Becoming An Ink Manufacturer...

[Sach]

What does it take to make ink? It's interesting to read about boutique ink brands like Noodler's and Private reserve; and I've often thought how they got into it. I would think that they start with distilled water, and then add water soluble dyes of various descriptions. It would be interesting to know what other considerations might there be.

[WirsPlm]

Mold / Slime, for one thing. Have to get the biocides right. Need to not react to / stain various pen materials.

 

If you go to the ink subforums you'll absorb a lot of information about what kind of issues or characteristics ink needs to have, and a little bit about the chemistry involved.

[Sach]

Very interesting. Just thinking how Nathan at Noodler's has developed and got really into it. Surely, fast drying must use a different solven from water, and what proportions work best concerning feathering and other such undesirables. I'm thinking of trying it out myself sometime. Would be fascinating..

[welch]

On the difficulty: email Richard Binder, who offered a simple line of Ever-flo inks about three years ago. Richard out-sourced the ink-making, and I believe that the maker is very experienced. Richard started with a web-site through which many people travel, and has one of the most respected names in the current pen business. It has not been easy.

 

See, also, a link to a great idea for an "adjustable" ink, from Sean Colfer. With luck, Sean with pass buy and pass along some of his experiences. See:

http://mypeoplepc.com/members/corniche/colfersimperialinks/id10.html

Edited September 2, 2013 by welch

[Gloucesterman]

Making ink is easy. The real challenge is marketing and selling it PROFITABLY.

 

In addition to the actual production, one has to consider packaging, promotion, S&H, and other ways of getting it in front of people for testing and use.

 

I'll bet that with ink, the actual cost of ingredients and production is probably about 5-10% of the retail cost.

 

If I recall correctly, Richard only sold the ink himself and not through other dealers. At least not very much through other dealers.

[OrganicsStudio]

We are a relatively young company, especially in the ink/pen world. It has been a very steep slope at times, with some chemicals needed being very VERY finicky. It has been a rewarding experience for sure (not so much monetarily, but definitely meet very unique people in the business. Having a background in biochemistry and organic chemistry certainly helps also

 

Tyler

[corniche]

Hello Sach,

 

I have a long and involved "tale of woe" to share with you.

 

However, it is my dinner time, but I shall return later tonight or tomorrow and let you know how it went for me.

 

All the best & God bless,

 

Sean

 

PS: Once again, Welch proves to have a long memory.

Edited September 2, 2013 by S. P. Colfer

[Sach]

Hello Sach, I have a long and involved "tale of woe" to share with you. However, it is my dinner time, but I shall return later tonight or tomorrow and let you know how it went for me. All the best & God bless, Sean PS: Once again, Welch proves to have a long memory.

Hi Sean

 

Nice to hear from you. I was reading your website last night. I must say that it's a great and rather unique idea. Would love to hear your story, and also try some of your ink sometime!

 

Sach

[corniche]

Hello Sach, Welch, et al,

 

Well, it is a long, involved story, but let's start with a basic ink recipe:

 

THE INK:

 

93% triple distilled water

02 to 03% aniline dye powder, (these dyes are ammonia processed and quite alkaline in nature), (Noodlers and PR probably uses a higher percentage).

02% non-ionic low foaming surfactant, (reduces water's high surface tension and aids flow - sorry, I no longer remember what Dow called theirs - very acidic). (Home brew versions can use Kodak Photo-Flo 200 or Ilford Ilfotol).

01% fungicide, (what people call biocide these days, Dowicil 75 - very acidic). (Home brew users can use Phenol Spray from Natural Pigments).

0.05 to 01% Ethylene Glycol, (you can also use Propylene Glycol, but EG is better, but it is toxic). This is used as both a lubricant and an anti-freeze.

 

Remember, consumer grade chemicals such as I mention for "home-brew" use, typically are not as strong as the industrial grade chemicals I procured from Dow, so you may have to play with the percentages a bit.

 

 

WHERE AM I GOING TO DO THIS?

 

You definitely want to do it in an exterior building, a basement or an attached garage is typically not a good idea for any kind of retail production. The dye powder takes on a life of it's own. I remember when I was a lad of 19 or so, I decided to sand the bottom of our bay window at home - the wood had gotten scratched up from the cats jumping up there all the time to look out the window; being the dutiful son that I was, (am), I decided to get my belt sander, sand it down and re-finish it. It was mystifying to me, that the sawdust I created in the living room found its way to the kitchen - at the opposite end of the house. My dad, seemed more P.O.'ed, than mystified... for some reason.

