Blackest Black Ink...beating A Dead Horse Or Worth Revisiting?

[lordofnumpties]

I have done my research and I saw similar posts on the forum. Everyone had a favourite blackest black ink, but very few posters mentioned which other black inks they had tried. That leads to a problem: if someone says ink X is the most intense black, maybe their opinion isn't worth much if they haven't tried inks Y and Z and so on.

 

So I was hoping this topic could be revisited and settled for the next 3-4 years, with proper posts that state which is the most intense black ink that you have tried which does not shade to gray, while mentioning which other inks you have tried before picking your current favourite. And maybe there's something new on the market in 2017 that beats Perle Noir or Aurora Black.

Please let me know your thoughts if you agree.

 

PS- I saw http://www.jetpens.com/blog/black-fountain-pen-ink/pt/20, but I'm not sure I am convinced. Inks seem different on different papers, and some of the softer inks in this review seem as dark as the "dark/very dark" ones to me. I'd rather count on everyday experiences of users like yourself.

Edited January 25, 2017 by lordofnumpties

[beanbag]

You can always cheat by adding a tiny touch of surfactant to the ink to make it really wet. That will increase the blackness.

[Maurizio]

Leaving permanence aside for a moment, the general consensus here seems to be 3:

Aurora Black
Herbin Perle Noir
Noodler's Black

Between those 3 I'm not sure it's been established which is the "blackest" by controlled tests of uniform conditions on the same paper with the same pen.

Noodler's makes a variety of blacks and I'm also not sure if there's a consensus here about which of the Noodler's blacks is the "blackest".

Adding the factor of permanence in the mix, there are the Japanese nano inks: Sailor Kiwa-Guru and Platinum Carbon Black. I do calligraphy so permanence is important to me. I have the Kiwa-Guru and don't find it to be extraordinarily black. However it does have a nice sheen and I know it's permanent. When you rinse the nib in a glass of water you can see all the particles.

There are other blacks that I'd like to hear about rather than having to buy and compare them all myself.

Noodler's Old Manhattan Black
Mont Blanc Permanent Black
Pilot Black

I have also used Noodler's Borealis Black and Private Reserve Velvet Black. Of those 2 the Noodler's is better.

I use Sailor Jentle Black for everyday calligraphy practice and have recently found that even that excellently flowing ink's flow properties can be enhanced for use with my Pilot Parallel pens by addition of 2 drops of glycerin.

I would like to see a comprehensive controlled test of blacks to answer that question: what's the blackest black?

Edited January 25, 2017 by Maurizio

[oldrifleman]

I use Noodlers Old Manhattan Blackest black as my daily ink, I also have aurora black in my drawer. I find the Noodlers to be a bit better. I find it darker and feeds well, dries fast.

[Azuniga]

I have tried some of the inks mentioned here, I keep using Aurora Black although it is not the blackest, but recently I started using the blackest I know; Caran D'Ache Carbon

[torstar]

I've tried more black inks than i can shake a stick at for 40 years. And brands keep changing the recipe, mostly getting better, if I dare posit that opinion.

 

Aurora is my go-to...

 

dealbreakers were clear streaks of gray/grey and RED!!!!! through the years, no brands mentioned but never forgotten...

Edited January 25, 2017 by torstar

[lapis]

Perle Noire and Aurora -- as "good" as they have always been esteemed -- have been won over (I hesitate to say "beaten") for years. Check out this thread:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/310657-montblanc-ultra-black/

Now we all know that such a chromatography technique can't reveal anything about an ink's flow and lubrication, but the blackest blacks for me are still kiwa-guro and MB's Permanent Black. The flow and lubrication of these last two are more than okay, MB's being IMO the better of the two. The very slight green you see in the spot of HOD, and especially in Invincible Black, can also be seen when I write with those inks with my pens on my papers.

 

Mike

[GardenWeasel]

Now that flow and lubrication are mentioned...these two factors rate very high for me. Not the blackest- but Black Eel is satisfying my needs for black.

Edited January 25, 2017 by GardenWeasel

[lordofnumpties]

I'm seeing the old favourites again. J Herbin's perle noire is what I am leaning towards, as everything else mentioned seems unavailable or unaffordable in India (the prices essentially double over here *screaming into my pillow*). There is no pain greater than having posh tastes and no money.

No love for Diamine Onyx Black?

Edited January 25, 2017 by lordofnumpties

[Witsius]

Aurora is quite black, but Noodler's OMBB is probably the darkest. I find Noodler's regular black to be rather grey.

[dcwaites]

It depends on the paper and the ink (assuming the pen is constant).

