Noodler's Bottles Overfilled

[TSherbs]

... I think this is just another of Nathan's bad jokes.

What? NT actually believes in more ink for the money.

[Vunter]

It's foolish to open any bottle of ink carelessly.

I couldn't open it any slower, as I said I opened it like I was doing surgery.

 

 

What? NT actually believes in more ink for the money.

You really care about a penny worth of ink. Edited December 28, 2019 by Vunter

[TSherbs]

You really care about a penny worth of ink.

Sure, but more the effort. I care about larger cereal boxes, and the price of a gallon of gas, too. I buy cheap eggs from a neighbor.

 

And I don't question NT's motives when he tries to maximize the ink volume of his bottles.

[Vunter]

Sure, but more the effort. I care about larger cereal boxes, and the price of a gallon of gas, too. I buy cheap eggs from a neighbor.

 

And I don't question NT's motives when he tries to maximize the ink volume of his bottles.

Your examples would only work if your eggs blew up when you opened them or your cereal box was crammed so full that when opened it exploded.

 

I'm not rich either, I'm a college student. Maximizing ink volume is one thing, maximizing ink volume to the point that you have to open the bottle in a bag to prevent it from spilling is just unnecessary.

[txomsy]

Quiet here. I do not think blaming or assuming wrong intentions or misdoing from anyone is right. No one can enter any other one's brain and know.

 

Sincerely, when I read about bad jokes, stubbornness, etc... I can only think of intolerance. Like if there was only one right way to do things and anyone who dares do them otherwise had to be burnt on a bonfire.

 

Personally, I never had any issue with Noodler's bottles. Even when once some drops spread on first opening a BSB bottle, I didn't blame anyone for that. I knew what I was getting. If any, it was my fault. Never, ever since that first time did I have any more issues. Nor do I need any special setup to open the bottles.

 

I understand each has his own expectations. And for the same reason I think is preferable to avoid attaching loaded words when describing something that doesn't quite follow our standards. If you don't like some ink (or anything/anyone) knowing in advance its shortcomings, should be as good as if you like it (or anything/anyone) despite them.

[TSherbs]

....maximizing ink volume to the point that you have to open the bottle in a bag to prevent it from spilling is just unnecessary.

I've never had to resort to such things, nor have I ever had a spill.

 

Again, my point was that filling the bottles so high is no "joke" perpetrated on the consumer. NT has explained many times why he does it. To question his sincerity on this seems misguided.

 

For some reason, someone then questioned my frugality. Which is a red herring.

[Bibliophage]

I wasn't really aware of how full the bottle was until I opened Baystate Concord Grape. I didn't spill anything.

 

The first time I open a bottle, I have it sitting at my sink, one hand holding the base, the other opening. I don't open new bottles of _anything_ in the air, if I can avoid it.

 

So, it doesn't really matter how full it is - even if it wasn't completely topped off, you can _still_ spill ink that's splashed on the lid while moving the bottle around, or by opening it in the air - where you can tilt the bottle.

[Vunter]

Quiet here. I do not think blaming or assuming wrong intentions or misdoing from anyone is right. No one can enter any other one's brain and know.

 

Sincerely, when I read about bad jokes, stubbornness, etc... I can only think of intolerance. Like if there was only one right way to do things and anyone who dares do them otherwise had to be burnt on a bonfire.

 

Personally, I never had any issue with Noodler's bottles. Even when once some drops spread on first opening a BSB bottle, I didn't blame anyone for that. I knew what I was getting. If any, it was my fault. Never, ever since that first time did I have any more issues. Nor do I need any special setup to open the bottles.

 

I understand each has his own expectations. And for the same reason I think is preferable to avoid attaching loaded words when describing something that doesn't quite follow our standards. If you don't like some ink (or anything/anyone) knowing in advance its shortcomings, should be as good as if you like it (or anything/anyone) despite them.

I guess your this amazing person and me having an opinion that I think these bottles don't need to be filled to an unnecessary level somehow makes me a bad person. Not once did I ever say that Nathan was a bad person. What I did say was filling bottles that full is unnecessary. I can appreciate the meaning behind said philosophy, however even if he reduced the amount he fills them by just 1 or 2 millimeters would be enough to not need a special setup to prevent spills.

