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Iroshizuku Asa Gao - Is Anything Better Than This One?

s_t_e_v_e

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s_t_e_v_e Extremely Rare

s_t_e_v_e

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This is the best blue ink (or even the best among all colors) I've used so far. Aurora and Waterman and Montblanc come in next on my list.

 

I was wondering if there are blues from other brands that are at least as well behaved as this one. I'm not looking at PR or Noodler's because I haven't had pleasant experiences with their inks for the same reasons already discussed at length in other threads.

 

My criteria for well behaved are:

- wet

- saturated, I absolutely loathe washed out inks. The color should stay the way it is or darker after drying.

- very low feathering and bleed through

- reasonable dry times

- consistent flow till the last drop in a converter without having to prime the feed

 

Asa Gao hits it out of the park for all of the above criteria and is currently my favorite ink. I haven't used Kon-Peki but I believe it is just as good. I hope there are inks from other brands that might be cheaper with similar or better characteristics.

 

My Pen Review Blog - Pen Arbor

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inkstainedruth Ancient Artifact

inkstainedruth

Posted
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I'll admit that I found Asa-Gao underwhelming at best. And it was drippy in whatever pen it was that I first tried it in (as in, write about about a page and "plop" -- that got old fast...). :glare:

I am liking Ama-Iro. But not sure I like it enough to spring for a full bottle over, say, Akkerman Passage Blauw (which I think gets to be less expensive and has the really cool bottle).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

"It's very nice, but frankly, when I signed that list for a P-51, what I had in mind was a fountain pen."

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Jezza Extremely Rare

Jezza

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Asa Gao is pretty good, but a little on the purple side for my taste. Kon Peki is also great, but a little on the green side. In terms of your other criteria, I think these Iroshizuku inks are an excellent balance of attributes. There are more saturated inks on the market, but none that match the two you mentioned in terms of the other factors on your list. Of course, I think standard Pilot blue ink is one of the best inks around.

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amberleadavis Pen Dust

amberleadavis

Posted
Posted

http://www.sheismylawyer.com/2016-Ink/06-June/slides/2016-06-07_01.jpg

Fountain pens are my preferred COLOR DELIVERY SYSTEM (in part because crayons melt in Las Vegas).

Create a Ghostly Avatar and I'll send you a letter. Check out some Ink comparisons: The Great PPS Comparison 

Don't know where to start?  Look at the Inky Topics O'day.  Then, see inks sorted by color: Blue Purple Brown Red Green Dark Green Orange Black Pinks Yellows Blue-Blacks Grey/Gray UVInks Turquoise/Teal MURKY

 

 

 

 

 

 

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amberleadavis Pen Dust

amberleadavis

Posted
Posted

http://www.sheismylawyer.com/2016-Ink/06-June/slides/2016-06-07_02.jpg

Fountain pens are my preferred COLOR DELIVERY SYSTEM (in part because crayons melt in Las Vegas).

Create a Ghostly Avatar and I'll send you a letter. Check out some Ink comparisons: The Great PPS Comparison 

Don't know where to start?  Look at the Inky Topics O'day.  Then, see inks sorted by color: Blue Purple Brown Red Green Dark Green Orange Black Pinks Yellows Blue-Blacks Grey/Gray UVInks Turquoise/Teal MURKY

 

 

 

 

 

 

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amberleadavis Pen Dust

amberleadavis

Posted
Posted

http://www.sheismylawyer.com/2016-Ink/06-June/slides/2016-06-07_03.jpg

Fountain pens are my preferred COLOR DELIVERY SYSTEM (in part because crayons melt in Las Vegas).

Create a Ghostly Avatar and I'll send you a letter. Check out some Ink comparisons: The Great PPS Comparison 

Don't know where to start?  Look at the Inky Topics O'day.  Then, see inks sorted by color: Blue Purple Brown Red Green Dark Green Orange Black Pinks Yellows Blue-Blacks Grey/Gray UVInks Turquoise/Teal MURKY

 

 

 

 

 

 

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amberleadavis Pen Dust

amberleadavis

Posted
Posted

http://www.sheismylawyer.com/2016-Ink/06-June/slides/2016-06-07_04.jpg

Fountain pens are my preferred COLOR DELIVERY SYSTEM (in part because crayons melt in Las Vegas).

Create a Ghostly Avatar and I'll send you a letter. Check out some Ink comparisons: The Great PPS Comparison 

Don't know where to start?  Look at the Inky Topics O'day.  Then, see inks sorted by color: Blue Purple Brown Red Green Dark Green Orange Black Pinks Yellows Blue-Blacks Grey/Gray UVInks Turquoise/Teal MURKY

 

 

 

 

 

 

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amberleadavis Pen Dust

amberleadavis

Posted
Posted

http://www.sheismylawyer.com/2016-Ink/06-June/slides/2016-06-07_05.jpg

Fountain pens are my preferred COLOR DELIVERY SYSTEM (in part because crayons melt in Las Vegas).

Create a Ghostly Avatar and I'll send you a letter. Check out some Ink comparisons: The Great PPS Comparison 

Don't know where to start?  Look at the Inky Topics O'day.  Then, see inks sorted by color: Blue Purple Brown Red Green Dark Green Orange Black Pinks Yellows Blue-Blacks Grey/Gray UVInks Turquoise/Teal MURKY

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Mulrich Collectors Item

Mulrich

Posted
Posted

Asa-gao is one of my favorites but I'm currently placing high value on water resistance, which asa-gao doesn't do.

