You can find Take-Sumi on eBay for close to half what some dealers charge.
Aurora black was my first FP ink, and as a left hander I did not like anything about it. I eventually gave it away to some ballpoint user who just thought it'd be cool to have a bottle of ink.
I wasn't so fond of it because it has a tendency to smear a lot on high quality paper (as a result of its being so wet).
This goes even for when it's dried on the paper sometimes.
When I had it I wished that I liked it, but I just couldn't get myself to accept it.
Then I got take Sumi. I've tried Noodler's black and J. Herbin perle noire, and after both I still preferred take Sumi.
We're talking 50 milliliters of ink.... If you buy a bottle, it's going to last you at least 10 years, unless you're a lawyer or something in which you write pages per day. I'll assume you're an average ink user; therefore, even $35 isn't bad, as it's really an investment. However, I would never spend $35 or even $25 for a bottle. eBay, eBay, eBay! I've gotten 3 bottles for $20 each from eBay. The fourth one was $13.50 from engeika. Also an amazing place to get Iroshizuku.
A bottle of Iroshizuku can be easily found on eBay for $20 shipped. However, try Aurora, maybe you'll like it. And I'm sorry for the rant and partial bias!
Edited by Kuhataparunks, 27 October 2014 - 02:05.