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Inky T O D - Pigmented Ink? Do You Use It? Would You Use It Instead Of I G Inks?


amberleadavis

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We've talked about Iron Gall Inks, and no doubt we'll talk about all types of permanent inks, but for now, let's talk pigmented ink. FPNers talk about using pigmented inks with the same descriptors as they use when talking about IG inks - (pen hygiene, proper flushing, don't let the ink dry out in the pen). BUT the FPNers also talk about the rich colors, the water and fade resistance.

 

So, let's hear about it. Have you tried them? Do you use them? Do you like them? Do you use them instead of IG inks?

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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I use Platinum Carbon Black as my everyday-use ink in a Pilot Vanishing Point with a Binderized fine nib. It flows beautifully, doesn't feather hardly at all, even on the (bleep) paper we use at work, and leaves a line so black it looks burned in. Has a rather pleasing almost-graphite-ish sheen to it when it's dried, too. I just make sure I flush my pen once a week or so, just to be sure I don't risk any clogs, and I've not had any trouble at all with it. That's probably more flushing than it actually NEEDS, to be honest, but I like fiddling around with my pens anyway.

 

EDIT: Oh, and forgot to mention, it's pretty much impossible to get out, too! Running water, soaking in water, nothing seems to phase it. You can smear it a little bit, but that's about it. I use it for all my banking stuff too, for just that reason.

Edited by Komitadjie
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I have Sailor Kiwaguro Nano-Carbon ink. There are some notebooks that it is the only ink that will work on without feathering, bleeding, smearing, etc. It works beautifully in my XXF Parker 51 special. I probably don't use it enough.

I also have some cartridges of Sailor Sei-boku, just to see what it was like. I haven't used it much because the first impressions of the colour didn't inspire. I should probably look at it again.

I have a vintage bottle of Pelikan Fount India, which is not as good in a pen as Kiwaguro.

 

I used to use, when working for a museum, Rotring pigmented black in Rotring technical pens, as that ink (and the other carbon inks) are recognised by museums as the only modern inks known to last hundreds of years on paper labels. While the IG inks are known to last at least a thousand years on animal skins (parchment/vellum) there are too many examples of them damaging paper to be used by a museum.

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“Them as can do has to do for them as can’t.


And someone has to speak up for them as has no voices.”


Granny Aching

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Haven't tried any to date and haven't really considered them, but it doesn't mean that won't change in the future sometime.

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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I just recently got a bottle of "Accident" ink from Organics Studio. It's my first ink from OS (along with a bottle of John Hancock), and it's my first pigmented ink ever. All my waterproof inks up to now have been cellulose-reactive types: bulletproof, eternal, invincible, etc.

 

When I first tested it, my impression was that it was a sort of weak and low-saturation aqua color. It brought to mind Private Reserve Invincible Aqua Blue, although not as bad. (PRIAB still ranks as one of the most useless inks I have ever owned.) Accident was at least dark enough to be readable. It seems to have gotten darker since it has been in the pen for a while. I guess it's been drying out slightly in the nib and feed, becoming a bit more concentrated, and it has gradually turned into a very pretty "true blue" with no hint of purple.

 

The more I use it, the more I like it. Accident is completely waterproof too. Even though we are warned that it's relatively high-maintenance, thus far it seems better behaved than Noodler's Texas Blue Bonnet, which has been my standard for waterproof blue ink. Accident lacks the peculiar odor of TBB and doesn't seem to put deposits of "blue stuff" on the nib and feed parts.

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I have a bottle of Kiwaguro which I'm hesitant to use but I like how it flows with my TWSBI the hesitance is there because its not a cheap ink to say... good but not cheap... but if I burn through it I might just get me Platinum carbon inks... though honestly I do not like Platinum ink bottle design so I wonder what would I do with the bottle. I wonder if someone will also like the bottle... I like the sailor bottles more compact and is esthetically and ergonomically pleasisng

 

hmm... turning the bottles I do not like into empty inkwells that I may just give a wooden box... huh

Edited by Algester
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I have De Atramentis Document Ink black and Document Ink dark blue, which are often in my two everyday carry pens.