 

Well, aniline dye powder laughs itself silly at sawdust; it can travel better than any "jet-setter" you've ever met - what is more, if there is the SLIGHTEST trace of humidity in the air, the two will interact and the dye dust can stain whatever it is sitting on... e.g., dining room tables, lamp shades, etc. When handling the dye powder, make sure you wear gloves, a respirator and goggles. Also, if you think ink stains your fingers ... The stains from the dye powder will be there for WEEKS - literally! So, wear gloves.

 

Also, the chemicals used are extremely toxic and quite corrosive, they're not anything you'd want in your home - especially if you have young children or pets. An external, detached structure with it's own electric and plumbing connections is best. You'll also have to bear in mind any local zoning laws once you start retail level production. I'm not even going to broach the maze of legalities involved in hiring employees.

 

PROCURING SUPPLIES:

 

This is one of the toughest jobs and the one that put an end to my company. You're going to have to deal with dye and chemical salesman who want to sell you the stuff by the tank car, when a 5 gallon pail is more than you think you'll need. Then, when you FINALLY convince the salesman that a 5 or 10 gallon pail/drum or just several pounds of dye is all you need, you have to beg and plead to get him to go along with the sale because the commission will be peanuts for him and not worth the paperwork.

 

Then you'll have to not only factor in the cost the components, but the cost of shipping them to you. Now, some suppliers, Dow for one, included shipping into the price. Back when I was involved in this extravaganza, a 5 gallon pail of Dowicil 75 was around $250. The surfactant, (which is higher tech), runs higher. The dyes, (also getting harder to find because there is diminished demand for aniline dyes for aqueous fountain solutions - you heard me right - you cannot use just any old aniline dye - it has to be specifically engineered for aqueous fountain solutions, i.e., fountain pen ink).

 

Then you have to source your jars - you find the perfect jar - but it isn't air or water-tight, so you have to go with a plain, ordinary wide-mouth 2 oz. jar that couldn't look any more generic if it tried. So much for that fancy corporate image you were dreaming about. Then there are the boxes and the labels. Not to mention LABEL AND LOGO DESIGN, (that part was actually lots of fun for me).

 

Okay, you have your ink formula and you have your supplies. Now, it is time for beta-testing!

 

BETA TESTING:

 

First, you have to develop "ink recipes" so you can have a set of inks in nice, marketable colors that you will be able to duplicate over and over again. So, you make some mixes, check them out for color, (this takes many attempts before you get colors you like); then, you have to make sure you can duplicate that same color over and over again - in case it actually sells, and you have to make another batch. So, you re-make it a few times to make sure it is a reproducible color.

 

Now you have to check each ink's general performance and tweak the recipe's. For example, Signal Red may need a little more lubrication; Antilles Blue, may need a little less, but it needs a little more surfactant, etc., etc. Once you have each individual ink where you want it to be in general performance, you have to start testing it a WIDE range of pens to make sure the performance level you have worked so hard to attain is UNIVERSAL - or as universal as you can get it. You also have to do long-term testing to check for shelf-life, "shelf-life" inside of pens, fungus and SITB resistance, etc., etc.

 

Even with careful planning, you have an OVERALL 10:1 failure ratio throughout the ENTIRE beta testing process; i.e., you'll have one success to every ten failures. These will improve as your processes evolve.

 

 

MORE BETA TESTING:

 

Once you have tested the inks yourself in various pens for a while, you start handing pens out to all of your friends and family, along with questionnaires- this is when you'll know who your real friends are. Once you have instructed all of them on how a fountain pen works- you turn them loose into the world with your inks, your pens and the questionnaires. A week or so later, they come back and you find out how you did. Hopefully, it went well.

 

Mind you, this is after a couple of your immediate family members and friends have convinced you selling your inks would be a good idea. You get the reviews back and their favorable. You start thinking this could really work, so you start thinking about talking to a lawyer to secure whatever needs to be secured from a legal perspective- patents, trademarks, logos, liability issues, etc., etc.

 

Then you come to a place like this one to make your proclamation and seek out more beta testers- people who don't love you, like you or even know you, like your friends and family do. Tom Mullane, (Old Griz), Richard Binder and James Partridge were kind enough to step in. They were all satisfied, so you now you push forward. You need to raise capital quickly so you can get these inks to market and you also have to get some retailers on board.

 

Well, this is where the folks here at FPN really shine; not only were a handful of them willing to take a chance with their pens and test my inks - by a guy that nobody here knew and who also came onto the scene as a rather obnoxious and boisterous character; but then, a couple of hundred of the members here pre-ordered an ink that didn't yet exist, (well, not in quantity), and pre-paid for that ink so I would have the capital I needed to buy all of the supplies I'd need to make a batch in quantity and get them onto the market. Thank you kind folks at FPN, you know who you are - God bless and keep you.

