Already Have Noodler's Black. Is Old Manhattan Blackest Black Worth While?

[Witsius]

I've been pondering ordering FPH's Old Manhattan Blackest Black. What's your opinion? Is it worth having if I've already got Noodler's Black? How's the behavior of OMB? Is there really bad nib creep? I had a bottle of 54th Mass., and the nib creep as terrible (my pen looked like it was leaking), caused startup issues, and was a royal pain to clean. Regular Noodler's Black is pretty benign. Is OMB similar in this regard?

[inkstainedruth]

Old Manhattan is super black. IIRC, it's blacker than the regular Noodler's Black. Apparently I never actually did a page for Noodler's Black in one of my ink journals , so I can't compare stuff like the dry time length (OM is slower drying than some inks -- 15-20 seconds on poor quality and relatively absorbent Piccadilly paper). It's been a couple of years since I used it, so I don't remember if there was a problem with nib creep or not (sorry), and it doesn't get a lot of use (I tend to prefer Heart of Darkness, because that ink is pretty well behaved and dries relatively quickly -- much quicker than my notes about OM say).

Part of the reason that OM looks so black (the only ink I ever found that beat it for "fall-into-a-black-hole" black was Organic Studios Charles Darwin, which dried faster than Heart of Darkness -- well, pretty much faster than any ink I've ever seen -- but had horrible spread and bleedthrough issues, even in a pen with a hooded F nib). OM didn't have the bleedthrough issues that OSCD had, but I think there was some spread.

Hope this helps you at least some.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[iveyman]

I have Noodler's Eel Black, 54th Mass., and Old Manhattan Black and I always write them on Clairefontaine notebook paper. I have experienced no nib creep at all with all 3 inks. The issue may be with your pen.

 

Noodler's Eel Black is the smoothest one. 54th Mass. is a very nice blue black.

Old Manhattan Black lives up to what it is promoted for i.e. the blackest black and I think it is worth it, if you want a really black ink.

 

I have recently mixed what is left in my bottle of Old Manhattan Black (less than 1/3 of bottle left) with my bottle of Noodler's Eel Black with is about 2/3 of a bottle left and it is working out fine for me. The reason I am pouring my Old Manhattan Black into my bottle of Eel Black is the Noodler's bottle does not easily fill up converters when the ink level is low.

Edited September 18, 2016 by iveyman

[ac12]

@iveyman

I transfer my ink into 5ml ink vials, which are easier to fill when you have less ink. That also keeps me from accidentally contaminating the source bottle.

At the end of the bottle, I use an ink syringe to suck up the last drops of ink and inject it directly into the converter or cartridge.

[estie1948]

Old Manhattan Black lives up to what it is promoted for i.e. the blackest black and I think it is worth it, if you want a really black ink.

 

 

+1. I have used Old Manhattan Black since it came out. I use it primarily in my Esterbrook J's with the 9450 and 9550 nibs (extra fine), but I also use it in a Sheaffer Balance with a fine nib and my Parker 51's with fine nibs and Parker 45's with fine nibs. I have never experienced nib creep with Old Manhattan Black. I love to use Clairefontaine papers, but only use them for special purposes. Primarily I use inkjet printer paper (20 lb.; 92 bright at about $5 a ream). No problems with bleed through or feathering. No problems with the pens. Starts up just fine. It is a very well behaved ink. I am one of those people who use black ink almost exclusively. My complete ink supply right this moment is one and a half bottles of Parker Quink Black, one full bottle of Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Black, three-fourths of a bottle of Noodler's Legal Lapis (a blue-black ink), a full bottle of Noodler's #41 Brown (unopened - gift from several years ago), and two and one half bottles of Noodler's Old Manhattan Black. Yes, I like it and I would highly recommend it.

 

-David (Estie).

[ethernautrix]

OMBB is darker than Noodler's Black, and I use it to boost NB by adding a little. I didn't measure, so I'll guess that I added 1/6 (I poured NB into an empty Akkerman bottle, then added OMBB). Makes NB darker. I haven't noticed nib creep.

[Arkanabar]

@iveyman

I transfer my ink into 5ml ink vials, which are easier to fill when you have less ink. That also keeps me from accidentally contaminating the source bottle.

At the end of the bottle, I use an ink syringe to suck up the last drops of ink and inject it directly into the converter or cartridge.

I only fill from sample vials any more, for the stated reason -- no contaminating the source bottle. I use a disposable 3ml polypropylene bulb pipette to fill them.

[swanjun]

I think it's worth it to have both, but then I not only have these, but Borealis Black, Eel Black, Heart of Darkness... I'm actually kind of bummed I didn't get Raven Black, too, when I had the chance!

[tmenyc]

I used both for some years. OMB is blacker, my view, but dries very slowly for this lefthanded overwriter. It smudges hours and days later, depending on the paper. I generally diluted it 10-15% with water to help dry a little. Never thought of mixing it with Black or HOD, but there's no reason it shouldn't work.

 

Tim

[Witsius]

Well, I've ordered a bottle. The blackest of black inks on the way.

[vectorbundle]

For a super black, fast drying ink on Clairfontaine or Rhodia paper, Noodler's Heart of Darkness is the ticket. Definitely the answer for a left-hander like me.

[Witsius]

Got my bottle of OMBB today. It's definitely black hole black. But it's also wetter than regular Noodler's black. I've got it in my Parker 45 Flighter, which is a fairly wet writer. It seems to flow a little more readily, which isn't necessarily a good thing, because in a wetter pen, it's a little uncontrollable. I'll have to try this in my TWSBI, which is a fairly dry writer.

 

So far, regular Noodler's black seems to behave a little better. It also seems to feel a little silkier under the nib than OMBB.

Edited September 23, 2016 by Witsius

[tmenyc]

as I noted above, add a dash of water to your next fill...up to 10%. That will dry it down a little for a wet pen and not dilute the color.

Tim

[MarkHanks]

So Noodler's Old Manhattan-Blackest Black is the blackest possible black that is waterproof, if not UV-proof too?

[wallylynn]

Of the dye-based inks, that's the consensus. This thread is a bit old. I'm not sure if the nano-carbon inks were available at that time. Those might be blacker. Or maybe not as black, but a truer black.

[MarkHanks]

Thank you.