It also depends on whether you are looking for a true, non-reflective matt-black, or a glossy reflective black. The matt black is the blacker black, but to our eyes the glossy black looks blacker.

Also for two inks of the same blackness, a wetter ink will look blacker than a dryer equivalent.

 

Examples -

Sailor Kiwaguro black is truly the blackest black because the carbon nano-tubes absorb the light at a quantum level. And when you look at it flat on, it truly is a black black. However, at an angle, you get a slight sheen, which makes it look less black.

Noodler's Black looks blacker on some papers than Noodler's Heart of Darkness, and on other papers, it is the other way around, because they get absorbed into different paper fibres at different rates.

For some reason our eye/brain combination perceives a glossy black (i.e. Aurora, Borealis as blacker than a matt black (any of the Carbon inks), whilst a good light meter will show that the matt black actually reflects less light.

In other words, the blackest black is the one that you perceive to be the blackest black, depending on your pen, your paper, the lighting in your room and your eye/brain.

[Maurizio]

Lapis - that was a great review you did back in July and confirms that I want to try some MB Permanent Black.

 

DC - interesting observations raising a host of questions. You're telling me that my Kiwa-Guru is "blacker" than my Aurora Black even though i don't perceive it as so? I guess it would help if we were more precise about what we meant by "blackest" black. If we define it as which ink (as measured by a light meter. - what's the official name of those? ) reflects the least (or absorbs the most) light, then as you say this is likely the nano blacks. But if we define it as which ink looks (is perceived by the viewer) the blackest, then it seems that we're back to some other black inks like Aurora and Noodler's Old Manhattan, Perle Noir, or some of the other "blacker" looking blacks.

 

Which is, I think, something your comments agree with.

 

If i'm planning to scribe something meant to last on some acid-free paper I'll use Kiwa-Guru or some other permanent black. If i'm practicing calligraphy and want the blackest look to my letters, i'll use Aurora or Perle Noir.

[chromantic]

I've only used 2 blacks:

> Platinum Black cartridges - goes down pretty black, even in the 0.3 mm Plaisir nib, nice gold sheen, too.

> Bookbinders Red Belly Black - very black, nice red sheen, takes a long time to dry on good paper yet dries super fast in the nib when you stop to think

[JonSzanto]

It depends on the paper and the ink (assuming the pen is constant).

It also depends on whether you are looking for a true, non-reflective matt-black, or a glossy reflective black. The matt black is the blacker black, but to our eyes the glossy black looks blacker.

Also for two inks of the same blackness, a wetter ink will look blacker than a dryer equivalent.

 

Examples -

Sailor Kiwaguro black is truly the blackest black because the carbon nano-tubes absorb the light at a quantum level. And when you look at it flat on, it truly is a black black. However, at an angle, you get a slight sheen, which makes it look less black.

Noodler's Black looks blacker on some papers than Noodler's Heart of Darkness, and on other papers, it is the other way around, because they get absorbed into different paper fibres at different rates.

For some reason our eye/brain combination perceives a glossy black (i.e. Aurora, Borealis as blacker than a matt black (any of the Carbon inks), whilst a good light meter will show that the matt black actually reflects less light.

In other words, the blackest black is the one that you perceive to be the blackest black, depending on your pen, your paper, the lighting in your room and your eye/brain.

 

In a thread on blacks, this post was pure gold.

[Tas]

Here are a few others, also looking for the blackest black

 

http://www.taskyprianou.com/fpn_escher_stairs.jpg

 

Best of luck.

PS. My tuppence . . .

[lapis]

That's a good one but may I add that for all of this jazz about "What is the blackest black?", there is in fact a simple solution (pun intended). Buy 10-12 of these most often-mentioned candidates and decide for yourself. Your pens on your papers and all that. As DC so nicely put it, as well your lighting and angle of perception etc etc. Sure, that will cost you a dime or two, but you asked for it!

 

[milkb0at]

I, too, have occasionally wondered what super-black inks there are. I have Aurora black and Platinum carbon black, and they're both excellent. But I think I like Skrip Black more, which isn't very black really, and I'm quite fond of Diamine Graphite, so I've decided that in reality I don't want inks that are super black anyway.

 

If I fancy a really dark black on the odd occasion, I'll use a Pilot G-2 I have in my pen cup.

[torstar]

The cover of Smell the Glove was as black as black could be, almost like a mirror.

[ethernautrix]

It depends on the paper and the ink (assuming the pen is constant).

It also depends on whether you are looking for a true, non-reflective matt-black, or a glossy reflective black. The matt black is the blacker black, but to our eyes the glossy black looks blacker.

