Good Neutral Ink

[Lucapens]

Hi, All. I'm a middle school student, so I'm looking for a neutral ink such as blue or black. Do you have any recommendations?

 

 

 

Thanks,

Luca

[Abner C. Kemp]

Washable blue inks are about as neutral as you can get. I am quite fond of Pelikan Konigsblau but you might also look into Lamy Blue, Waterman Serenity Blue, Montblanc Royal Blue, Parker Quink Blue.

[PS104]

As Bill Clinton might have said (if he were a member of FPN) it depends on how you define "neutral"

Gray is as neutral as you can get, notwithstanding the fact that there are 40 shades of gray

Anything else has a color associated with it

[ac12]

Blue, black and blue-black.

Each has its own appeal.

 

I like black, but the black ink on white paper can be a bit harsh on the eyes, especially out of a B nib.

 

Blue is less harsh, and sometimes pleasant to look at. But on some papers, and with some pens, it can look washed out and faded. Blue ink can look VERY different out of different pens based on how wet or dry the pen writes. This behavior has really bothered me when trying to look for a good blue ink. Medium blues do not look good out of a narrow F or XF nib. The thin ink line makes the blue look washed out and faded. Narrow nibs need darker inks.

 

Blue-black is like a compromise. Blue in color but darker, so it does not look washed out. And not as harsh on the eye as black.

Personally I don't like a blue-black that looks gray. Diamine Midnight is a DARK blue, so it takes the place of blue-black without the gray cast of some blue-black inks.

 

Having said all this, I have 2 sets of ink; blue and black. In each set I have a bottle of Waterman ink (a wet ink) and a bottle of Cross/Pelikan ink (a dry ink). When I get a new pen, I will usually test it with Waterman ink. If the Waterman ink runs too wet in the pen, I clean out the Waterman ink and switch to Cross/Pelikan ink, to slow down the ink flow. Other standard inks are Sheaffer Skrip (blue and black), Parker Quink (blue and black).

[Davros]

Welcome!

 

I use Diamine Denim for a lot of my neutral writing. It is a friendly, easy-to-read dark blue.

 

Do you prefer bottled ink or cartridges?

[Sandy1]

 

Hi,

 

Kindly consider Pilot / Namiki Blue. It is a good match for most papers and pens, and has good water resistance and short dry times.

 

It comes in bottles up to 350ml, and Pilot cartridges which only fit Pilot pens.

 

I consider it very neutral - somewhere I described it as 'WOW-less' - which makes it suitable for almost any occasion.

 

Certainly, other more intriguing inky adventures await...

 

Bye,

S1

 

__ __

 

My wee Review : https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/241042-pilot-blue-bottle/?p=2615328

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Pilot%20Blue%20Bottle%202/INK058_zpsd16543a6.jpg

Edited May 20, 2015 by Sandy1

[AAAndrew]

Waterman Mysterious Blue is about as "neutral" as it gets. It's a very well-behaved ink, a solid blue-black, works in every pen, even picky ones, and relatively easy to get and inexpensive. It's a great everyday ink for school.

 

Of course, though, being in middle school, you may want to think about waterproof inks, and for that I can't help, but I'm sure some of the others will be more than happy to step in and enable.

[inkstainedruth]

Nobody yet has asked the question, Luca, so I will:

What pen is it going in?

Different inks will behave differently in different pens (that sounds more complicated than it is). But some pens write wet, so you may want a "drier" ink (i.e., doesn't flow as freely); for instance, depending on the pen you might want something like an iron gall ink. There will slightly higher maintenance involved when flushing the pen (I tend to limit their use to easy to clean c/c pens), but IG inks tend to be good performers, especially on lower quality paper). OTOH, if you have a dry-writing pen, a "dry" ink will make your nib seem very scratchy, and you'll likely want a "wetter" one: I have a Platinum Plaisir that turned out to be a dry writer, and it does better with inks with better flow.

Additionally, some inks have different properties (dry speeds, water resistance, etc.) but there will likely be a trade off: for instance, Organics Studio Charles Darwin is super black, and dries almost instantaneously on even better quality paper such as Rhodia -- but had HORRIBLE bleedthrough issues, even when I put it in a pen with a hooded, (extra) fine nib.

Have a look at reviews of the inks people have already mentioned. Also have a look at the Ink Review Forum in general (there is a pinned Index at the beginning of it, where inks are listed alphabetically by brand).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Lucapens]

The ink will be used for my Lamy 2000 and Pilot Vanishing Point. I want a blue, black, or blue/black ink.

 

 

 

Thanks again,

Luca

[Fabienne]

What Sandy1 said, Pilot is perfect for all occasions, all. Funerals to birth announcements, it is just fine.

[musicman123]

For the most recommended black in the world, you may want to try out Noodler's Black. I have had nothing but good results from Noodler's ink so far, and their Black (and X-Feather) is one of their most highly recommended ink. Goulet Pens use it for all their Nib Nook writing.

[AAAndrew]

Lamy ink is also quite well-behaved, and, as you would expect, work beautifully with Lamy pens. I'd go with Lamy since you're starting out, seem to want no-nonsense and "easy" ink for your Lamy pens.

[Buzz_130]

I exclusively write in blue for all professional and nearly all of my personal work. I find blue adds a touch of character to the writing, allows to me to be different while remaining professional, and still provides a nearly unlimited selection of shades and hues. Just look at my ink shelf!

 

You have two great pens, and you can use just about anything in them. Waterman, Diamine, Sheaffer, and Pelikan are all excellent brands of ink that can be found at a good price. To find "your" color, why not try a few samples? You'll get one or two full loads of ink (probably 1 with your 2k and 2 with your VP) to try out the color, nib, and paper combinations. Once you settle on a few that you really like, then you can make the plunge to a full bottle.

 

Buzz

[FLZapped]

For the most recommended black in the world, you may want to try out Noodler's Black. I have had nothing but good results from Noodler's ink so far, and their Black (and X-Feather) is one of their most highly recommended ink. Goulet Pens use it for all their Nib Nook writing.

Hard to go wrong with basic Noodler's black! Plus it is bulletproof, so any kind of spill accident isn't going to ruin your hard work - unless the paper dissolves.

 

BTW - this black is a touch on the warm side.

 

-Bruce

Edited May 24, 2015 by FLZapped