Review Of Tomoe River 52Gsm Paper

[GranTorino25]

Hi all!

 

My latest review dropped last night on my blog post, which focused on Tomoe River 52gsm paper!

 

A brief excerpt:

 

Sheen is what you are all here for, right? The super sheen of Tomoe River 52gsm? Well, it does sheen. A lot. Like, a lot, a lot. If you use TR 52gsm for ink swatches, you will see crazy levels of sheen, and this largely translates to writing (although, obviously not as much as a swatch, given how much ink is put down when swatching!). This is due to the coating on the paper I mentioned earlier, as the longer an ink takes to dry on a paper, the better the sheen will show. If you havent tried papers beyond copy paper, or Rhodia/Clairefontaine/Leuchtturm, you may be surprised to learn that your ink looks completely different with a red/silver/gold/green (looking at you, Tsukushi) sheen when you move the paper, or your head, under light. Just to be clear, not all inks sheen, but a fair number do, especially when using a wet ink/nib combination. A lot people enjoy this aspect of their inks, and feel that it adds character to their writing- I am definitely in this camp! If sheen is for you, Tomoe River is for you!

 

As well as excellent sheening properties, Tomoe River 52gsm shades wonderfully with a moderately-wet to dry ink and appropriate nib. For example, you can see that with GvFC Moss Green, there is a large range of colour from the same ink, anywhere from a medium green to almost black/green. If you have nicer hand-writing than mine or practice calligraphy, these shading properties will only add to the beauty of your work.

 

For the full review, see here: https://fountainpenfriendlyblog.wordpress.com/2018/04/12/tomoe-river-52gsm-the-best-in-the-world/

[akrohn2010]

Thanks for sharing! I use the cream Tomoe 52gsm for my bible transcription — it’s the closest thing I’ve found to fountain-pen friendly “bible paper.”

 

~AK

[RPB]

Great review. I was exclusively using this in my notebooks until I recently bought a William Hannah notebook. As I live in the UK this was awesome to find here. His 115 gsm paper is also excellent for every type of fountain pen ink or other inks. The Tomoe River though is just a stunning paper. There are so many incredible books to use! Nanami paper Seven Seas Writer or Cafe versions; Design-y hand made versions; Hobonichi diaries use it, all awesome choices.

[Newjelan]

Tomoe River 52GSM Paper is my drug of choice.

[Pebblestationeryco]

I love Tomoe so much that before it was readily (and cheaply) available in notebook form, I bought loose sheets and learnt to bind it by hand and now I've started a company that is designing notebooks using Tomoe River Paper! 52gsm though, not 68gsm - I've not had as good an experience with 68gsm and its so much more expensive!

 

 

Lois

 

Follow us on Instagram @pebblestationeryco or visit our website www.pebblestationeryco.com

[Karmachanic]

Follow us on Instagram @pebblestationeryco or visit our website www.pebblestationeryco.com

 

Your third post promoting your product.

[PurplePlum]

I want to like it, it's just not for me.

 

I bought 100 A4 loose sheets and sewed myself four signatures for my A5 leather journal cover as a direct result of all the hype. I love how my signatures came out and the fact that it gave me 400 pages of A5, but it's not for me, I find the paper too thin and crispy and I can't get on with the show through. It reminds me too much of Bible paper.

 

Personally I think it makes my inks look dull, which I hate. I don't have any sheening inks so couldn't really comment on that. I have shading inks however and I'm not keen on the way they look on this paper either, to me they look washed out. For the £20 I spent to make the four signatures I should have bought two decent bottles of ink.

 

I guess it's all horses for courses. It's probably sacrilege to say this on here, I know..

[Karmachanic]

I want to like it, it's just not for me.

 

 

What do you prefer?

[AlohaLani787]

As I close in on a final decision for my journal paper of choice, Tomoe River is #1 and Rhodia (cream) #2.

 

Tomoe River is the schnitzel for shading. Nothing beats it, n.o.t.h.i.n.g.

 

Some of my pens hint they prefer Rhodia. I may end up using both as an experiment since I do switch pens, ink, and writing style regularly.

 

Tomoe would be perfect if it were a smidgen thicker, but it's near perfect for my use.

[Karmachanic]

Tomoe would be perfect if it were a smidgen thicker, but it's near perfect for my use.

 

Have you tried the 68gsm?

[PurplePlum]

 

What do you prefer?

 

At the moment probably the Oxford Optik paper in 90gsm. I prefer somewhere in the middle of too slick like Rhodia and ClareFontaine and too matt like Tomoe River. Oxford Optik wins on price too.

[Karmachanic]

Thanks. Tried Optik but didn't care for it. We are fortunate to have so many choices.

[PurplePlum]

Very true, horses for courses

[AlohaLani787]

 

Have you tried the 68gsm?

 

No, I have not as my notebooks are all 52gsm. If the 68gsm isn't too expensive I'll try some. Actually, I wasn't aware 68gsm existed!

[AlohaLani787]

My order of white Tomoe 68gsm loose sheets arrived and I used it for a letter. The result is that some nibs prefer the 52gsm and others the 68gsm. Same with inks. Shading is better on one or the other depending on ink. Generally speaking, I prefer the 68gsm because the 52gsm is SO thin it doesn't take an especially broad or dark ink to show through and the loose sheets slide around easily.

 

Never in a million years did I anticipate the "fussiness" of individual fountain pens. Owning them, especially multiples, requires careful documentation of their preference for both ink and paper.