Redaction Ink

[SeeksAdvice]

Getting ready to work on a lot of material that needs redaction. Have tried J. Herbin Perl Noire with little to no success (not dark enough). Noodler's TX Black Bat is dark enough but has terrible dry time out of the chisel point, which is made worse by the extremely "wet" nature of the ink.

 

I am almost tempted to use a carbon type ink, just to get things dark enough. Have a bottle of MB Perm Black that I truly hate for everyday use (hard to get it to not smear even when "dry"). Thoughts on how it would play with a Platinum Preppy highlighter pen?

 

Other current ink options:

1) Old bottle of questionable Noodler's OMBB

​2) Old bottle of questionable Iroshizuku Take-Sumi

​

[Sandy1]

Hi,

 

Depending on just how 'secure' the original by-hand redaction needs to be, the ink should also block penetration / see-through by alternate light sources and defeat document recovery methods. For off-the-cuff stuff, I'd likely reach for a high particle ink, likely nano-carbon ink, but that's not's really 'secure'.

 

For the most part, one would not redact the original document (1st generation), but produce a copy (2nd generation ) make redactions on that, then reproduce that document on a copier / scanner set-up to fully suppress whatever was redacted to produce a 3rd generation document for distribution. The 2nd generation document would then be destroyed.

> If the 2nd generation documents are produced on a scanner, computer-based methods of redaction can be used, but there is a digital footprint in the production of 3rd generation documents, so must be done on secure [free-standing] systems with advanced meta- data deletion capability,.

 

Other than ink, an alternated means of redaction on the 2nd generation document could be opaque / metallic [Mylar] tape.

 

Some time ago I had a 'single sheet cutter', a hand-held blade that would cut through only one sheet of paper, so used that to redact document contents, (often billets doux - when the dove of love turned-out to be a pigeon) : it was well and truly deleted, and the act of literally cutting something out then tossing it into the fire was cathartic.

 

Bye,

S1

Edited May 1, 2016 by Sandy1

[Arkanabar]

Try a 3.8mm Pilot Parallel, which can be had for around $10. It's tall enough to cover most 12 point type. You can hold it at an angle if it's too tall. And with Borealis Black, it lays down enough ink that you can't see the strokes when doing calligraphy.

 

No ink used in any pen is going to fully obliterate toner printing; as Sandy says, you'll have to redact, make a copy, and send the copy.

Edited May 2, 2016 by Arkanabar

[sidthecat]

A bottle of Higgins India and a brush would be my choice.

[sciumbasci]

Why not the classic chisel tip permanent marker?

[Sandy1]

A bottle of Higgins India and a brush would be my choice.

 

 

Hi,

 

Not far behind would be a reed pen* and some sort of ink (such as a Sumi stick) with both carbon and adhesives. Though I wonder if some sort of acrylic ink loaded to the gunnels with metal flake would be in the running.

 

I have seen a Censor's work with liquid shoe polish and the dauber on a fashion magazine, but later found his effort was readily defeated. Alas, it was lose-lose: my fashion sense has not improved.

 

Bye,

S1

 

_ _

* Reed pen : Wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_pen and from our friends at Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/pin/385057836865195951/

Edited May 3, 2016 by Sandy1

[dcwaites]

Hi,

 

...

 

Some time ago I had a 'single sheet cutter', a hand-held blade that would cut through only one sheet of paper, so used that to redact document contents, (often billets doux - when the dove of love turned-out to be a pigeon) : it was well and truly deleted, and the act of literally cutting something out then tossing it into the fire was cathartic.

 

Bye,

S1

 

M'lady, cathartic is taking a 5mm thick black Sharpie and crossing out all the words except 'a', 'an' and 'the', al la Yossarian.

 

Sandy's method of making a copy, redacting the copy, then copying the redacted copy is probably the most secure. Using a black Sharpie on a carbon-toner printout would probably work, but if it has been printed with wax ink, I don't think it matters what you use, you will still be able to read it.

 

And don't, for heaven's sake, just put little black boxes on the redacted areas in a PDF file using Adobe Acrobat.

Edited May 3, 2016 by dcwaites

[aeba]

I did some redaction on a doctors verdict which I need to show now and then to some people. Sharpie on it's own isn't enough like @dcwaites mentioned. However, if one gets a photocopy of sharpie redacted document, that should be enough for most usage.

 

Offtopic:

It's too bad that copy machines are too accurate and clean these days. Copies don't get all that... character those old de-classified US military / government papers have.

[Arkanabar]

And don't, for heaven's sake, just put little black boxes on the redacted areas in a PDF file using Adobe Acrobat.

Screenshots of redacted files should have none of the metadata. You might also have success by opening the pdf in the GIMP, editing it, flattening it, and exporting it as some other filetype.

[Sandy1]

 

M'lady, cathartic is taking a 5mm thick black Sharpie and crossing out all the words except 'a', 'an' and 'the', al la Yossarian.

 

Sandy's method of making a copy, redacting the copy, then copying the redacted copy is probably the most secure. Using a black Sharpie on a carbon-toner printout would probably work, but if it has been printed with wax ink, I don't think it matters what you use, you will still be able to read it.

 

And don't, for heaven's sake, just put little black boxes on the redacted areas in a PDF file using Adobe Acrobat.

 

 

Hi,

 

I was running low on .22 HPs.

 

Bye,

S1

[dcwaites]

 

 

Hi,

 

I was running low on .22 HPs.

 

Bye,

S1

 

I would recommend the .22 shorts. They only just penetrate under the skin, and have to be removed, slowly, with forceps, which hurts much more than when they went in.

[senzen]

I just got Perle Noire, it's absolutely black and dark, I would try with another pen... I'm using a Muji.

[Piper 987]

Anyone still around from the Nixon Administration should be able to help you.

[AAAndrew]

I'm wondering if a serious iron gall, like Diamine Registrar's or ESSRI would be good since they actually react with the paper and turn very black after oxidation. Then photocopy.

 

Sounds like Sandy's done this before. Hmmmm?

[Perdendosi]

Screenshots of redacted files should have none of the metadata. You might also have success by opening the pdf in the GIMP, editing it, flattening it, and exporting it as some other filetype.

 

Acrobat Pro has a special redaction tool which creates the black boxes, then removes the underlying type and metadata. It's very slick and most secure.