 

Of course, I also encountered my fair share of back-biting cranks here as well, but why waste time talking about them.

 

 

ENTER DISTRIBUTION:

 

I was awfully tempted to do Direct To Retail type of deal and keep the lion's share of the money. Then I figured, I would rather take a small loss on profit and let someone else worry about the sales and individual purchases. So, I was able to get Pear Tree Pens, Pendemonium and Bertram's Ink Well on my train. The latter was very helpful in getting my inks exposure at the various pen shows in DC, Columbus and Philly.

 

MARKETING:

 

Getting your name out there is the key; I was blessed in a lot of ways, through influential members here who believed in my product, I was able to get exposure at pen shows, an article in Stylus magazine, (which, ironically, I never did see), and the inclusion of my inks in Greg Clark's last book.

 

CRASH & BURN:

 

With only four or five days left to go before I place my supply orders; my dye supplier informs me that they can no longer sell me any dyes because the company is packing up and moving to China and will only ship large quantity orders back here to the States. I asked, "well, about the stock you have sitting here in the States right now, sell me some of that." No can do was the reply- all inventory is frozen, (not literally ), and will be moved to new location. Period. That was the nail in my businesses coffin. You see, I was already physically disabled, so I was having a hard time getting this venture off the ground to start with - but to have to search out a new supplier, go through all the ink reformulations, color development, beta testing, etc., etc. - was all just too much for me, so I pushed in the throttle and pulled the brake lever.

 

This is the "short version" of the story, I could write a book on it, if ever got around to it.

 

 

Well Sach, (and anyone else who cares), that's my story. It was a little stretched in a couple of places for levity, (such as "the slightest trace of humidity... and the powder will leave a stain"). I know I've painted a rather grim picture of the entire process, but if I were still able-bodied, I WOULD start over and do it all over again - because despite all the pit-falls, I still had a blast! God bless.

 

 

All the best,

 

Sean

Edited September 4, 2013 by corniche

[Sach]

Hello Sach, et al,

 

Well, it is a long, involved story, but let's start with a basic ink recipe:

 

THE INK:

 

93% triple distilled water

02 to 03% aniline dye powder, (these dyes are ammonia processed and quite alkaline in nature), (Noodlers and PR probably uses a higher percentage).

02% non-ionic low foaming surfactant, (reduces water's high surface tension and aids flow - sorry, I no longer remember what Dow called theirs - very acidic). (Home brew versions can use Kodak Photo-Flo 200 or Ilford Ilfotol).

01% fungicide, (what people call biocide these days, Dowicil 75 - very acidic). (Home brew users can use Phenol Spray from Natural Pigments).

0.05 to 01% Ethylene Glycol, (you can also use Propylene Glycol, but EG is better, but it is toxic). This is used as both an lubricant and an anti-freeze.

 

Remember, consumer grade chemicals such as I mention for "home-brew" use, typically are not as strong as the industrial grade chemicals I procured from Dow, so you may have to play with the percentages a bit.

 

 

WHERE AM I GOING TO DO THIS?

 

You definitely want to do it in an exterior building, a basement or an attached garage is typically not a good idea for any kind of retail production. The dye powder takes on a life of it's own. I remember when I was a lad of 19 or so, I decided to sand the bottom of our bay window at home - the wood had gotten scratched up from the cats jumping up there all the time to look out the window; being the dutiful son that I was, (am), I decided to get my belt sander, sand it down and re-finish it. It was mystifying to me, that the sawdust I created in the living room found its way to the kitchen - at the opposite end of the house. My dad, seemed more P.O.'ed, than mystified... for some reason.

 

Well, aniline dye powder laughs itself silly at sawdust; it can travel better than any "jet-setter" you've ever met - what is more, if there is the SLIGHTEST trace of humidity in the air, the two will interact and the dye dust can stain whatever it is sitting on... e.g., dining room tables, lamp shades, etc. When handling the dye powder, make sure you wear gloves, a respirator and goggles. Also, if you think ink stains your fingers ... The stains from the dye powder will be there for WEEKS - literally! So, wear gloves.

 

Also, the chemicals used are extremely toxic and quite corrosive, they're not anything you'd want in your home - especially if you have young children or pets. An external, detached structure with it's own electric and plumbing connections is best. You'll also have to bear in mind any local zoning laws once you start retail level production. I'm not even going to broach the maze of legalities involved in hiring employees.