 

I'm not exaggerating when I say that when I opened this bottle, as I did it literally squirted out the sides, on my desk, and on my shirt. I purposely am careful when opening ink bottles to avoid said issue.

 

Also many people say there are bunch of people who have brought this up before, so I'm obviously not the only person. If his goal is to give people the most for their money, why not do what restruants do with shakes/malts. Put the excess in a separate container, a cartridge or tiny ink sample bottles. Hell he could even send random ink samples along with every bottle ink. All these solutions would be better solutions than filling the bottles past the point of the bottle being full.

 

Also saying that anyone who has an issue should just not buy the ink seems like a poor business decision. If a fairly decent percentage of your customer base shares a similar thought, then I imagine adapting and making a compromise seems like a better business decision than just telling said customer to beat it.

Edited December 28, 2019 by Vunter

[Vunter]

I wasn't really aware of how full the bottle was until I opened Baystate Concord Grape. I didn't spill anything.

 

The first time I open a bottle, I have it sitting at my sink, one hand holding the base, the other opening. I don't open new bottles of _anything_ in the air, if I can avoid it.

 

So, it doesn't really matter how full it is - even if it wasn't completely topped off, you can _still_ spill ink that's splashed on the lid while moving the bottle around, or by opening it in the air - where you can tilt the bottle.

Since my first ever ink bottle when getting into the pen hobby, I have always opened bottles on a flat surface, on a cloth that is dubbed as my inky cloth.

 

I guess in the future I'll just have to start opening these bottles in Ziploc bags.

[TSherbs]

Not once did I ever say that Nathan was a bad person.

Correct.

 

You responded to my response to DonM, who did call NT mean-spirited for perpetrating this on his customers. That's where you asked me if I really did care about a penny's worth of ink. Of course, both producers and consumers are free to care about anything they wish. The guy prides himself in packing as much as he can into his bottles. Personally, I LOVE seeing that ink up nearly to the brim when I open one. Others, of course, may not.

[JonSzanto]

This is how these threads always trend: fanbois to the left, naysayers to the right, a sprinkling of finger-wagging and opinions flying past each other.

I've been following Nathan and his inks for well over ten years, and that puts it somewhere near the earliest days of his endeavor. The very first bottled inks I ever purchased were from Noodler's, including the one ink of his I hope to never run out of, and the only ink(s) I've ever sold or given to others because of their performance. I have watched his marketing strategy and his 'philosophy' evolve and it isn't nearly as mysterious as people want to have you believe. He's got the perfect shtik, especially well-suited for n00bs and young audiences. Among his many ink formulas are several find products, hampered only by some of his quirks, like variations over time and manufacture.

I expect that if he is still in business in another 10 years, identical threads will still occur: first-time pen users staining Mom's sink with BSB, people still ignoring the fact of putting a tiny bit less in the bottle for a tiny bit less in price wouldn't change value but would lose the imaginary perceived value, the amateurish politicizing of labels... the Nathan Tardiff shtik. The biggest difference is that ten years ago there were only a fraction of the inks we have now, a true explosion of products. As long as his favored vendors keep promoting his inks and the Legend of Nathan continues on the pages of the Intarweb, he'll still be here.

And still a fascinating story, in its own way.

Edited December 28, 2019 by JonSzanto

[Vunter]

This is how these threads always trend: fanbois to the left, naysayers to the right, a sprinkling of finger-wagging and opinions flying past each other.

 

I've been following Nathan and his inks for well over ten years, and that puts it somewhere near the earliest days of his endeavor. The very first bottled inks I ever purchased were from Noodler's, including the one ink of his I hope to never run out of, and the only ink(s) I've ever sold or given to others because of their performance. I have watched his marketing strategy and his 'philosophy' evolve over time and it isn't nearly as mysterious as people want to have you believe. He's got the perfect shtik, especially well-suited for n00bs and young audiences. Among his many ink formulas are a number of find products, hampered only by some of his quirks, like variations over time and manufacture.

