Noodler's Revolution Blue (Goldspot.com Exclusive)

[mhosea]

<comments at the end>

Noodler's Revolution Blue on Tomoe River, Rhodia, and cheap made-in-Brazil notebook (front and back). The three swaths are, left to right, Noodler's Revolution Blue, Noodler's Upper Ganges Blue, and Noodler's Blue:

Red sheen:

Feathering resistance is good (normal):

Water resistance is excellent:

What you can't see is that Noodler's Revolution Blue is a highly lubricious ink and that starting performance is good. Dry times are OK on notebook paper, fairly long (which is not unusual) on the coated papers. Aside from the red sheen (which is unusual for a Noodler's "bulletproof" ink), the surface is normal on Tomoe River (not chalky), slightly chalky on Rhodia, and moderately chalky on the notebook paper. It is less chalky than Upper Ganges Blue in each case, and the color is more blue in every case, though the difference is least significant on the notebook paper. This might be because the reaction that binds the ink to the cellulose fibers is most complete on the notebook paper.

I have not cleaned it out of a pen yet, but cleaning it out of a syringe gave me enough info to suspect that this is going to be an issue. It likes to leave a residue, and it is very quick to do so on the sink. It is reminiscent of Baystate Blue in this respect, but the similarity is superficial at best. The residue left behind by Revolution Blue can be removed by wiping it, but it seems to require a bit more elbow grease than normal for a cellulose-reactive ink. From what I have seen, my ultrasonic cleaner will clean out the residue when using ammonia and water in the chamber, but only just. I will provide an update when I can.

[Frank C]

Thanks for the post. I'm always on the search for Noodler's exclusive inks. This looks like a nice blue.

[amberleadavis]

Mike, thanks for the review. I've been eyeing this ink.

[mhosea]

I'm really enjoying it on Tomoe River paper. Start-up performance has also remained impressive. Possibly Nathan tuned this one in a similar way to Blue Steel, though I'm only guessing on that score. Last night I confirmed that a little bit of residue will make it through my normal cleaning procedure. The feed looks completely clean, but the nib and the metal piercing tube on a Sheaffer pen showed a little of it even after ultrasonic cleaning. I just wiped it away with a paper towel, but looking through the fins to the underside of the nib, there might be some there. I'm kind of doubting it would stay very long if one switched to another ink, or perhaps glycerin water would do the trick. At any rate, I'm not at all worried. I may even use it in one of my opaque piston fillers.

[torstar]

Great review, that shade is in my wheelhouse.

[inkstainedruth]

Thanks for the review. This one looks interesting. I have a sample of Noodler's Blue which I haven't yet tried (I was going to do a three-way comparison between it, Midway Blue and Ottoman Azure). I did try UGB a couple of years ago, and while I liked its waterproofness, I didn't care for the color (a bit too light for me) or the chalkiness.

Noooooo...... Must... not... buy... more... ink... (I have too many un-tested samples as is ).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[mhosea]

I did try UGB a couple of years ago, and while I liked its waterproofness, I didn't care for the color (a bit too light for me) or the chalkiness.

 

UGB is rather variable. I also think it is too light, and/or too boring, when laid down thinly. In a wet pen it is much better, but even so, you get a very chalky line on uncoated paper. Tomoe River brings out the best in it. I think Revolution Blue is in the same family as UGB. Both have an almost "radioactive" look in the bottle, completely opaque, as if it were paint. There's something different about RB on paper, though, something more blue, something a little more vibrant. Still, you still need good paper, or the finish is chalky, with an appearance too close to UGB for (my) comfort. On the Brazilian-made Staples notebook paper you can watch the appearance change as it dries. But I use Tomoe River paper a lot, sometimes Rhodia, where RB looks substantially better (IMHO). Since I have a bottle and a half of UGB, I might start experimenting with mixing it to produce something useful to me, as I don't think I will ever want to use it again now that I have RB.

[samgeee]

Thanks for the review. I ordered 2 bottles, which arrive today!

[DaveBj]

I'm looking for a good, bright blue for when I write my blue Varsity dry. I don't have a wheelhouse, but this is definitely on my short list.

[truthpil]

How does Revolution Blue compare to Luxury Blue?