 

PROCURING SUPPLIES:

 

This is one of the toughest jobs and the one that put an end to my company. You're going to have to deal with dye and chemical salesman who want to sell you the stuff by the tank car, when a 5 gallon pail is more than you think you'll need. Then, when you FINALLY convince the salesman that a 5 or 10 gallon pail/drum or just several pounds of dye is all you need, you have to beg and plead to get him to go along with the sale because the commission will be peanuts for him and not worth the paperwork.

 

Then you'll have to not only factor in the cost the components, but the cost of shipping them to you. Now, some suppliers, Dow for one, included shipping into the price. Back when I was involved in this extravaganza, a 5 gallon pail of Dowicil 75 was around $250. The surfactant, (which is higher tech), runs higher. The dyes, (also getting harder to find because there is diminished demand for aniline dyes for aqueous fountain solutions - you heard me right - you cannot use just any old aniline dye - it has to be specifically engineered for aqueous fountain solutions, i.e., fountain pen ink).

 

Then you have to source your jars - you find the perfect jar - but it isn't air or water-tight, so you have to go with a plain, ordinary wide-mouth 2 oz. jar that couldn't look any more generic if it tried. So much for that fancy corporate image you were dreaming about. Then there are the boxes and the labels. Not to mention LABEL AND LOGO DESIGN, (that part was actually lots of fun for me).

 

Okay, you have your ink formula and you have your supplies. Now, it is time for beta-testing!

 

BETA TESTING:

 

First, you have to develop "ink recipes" so you can have a set of inks in nice, marketable colors that you will be able to duplicate over and over again. So, you make some mixes, check them out for color, (this takes many attempts before you get colors you like); then, you have to make sure you can duplicate that same color over and over again - in case it actually sells, and you have to make another batch. So, you re-make it a few times to make sure it is a reproducible color.

 

Now you have to check each ink's general performance and tweak the recipe's. For example, Signal Red may need a little more lubrication; Antilles Blue, may need a little less, but it needs a little more surfactant, etc., etc. Once you have each individual ink where you want it to be in general performance, you have to start testing it a WIDE range of pens to make sure the performance level you have worked so hard to attain is UNIVERSAL - or as universal as you can get it. You also have to do long-term testing to check for shelf-life, "shelf-life" inside of pens, fungus and SITB resistance, etc., etc.

 

Even with careful planning, you have an OVERALL 10:1 failure ratio throughout the ENTIRE beta testing process; i.e., you'll have one success to every ten failures. These will improve as your processes evolve.

 

Well, I still have to talk about outside beta testing, (i.e., friends and family); widespread beta testing, (FPN); signing on retailers and marketing. But I need a rest - so I'll come back and edit this post later to include those details. Along with some general closing comments.

 

Also know that this is a brief, general overview; I could literally write a book about the entire

 

process.

 

If you do write a book, I'll buy a copy!

 

 

All the best,

 

Sean

[corniche]

Hello Sach, (et al),

 

I finished my story via an edit to the original post; so I thought I'd give this thread a bump to let you know.

 

All the best,

 

Sean

Edited September 4, 2013 by corniche

[pokermon]

Thank you for your story Corniche

[corniche]

Hello Pokermon,

 

No problem, it was nice getting it off my chest.

 

Thank you for your interest.

 

All the best,

 

Sean

Edited September 4, 2013 by corniche

[carlos.q]

Hello Sach, (et al),

 

I finished my story via an edit to the original post; so I thought I'd give this thread a bump to let you know.

 

All the best,

 

Sean

Sean:

Thank you for this story. I checked out your website and the colors and water resistance tests were really impressive. I am truly sorry this venture did not work out for you (and for all of us).

Carlos

Edited September 4, 2013 by carlos.q

[lalindsay225]

Sean, I am sorry your ink never got off the ground. How I would have loved a bottle of Black Dahlia.

[soum]

Sean, thank you for sharing your story! Those ink colors looked great. I'm sorry to hear that it didn't work out eventually, but just attempt was very commendable, for sure.

[fourseamer]

Another big thank you to Sean for sharing his story. I too have become fascinated with the process of ink manufacture, but I know next to nothing about what it takes. I'd have to learn how to brew them before I could worry about a business plan.

 

I had the misfortune of having a terrible chemistry teacher in high school, and consequently, I steered clear of the subject in college. I wish I hadn't. I presume a working knowledge of chemistry would be beneficial if not mandatory in the process of designing and manufacturing inks.

 

My question is this: how much knowledge of (bio)chemisry does one need, and how would you recommend one go about acquiring that requisite knowledge? FWIW, I'm 40 with kids, so the pursuit of a degree is not in the cards.

