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Old Ink Fillup

eharriett

By eharriett
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eharriett Collectors Item

eharriett

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Today, I just came into possession of 29 vintage bottles of ink. They appear to be 1960's and earlier. A few of the bottles may have been used, but I'm fairly certain a number of them have never been opened before. However, most of them are 1/4 to 1/3 depleted. I cannot tell if they were used or if the liquid evaporated. Is there any way to tell? I'd like to add distilled water to the ones I want to keep and use, but I fear for changing the color or it losing some of its old formulaic vibrancy or diluting it.

 

Can anyone give me advice or share thoughts if they've gone through similar issues and what they've done? Thanks.

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Chrissy Museum Piece

Chrissy

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It should be easier if there are several that are the same color to start with. You can swab test them with a cotton swab and see if some are more saturated than others, then maybe add a little water to those that are more saturated.

 

Otherwise, apart from finding original reviews of the inks, that show their correct color, you may not be able to differentiate between those that have been slightly used and those that have evaporated. Maybe those that have evaporated will have cleaner bottle and cap threads?

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eharriett Collectors Item

eharriett

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Thanks. I'm doing the "shine a flashlight through the bottle to check the ink level" thing today. I think over the next couple of days I'm going to start putting these up to trade for other vintage bottles of ink. I can easily sell them for a profit but I'd be much more interested in a vintage ink swap.

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johnboz Vintage

johnboz

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It can be pretty tough to determine if the bottles are part-empty due to use or evaporation. The easiest way I've found is just to check the consistency of the ink. Evaporated ink will just seem thicker and more saturated and will seem to "stick" to the sides of the bottle a bit more than normal.

 

You'll find that some colors stand the test of time much better than others. For example, most of the vintage black inks I've used have turned more green or red over time, while almost every type of turquoise (Waterman South Sea Blue, Skrip Peacock Blue, Penit Peacock Blue) have been consistently perfect.

 

I have what I'd consider good samples of most U.S.-made vintage inks. If you want to do a sheet of swabs, I'd be happy to let you know which ones look "right" and which look off.

I've got a blog!

Fountain Pen Love

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inkstainedruth Ancient Artifact

inkstainedruth

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I'd say the only real issue is whether or not they have SITB. So you definitely want to check on that before putting any of them into a pen.

I have a number of bottles of vintage ink. In at least a couple of cases, I suspect that the ink was reconstituted at some point, because they seem a bit watery. And in the case of a bottle of Quink Microfilm Black I'm wondering if the previous/original owner dumped some blue ink in to refill the bottle -- because it doesn't seem, well, black... (but is still a well-behaving ink).

Like johhnboz said, it's possible that the inks evaporated over the years (especially if the caps weren't on tight, or are partially rusted). And I lost most of a bottle of (red box) Skrip Brown/Sepia because the cap wasn't tight and it leaked into a plastic bag (and fortunately not all over my stuff, but I'm bummed because it was a great color). But I wouldn't add water to them until you check, simply *because* they may have been reconstituted already.

According to a guy in my local pen club, Sheaffer inks reconstitute better than some other brands (i.e., are less diluted). I don't know how true that is, though.

Good luck with your inks. And if one of them is vintage Skrip Peacock? Well, that is something special. :wub: Although it's a major league PITA to get off your hands.... :blush:

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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eharriett Collectors Item

eharriett

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Several bottles of Peacock, actually :) And two partially used quarts of Quink Microfiche Black, to name a few.

 

Looks like I'm not gonna mess with the ones that look full and see about trading those out first. I'll post a pic here before dinner.

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inkstainedruth Ancient Artifact

inkstainedruth

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Several bottles of Peacock, actually :) And two partially used quarts of Quink Microfiche Black, to name a few.

 

Looks like I'm not gonna mess with the ones that look full and see about trading those out first. I'll post a pic here before dinner.

 

Wow. Score you!

You will probably want to decant the quart bottles into smaller containers. I did that with a 3/4 full pint bottle of Skrip Peacock, and a unused 8 oz. bottle of vintage Quink Violet -- I ordered some 2 and 4 oz. Boston rounds that were amber glass, and got eyedropper caps for the larger bottles. Don't remember where I ordered them from (it's been a couple of years), but I searched around the Internet to find a place that gave me the best price for what I wanted without having to order in volume (I had zero use for an entire case of 4 oz. Boston rounds after all... :rolleyes:). And then I had my husband help me get the bottle of Quink Violet open because it had a rubber stopper and a wick -- but did not have the nozzle to decant the ink into inkwells....

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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eharriett Collectors Item

eharriett

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Noihvo: That's about what I'm going to do.

 

Ruth: one of the things I was hoping to trade for was for a vintage bottle of purple. I have none from any company circa 30's - 60's :) That is a VERY good idea, though. I can easily pick up a few empty bottles from Andersons and part out the big jugs. That's a way better idea than what I was thinking, actually. Thanks.

 

And send me a PM if you've got any spare vintage inks you want to trade. We can compare.

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eharriett Collectors Item

eharriett

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Here's a pic of what I've got. I'll probably keep one bottle of each. There were other bottles, but these are the ones I'll try and trade. Probably keep the Emerald Green too.

 

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rI5VB01.jpg

 

kd4O9Ke.jpg

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johnboz Vintage

johnboz

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That's a great haul! I just filled up a pen with some Skrip Permanent Red the other day and was reminded why I like it so much. Such a pure red color. I was even surprised to find a bit of green/gold sheen! I'm not sure if you're aware, but you should avoid using the Superchrome. It supposedly eats pens. Enjoy the ink!

I've got a blog!

Fountain Pen Love

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eharriett Collectors Item

eharriett

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Yeah. I heard that too. And yeah, that bottle is definitely used. After looking in it there's no way I'd ever put that in a pen!

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RockingLR Mint

RockingLR

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oh how exciting. I don't have any vintage inks to trade but I'd say you got a wonderful load of inks that I'm more then a little jealous of. Enjoy and I hope you get the trades you are looking for :D

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gregamckinney Antique

gregamckinney

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Great haul! You don't want to use the Superchrome though. It isn't suitable for pretty much any modern or vintage pen.

The brown and tan Skrip bottles are quite old.

 

Regards, greg

Don't feel bad. I'm old; I'm meh about most things.

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amberleadavis Pen Dust

amberleadavis

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That's a great haul! I just filled up a pen with some Skrip Permanent Red the other day and was reminded why I like it so much. Such a pure red color. I was even surprised to find a bit of green/gold sheen! I'm not sure if you're aware, but you should avoid using the Superchrome. It supposedly eats pens. Enjoy the ink!

 

 

Your help is requested in this thread: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/330805-vintage-sheaffer-skrip-permanent-red-and-rc35/

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

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Those are wonderful!

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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Runnin_Ute Museum Piece

Runnin_Ute

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I recently acquired a bottle of Emerald Green and I really like it. One of the inks I used for Christmas cards this year. Yes it is that good.

Brad

"Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind" - Rudyard Kipling
"None of us can have as many virtues as the fountain-pen, or half its cussedness; but we can try." - Mark Twain

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