to Right we have Pelikan Edelstein Sapphire, J Herbin's Eclat de Saphire and the Aurora Blue in densities from 3, 2 & 1 passes interlaced with lines of ajisai.

 

PAPERS

 

Lovely papers:

• Cool-neutral whites.

Trip-wire Papers: ☠

• Dirty whites.

Tinted Papers:

• I would avoid tinted papers - ajisai is just too translucent to come away from such an encounter intact. Even the 'natural' tint of the G Lalo shifted the Look well away from its native character.
• That said, if one wants to change the apparent colour by adding the colour of the paper to the ink's colour, have at it. (Just don't tell me, OK?)

Pre-Printed Papers:

• Forms:
  • No thank-you.
  • The ink is too energetic for forms use, and comes too far forward from the typical Black printed text to support ease of reading.
  • Possible for emphasised/anomalous entries.

  [*]For charts & graphs:

  • Not until one has suppressed the shading and established the density.
  • Perhaps for data[sets] that need just a bit of emphasis.

Is high-end paper 'worth it'?

• Quite likely.
• Such paper may be used to manipulate the appearance of ajisai in terms of density and shading, and is very important in getting a match to the chosen pen.

ETC.

 

Majik:

• Possible.

Personal Pen & Paper Pick:

• The Somiko on Rhodia.
• The Asian B nib is just wide enough to give a pleasant %-age coverage while leaving enough space for the energetic ink to breathe. (Compare to the PPP, which is also an Asian B width.)
• The shading is rather languid, providing a flowing aspect to what's written.
• The paper tint is about as far away from white as I like to see with this ink, and adds just a bit of bounce.
  
• The smooth texture of the paper avoids adding even more 'goings-on' than a textured paper. (Unlikely to be seen in the scans.)

Yickity Yackity:

• A bit of a challenge lurks in this pleasant wee bottle.
• Ah kushbaby, a welcome guest on your ink shelves: resting amongst Lamy BlBk, Rose Cyclamen and Ghandi.

======

 

NUTS & BOLTS

 

Pens:

 

IMG-thumb:

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN%20Stuff%20-%202011/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20ajisai/th_a85bdd8b.jpg

• Sheaffer 'Penguin' Tuckaway + 14K Triumph nib.
• Pelikan M200 + g-p steel EF nib.
• r⦿tring 600 + 18K F nib.
• Sailor Somiko + TIGP B nib.
• Waterman Phileas + g-p steel B nib.
• Pilot Custom 74 + 14K MS nib.
• Platinum President Purist + 22K B nib.

• Lines & labels: Pelikan 4001 Turquoise from a Pilot Penmanship.

______

 

Papers:

• HPJ1124 24 lb. Laser Copy.
• Rhodia.
• G Lalo, Verge de France, white.
• Royal, 25% cotton rag.
• Staples 20lb. multi use.
• Pulp. One-a-Day Calendar page.

______

 

Images:

• Scans were made on an Epson V600 scanner; factory defaults were accepted.
• Figures shown were scanned at 200 dpi & 24 bit colour.
• Hi-Res Images linked were scanned at 300 dpi & 24 bit colour.
• No post-capture manipulation of scanner output was done, other than dumb-down by Photobucket & IP.Board s/w.

______

 

Densitometer Readings:

HPJ1124

• Red 142
• Grn 154
• Blu 249
• Lum 170

______

 

Fine Print

The accuracy and relevance of this Review depends in great part upon consistency and reliability of matériel used.

Ink does not require labelling/notice to indicate (changes in) formulation, non-hazardous ingredients, batch ID, date of manufacture, etc.

As always, YMMV, not only from materials, methods, environment, etc., but also due to differences between the stuff I used, and that you may have.

Also, I entrust readers to separate opinion from fact, to evaluate inferences and conclusions as to their merit, and to be amused by whatever tickles your fancy.

-30-

Tags: Fountain pen ink review Pilot iroshizuku ajisai hydrangea Sandy1

Edited December 1, 2011 by Sandy1

[indigirl]

w00t! Sandy1 hits it out of the park again, this time with one of my desert-island inks! (Can you imagine being stuck with nothing but a bottle of Iroshizuku? )

 

Funny though, your emphasis on the energetic quality -- I don't experience it as "energetic" so much as "cheerful". :meow:

[sarahfar]

It reminds me a lot of Pelican Edelstein, with the difference lubrication.. Great comparison.

[Sandy1]

w00t! Sandy1 hits it out of the park again, this time with one of my desert-island inks! (Can you imagine being stuck with nothing but a bottle of Iroshizuku? )

 

Funny though, your emphasis on the energetic quality -- I don't experience it as "energetic" so much as "cheerful". :meow:

Hi,

 

Thanks for the compliment!

 

I definitely agree with your added description of ajisai as a 'cheerful' ink.

 

Bye,

S1

[Sandy1]

It reminds me a lot of Pelican Edelstein, with the difference lubrication.. Great comparison.

Hi,

 

Thanks!

 

(I assume you refer to the Edelstein Saphire, yes?)

 

I think the swab comparison was quite limited, as it does not indicate the potential that I see for ajisai to be manipulated by use of various pens & papers.

 

I have a bottle of Saphire, but have used it for only a few pages. I intend to give it a fair go as time & tides permit.

 

Bye,

S1

[larsbj]

I ran into this lovly ink when I purchased a Sailor w. naginata nib and wanted to save some bucks on combined shipping. The shipping went awry and I had to pay separate shipping, but I received this ink together with a bottle of Asa-Gao. Picked i up today and promtly filled it on my (relatively new) Danitrio Densho with a firm stub nib. I didn't have time to try it today but will get plenty of opportunities tomorrow during a group meeting. Look forward to it, but I must add that I am the only one in that setting using a fountain pen:-)

 

Anyway, lots of thanks to Sandy1 for this excellent review, even if it is quite some time since it was posted!!!

[Sandy1]

I ran into this lovly ink when I purchased a Sailor w. naginata nib and wanted to save some bucks on combined shipping. The shipping went awry and I had to pay separate shipping, but I received this ink together with a bottle of Asa-Gao. Picked i up today and promtly filled it on my (relatively new) Danitrio Densho with a firm stub nib. I didn't have time to try it today but will get plenty of opportunities tomorrow during a group meeting. Look forward to it, but I must add that I am the only one in that setting using a fountain pen:-)

 

Anyway, lots of thanks to Sandy1 for this excellent review, even if it is quite some time since it was posted!!!

Hi,

 

You're welcome! Glad you like the wee review.

 

I'll try to be patient whilst waiting to read of your experience with ajisai.

 

A snapshot of ajisai from your Sailor with the Naginata nib would be a treat!

 

I'm enthusiastic & curious, (not too pushy.)

 

Bye,

S1

[larsbj]

Hi,

 

You're welcome! Glad you like the wee review.

 

I'll try to be patient whilst waiting to read of your experience with ajisai.

 

A snapshot of ajisai from your Sailor with the Naginata nib would be a treat!

 

I'm enthusiastic & curious, (not too pushy.)

 

Bye,

S1

 

 

But of corse! I'll make sure to post a little comparison as soon as the sailor get home

[columela]

Fantastic review. I just used this ink for the first time and I am in agreement with al that you say in your impeccable disertation about this ink. Thanks

[Donald2]

Ok

[minddance]

The Somiko Broad certainly does wonders with this ink, and Cacoa du Bresil too.

 

Thanks Sandy1 for your reviews, I read most of them and learnt alot

[oldoaktree]

Thank you for the detailed review.