[corniche]

Sean:

Thank you for this story. I checked out your website and the colors and water resistance tests were really impressive. I am truly sorry this venture did not work out for you (and for all of us).

Carlos

 

Hello Carlos,

 

Thank you for your kind words - me too. Most of the colors on that chart are close- but the Antilles Blue is darker on there than it is in reality. It's ironic, when I was cleaning out my office a few months ago, I came across one of my old color charts - wouldn't you just know it - they haven't faded yet either! Oh, well; things are what they are .

 

Sean, I am sorry your ink never got off the ground. How I would have loved a bottle of Black Dahlia.

 

Hello Lalindsay,

 

Yes, my memory is fading, but I think that was a popular color on the pre-order sales; along with Diplomat Blue; Blue Spruce and I'm thinking... maybe, New York Central Jade. The popularity of the latter two surprised me at the time.

 

 

Sean, thank you for sharing your story! Those ink colors looked great. I'm sorry to hear that it didn't work out eventually, but just attempt was very commendable, for sure.

 

Hello Soum,

 

Thank you very much for your kind words; I appreciate them more than I can ever say.

 

Another big thank you to Sean for sharing his story. I too have become fascinated with the process of ink manufacture, but I know next to nothing about what it takes. I'd have to learn how to brew them before I could worry about a business plan.

 

I had the misfortune of having a terrible chemistry teacher in high school, and consequently, I steered clear of the subject in college. I wish I hadn't. I presume a working knowledge of chemistry would be beneficial if not mandatory in the process of designing and manufacturing inks.

 

My question is this: how much knowledge of (bio)chemisry does one need, and how would you recommend one go about acquiring that requisite knowledge? FWIW, I'm 40 with kids, so the pursuit of a degree is not in the cards.

 

Hello Fourseamer,

 

Ah, yes, the $64,000 question, (well, maybe the $50,000 question). It is also difficult to answer; I have had a long-term interest with inks and have accumulated tid-bits of knowledge here and there for years. Unfortunately, I can't point you in one or two directions and say go there or study this, etc.

 

While I have had an interest in chemistry most of my life, I can remember buying a bottle of hydrochloric acid at a local drug store when I was around 14, (I had to have my mother there to okay it), back in the day when drug stores carried things like that, to conduct some experiments at home that we were doing in school. (I wish I could remember what). I had a small collection of test tubes, beakers , etc. at home. However, by the same token, I AM NOT a chemical engineer, i.e., I can mix my own inks, but I could never make the dyes myself, you know what I mean? I would call myself a "shadetree chemist," like a "shadetree mechanic."

 

It is rough when you have the rigors and responsibilities of a home and family; I did not have to deal with these things myself. Furthermore, I don't know how old your kids are, but I would hold off until they are behaving responsibly, (I know, when does that finally kick in? ), but some of the chemicals you use are pretty sharp stuff. As far as your age- that means nothing, don't worry about that; in fact, it is an asset, you may be smart enough now to avoid certain pit-falls that a younger man would step right into.

 

My best advice for you right now, is in your spare time, (what's that? ), read all you can find on the subject- check out Google, e-bay, etc. There were some interesting books printed at the turn of the last century regarding fountain inks, (synthetic aniline dyes were the Palm Pilots, Skyppes and Clouds of the era), so a lot of books were written on them at the time. (Sorry, I can't recall any titles ). Go to the book section and type "ink" and "aniline dye" in the window - those old titles come up from time to time.

 

Another great source is right here at FPN- check out the ink patent applications from Parker and other companies that are (were) right here at FPN somewhere. I think I solved the Quink Solv-X debate from data I found right here at FPN, searching old patent applications.

 

Just pick up what you can, when you can and by the time your kids are grown up and out on their own, you'll have amassed a fair bit of knowledge. In a couple of years time, after you've studied a while; try working on some "home brews." Perhaps in 20 years, we'll be buying inks with a baseball grip on the label.

 

 

 

Thanks again all for your interest.

 

All the best,

 

Sean

Edited September 4, 2013 by corniche

[pokermon]

Making ink seems to darn interesting. Especially since I love science, fountain pens, and a failed Chemistry major. Just a few months ago I was reading a thread on fpn on making ink from oak galls. Too bad I have a hard time finding the raw materials to make a small batch. I always thought(and still think) that a small batch of brown ink would look so badass flowing from a fountain pen. But after a while my drive for it faded, and now I'm thinking of buying a retail bottle of brown ink.

[welch]

A great story. A great, great story.