Also for two inks of the same blackness, a wetter ink will look blacker than a dryer equivalent.

 

Examples -

Sailor Kiwaguro black is truly the blackest black because the carbon nano-tubes absorb the light at a quantum level. And when you look at it flat on, it truly is a black black. However, at an angle, you get a slight sheen, which makes it look less black.

Noodler's Black looks blacker on some papers than Noodler's Heart of Darkness, and on other papers, it is the other way around, because they get absorbed into different paper fibres at different rates.

For some reason our eye/brain combination perceives a glossy black (i.e. Aurora, Borealis as blacker than a matt black (any of the Carbon inks), whilst a good light meter will show that the matt black actually reflects less light.

In other words, the blackest black is the one that you perceive to be the blackest black, depending on your pen, your paper, the lighting in your room and your eye/brain.

 

My opinion, too. Sometimes Noodler's Black (for example) can be, let's say, on the pale side of black, and sometimes it looks super black. I add a bit of OMBBB to boost the black just in case one of the factors inhibits the blackiness.

 

Once upon a time, I was on a quest for the blackest of blackest blacks. I chose Noodler's Black, because it's the only ink (black or otherwise) I've tried that doesn't feather on the widest variety of papers. (Results totally dependent on my non-scientific experience. Simply observation and frustration.)

 

Now I choose Noodler's Black even though it isn't always the darkest black, because oh my god there are so many great black inks! I could be paralyzed by indecision. I've chosen my favorite, and I'm sticking with it as long as Nathan produces it.*

 

I'm also using Platinum Carbon Black, cos I bought two bottles of it instead of two bottles of Sailor Kiwa-guro. It's a lovely VERY BLACK, probably BLACKEST black ink, but not the least maintenance.

 

* I, of course, reserve the right to change my mind. Maybe Konrad will make a black ink that is as problem-free and waterproof as Noodler's Black, and because it will (likely) be easier for me to purchase, it will become my new favorite black. I try to be flexible.

Edited January 26, 2017 by ethernautrix

[Arkanabar]

I have done my research and I saw similar posts on the forum. Everyone had a favourite blackest black ink, but very few posters mentioned which other black inks they had tried. That leads to a problem: if someone says ink X is the most intense black, maybe their opinion isn't worth much if they haven't tried inks Y and Z and so on.

 

This is fair enough.

 

I mostly write on salvage letter paper. We buy the cheapest printer paper we can find at Wal-Mart: Georgia Pacific "Basic" 88 Brightness 20lb all-purpose copy/print paper, presumably suitable for both inkjet and laser. After we're done with whatever printout, I three-hole punch it and put it in a zipper-closed 1.5" ring binder and use it for whatever. I may also use other printouts, which are most likely 92 brightness 20lb cheap office copy paper. I have some Made In Viet Nam $0.50 composition books I use as pen and ink journals. And finally, I've tasked some 8x10.5" Norcom college-ruled spiral notebooks (I have a box full, bought at Wal-Mart for $0.17-0.25 each) as bullet journals.

 

I get the very blackest results from Noodler's Borealis Black. It feathers noticeably, but not enough to make it illegible. I'd be hard put to say right now whether my Estie 9460 medium nib or my M200 Fine is my wettest pen, that gives it the darkest line.

 

I was once given a bottle of Levenger Raven Black. It was really, really black, and quite featherocious. That property convinced me not to buy it again. It was probably quite a few years after it ran out before I bought the Borealis Black.

 

I used to have regularly access to Noodler's Heart of Darkness, which seemed to be almost as black as Borealis Black, and resists every assault I've ever heard of. It feathers quite a bit less than Borealis Black. It dries quite a bit more quickly than Noodler's original Black.

 

I have Noodler's Bad Black Moccasin as well. My wife let it dry out in her Ivory Darkness Nib Creaper, and I'm going to have to dig out the ultrasonic cleaner to get it all out. I only use it diluted ~1:1 with water in Indian eyedropper pens I can take down completely and scrub with a toothbrush. It is very dark also. It has a vulnerable component, that is easily affected by water or anything else, but doesn't get completely obliterated.

 

Next in line among my blacks is the Parker Quink with Solv-X that my Dad still had on hand when he went from using his black and lustraloy 1954 aerometric Parker "51" to the ugliest Pentel Rolling Writer (gold with six black stripes) he could find.

 

I used to have Waterman Black. It was quite washed-out, as I recall.

 

Finally, I have a bottle of Montblanc-Simplo Black with SuperCleaner SC21; it used to come out distincly grey, though darker than a typical Bic medium point black pen. And right now, that's my minimum threshold for blackness -- darker than a medium-point black Bic.