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amberleadavis Pen Dust

amberleadavis

Posted
Posted

If you have Noodler's Polar Blue or Ghost Blue, just add some of that to Asa Gao and you will radically improve the water fastness.

Fountain pens are my preferred COLOR DELIVERY SYSTEM (in part because crayons melt in Las Vegas).

Create a Ghostly Avatar and I'll send you a letter. Check out some Ink comparisons: The Great PPS Comparison 

Don't know where to start?  Look at the Inky Topics O'day.  Then, see inks sorted by color: Blue Purple Brown Red Green Dark Green Orange Black Pinks Yellows Blue-Blacks Grey/Gray UVInks Turquoise/Teal MURKY

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Fabienne Collectors Item

Fabienne

Posted
Posted

Asa Gao is pretty good, but a little on the purple side for my taste. Kon Peki is also great, but a little on the green side. In terms of your other criteria, I think these Iroshizuku inks are an excellent balance of attributes. There are more saturated inks on the market, but none that match the two you mentioned in terms of the other factors on your list. Of course, I think standard Pilot blue ink is one of the best inks around.

Oh my, I just found out from Olya that Pilot Blue shades and sheens and it is a remarkably good blue color of a cobalt type not too purple or red or green. Remarkable stuff that and I am highly recommending it. Works a wonder on Tomoe River paper.


 It's for Yew!bastardchildlil.jpg

 

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skeskali NOS (New Old Stock)

skeskali

Posted
Posted
Asa Gao is my first bottle of Iroshizuku ink, and I absolutely love it. Right now I have it in a fine point Pilot Metropolitan, but I'm looking forward to trying it in a Lamy medium, or in my TWSBI Vac Mini broad to get a truer feel for it.

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skeskali NOS (New Old Stock)

skeskali

Posted
Posted

 

http://www.sheismylawyer.com/2016-Ink/06-June/slides/2016-06-07_05.jpg

 

Private Reserve Tanzanite is one of my holy grail inks. It was the first full-size bottle of ink I bought as a newbie, so I have a bit of a soft spot for it.

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amberleadavis Pen Dust

amberleadavis

Posted
Posted

Mine too. I found it at the only non boutique pen store in Las Vegas. Sadly, Paradise Pens in Las Vegas is no more.

Fountain pens are my preferred COLOR DELIVERY SYSTEM (in part because crayons melt in Las Vegas).

Create a Ghostly Avatar and I'll send you a letter. Check out some Ink comparisons: The Great PPS Comparison 

Don't know where to start?  Look at the Inky Topics O'day.  Then, see inks sorted by color: Blue Purple Brown Red Green Dark Green Orange Black Pinks Yellows Blue-Blacks Grey/Gray UVInks Turquoise/Teal MURKY

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Maine Vintner Rare

Maine Vintner

Posted
Posted

Mine too. I found it at the only non boutique pen store in Las Vegas. Sadly, Paradise Pens in Las Vegas is no more.

What, no Paradise Pens in Vegas?! I purchased a number of pens there and Private Reserve back in the day! Where's the go to store in Vegas these days?

 

Best,

John

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Aelie Mint

Aelie

Posted
Posted

I found Sailor inks to be just as well behaved as Iroshizuku. If you count shop-specific inks, there are far more Sailor inks to choose from than Pilot ones. Those shop-specific inks aren't necessarily cheap, but I consider larger choice in colors worth the money.

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mwduffy Dipped Only

mwduffy

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Asa Gao was one of my first Iroshizuku inks, and it remains a favourite blue when I want a brighter blue with a certain pop! I'm still searching for an elusive dark blue ink, telling myself I'll know it when I see it. I want it to be a solid and very professional dark blue, not quite black and not purple, an ink that will stand out on cream or white paper. Something rich looking (I think I mean velvety!) with a bit of sheen would be nice too. For now, I keep being diverted by Asa Gao and a few other Iroshizuku inks, including Shin-Kai. A rather pleasurable diversion, I have to say.

 

Michael

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s_t_e_v_e Extremely Rare

s_t_e_v_e

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Looks like Asa Gao is one of the favorites here but waterproofness is a concern. As amberleadavis pointed out, 'easy to clean/maintain' should also be on my checklist for a well behaved ink.

 

I have the following blues on my list to consider:

- Pilot/Namiki blue (I'm expecting this one to be similar in behavior to Asa Gao)

- Sailor blue (heard good things about Sailor inks, the color looks good in pictures)

- Levenger Cobalt (from my experience with a Levenger ink (cocoa), feathering and bleed through is poor)

- Sheaffer blue (very similar to Aurora blue. Flows well and is fairly saturated)

- Visconti blue (heard good things about this one)

- Waterman Florida blue (or whatever it is called these days. It's that standard blue that works well)

My Pen Review Blog - Pen Arbor

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Noihvo Collectors Item

Noihvo

Posted
Posted

Asa Gao was one of my first Iroshizuku inks, and it remains a favourite blue when I want a brighter blue with a certain pop! I'm still searching for an elusive dark blue ink, telling myself I'll know it when I see it. I want it to be a solid and very professional dark blue, not quite black and not purple, an ink that will stand out on cream or white paper. Something rich looking (I think I mean velvety!) with a bit of sheen would be nice too. For now, I keep being diverted by Asa Gao and a few other Iroshizuku inks, including Shin-Kai. A rather pleasurable diversion, I have to say.

 

Michael

 

fpn_1465837110__img_2071.jpg

"We are one."

 

– G'Kar, The Declaration of Principles

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