 

I expect that if he is still in business in another 10 years, identical threads will still occur: first-time pen users staining Mom's sink with BSB, people still ignoring the fact of putting a tiny bit less in the bottle for a tiny bit less in price wouldn't change value but would lose the imaginary perceived value, the amateurish politicizing of labels... the Nathan Tardiff shtik. The biggest difference is that ten years ago there was only a fraction of the inks we have now, a true explosion of products. As long as his favored vendors keep promoting his inks and the Legend of Nathan continues on the pages of the Intarweb, he'll still be here.

 

And still a fascinating story, in it's own way.

The filling of the bottles to me is a separate thing entirely. The history and background of the company along with product marketing inspiration; all of this I can appreciate.

 

I like his products, just kind of annoying that I'm going to have to do a bunch of extra stuff just to merely begin to use it

[JonSzanto]

The filling of the bottles to me is a separate thing entirely. The history and background of the company along with product marketing inspiration; all of this I can appreciate.

 

My point was that it is all part of his marketing and aesthetic. Some, none, or all it may appeal to people. As I said, I still have a couple Noodler's inks I use, but that's it, and I became interested in those before he went off the deep end.

 

[OCArt]

Jon, just curious as to what is the ink you hope to never run out of?

Dave

{snipped}The very first bottled inks I ever purchased were from Noodler's, including the one ink of his I hope to never run out of [much snipped]

[JonSzanto]

Jon, just curious as to what is the ink you hope to never run out of?

 

Black Swan in Australian Roses, the original formulation (which still looks best to me).

Edited December 28, 2019 by JonSzanto

[TSherbs]

 

Black Swan in Australian Roses, the original formulation (which still looks best to me).

same for me

[pararis]

I simply consider him a classic American eccentric; we've had many throughout history.

 

But the overfilling of bottles is the ridiculous policy of a silly man.

[FLZapped]

Once upon a midnight BSB, it was mentioned that Nathan fills his bottles by weight, which is why a 3 oz fluid ounce bottle would be filled to the brim.

 

-Bruce

[Margana]

I have opened over 35 bottles of Noodler's without a spill. It's the best value for money on the market and I hope Nathan continues to be generous with his ink.

[A Smug Dill]

Anyone else have issues with Noodler's being overfilled.

I personally don't have issues with or misgivings against ink bottles being filled to the brim at the factory, as far as how tricky it is for me to then handle them goes. The (marginally) higher likelihood of leakage during transit (before the goods I ordered are received) due imperfect sealing by the lids is "not my problem", and usually retailers are quick to offer full refunds as soon as I raise complaints complete with photos of the bottles' condition on arrival.

 

I have my reservations about buying Noodler's inks, but how full the bottles come is not one of them.

 

Sure maybe it's on me not to spill, however when I'm opening an ink bottle like I'm doing neurosurgery I'd like to think it's not just me.

Also any tips on opening a bottle that's overfilled or should I just wear a hazmat suit and prepare for inkegeddon

I usually rest the base of the bottle flatly and firmly on a paper towel that is sitting on my (almost perfectly horizontal, according to my spirit level) desk surface, applying force with my left hand to both hold the bottle in place and prevent it from rotating, while unscrewing the cap with my right hand using movements of my fingers and wrist only, and do my best not to allow my forearm or elbow to move. If additional force is necessary, my left hand helps out by rotating the bottle the opposite way. Keeping the axis of the rotational motion orthogonal to surface of the desk, there is basically no physical movement of the ink relative to the walls and mouth of the bottle at all, so no sloshing around or spillage.

 

I couldn't open it any slower, as I said I opened it like I was doing surgery.

I'm not exaggerating when I say that when I opened this bottle, as I did it literally squirted out the sides, on my desk, and on my shirt. I purposely am careful when opening ink bottles to avoid said issue.

Practice makes perfect. It's just another physical skill, and while nobody is born with perfect mastery of it, it doesn't take 10,000 hours to get good enough either. Many an ordinary human — and your peer and equal in the fountain pen user community — has managed it, just as you've also read about those who haven't. I don't see any need to be so indignant about not being there yet yourself.