 

I don't find the maintenance too bad, though it is necessary to flush the pens frequently. You do need to be careful handling these inks because of the staining potential, but I've recently experimented with filling the converter with a syringe and blunt cannula.

 

The water and fade resistance are certainly attractive. Once properly dry, you can highlight writing in these inks using water based highlighter ink and the writing doesn't smudge at all.

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Sailor sei boku blue black nano pigmented ink has become my favorite day to day ink. Even if it wasn't the most waterproof ink I've ever used, I would still like it for its great color, shading, consistent flow, lack of feathering, great behavior on poor paper and nice lubrication. I've used it in my parker 51 for most of this year and have never have had a problem clogging. I just flush the pen once every two months. People talk about pigmented inks are high maintenance, well this one certainly is not.

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Hi,

 

The only nano pigment ink that I've spent any time with is Sailor sei-boku. It is one of my Go To inks when I want permanence and resistance to most fluids. I find it has a very roomy performance envelope so can dance till dawn with most pens & papers; and the appearance can be readily modified by dilution - down to 10% concentration.

 

Sei-Boku doesn't dry-out on the nib tip to the same extent as IG inks - less virga - so if I'm doing really fine work or working slowly, I know that ink will be there at the start of the stroke. And it is a great match for über narrow nibs to get exceptional quality hair's-breadth lines, though it will reveal a flawed nib and sloppy pen handling.

 

Also, the lubricity is much higher than IG ink, so if I'm using a narrow nib on toothy paper or a nib with an elusive sweet spot, the writing experience is more pleasant.

 

I am even more vigilant & fussy than usual (!) to ensure the pen is scrupulously cleansed before and after using nano particle inks, especially as they do not play well with inks from other families. That aspect causes me to avoid using them in pens that are tedious to clean-up. Yet if one were to use that ink as a daily writer in a carefully chosen [dedicated] pen, as Member cellmatrix mentioned above, I reckon the maintenance burden would not be too too much.

 

Bye,

S1

Edited by Sandy1

The only time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.

 

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I have used the Platinum carbon black once. I don't recall having any issues with it.

Smith Premier No. 4
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I used Sailor Kiwa-guro for a year in my Aurora Ipsilon with no problems even though I was no very good on maintenance since I didn't understand that back then.

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I use Platinum's carbon black and pigment blue inks, and I've been impressed with their incredible performance on nearly all types of paper. Feathering rarely, if ever happens, fading has not been a problem, and the flow has been excellent from my Japanese nibs. As far as maintenance goes, I started using these inks from the pens that were designed to use them: Platinum Century #3776. The "slip n' seal" sealing mechanism is impressive with any ink but gives me peace of mind with the pigment inks. I recently expanded my use to a Platinum Preppy and carbon black to do some work on a cheap Skillcraft notebook and found the results to be very impressive.

 

Buzz

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Kiwa-Guro vs. Platinum Carbon Black.

I own both of these inks, and they behave differently from each other. Kiwa-Guro has more grey "sheen" to it than Carbon Black. Kiwa-Guro dries faster than Carbon Black, and exhibits less feathering/bleed on the expletiving paper we use. Carbon Black gives a "blacker" black, mostly due to the lower sheen. Both have excellent lubrication. Both are impossible to fade due to what they are made out of, but can be smudged when dry similar to a pencil. (had that happen with an exhibit sticker). Both appear to be 100% waterproof when dry. Have only had serious issues with one pen, a Phileas EF, which never did fully clean from Kiwa-Guro use. A TWSBI 580 trapped some residue in the "dead space" between the piston and the feed section.

 

Overall, I have no issues with recommending either of these pigmented inks. Pretty sure that the limiting factor on how long a document written in these inks will last is the durability of the paper itself.

Sei-Boku.

 

Like the waterproofness of this ink, and the fact that it is tolerant of far worse paper than any "bulletproof" blue or blue-black offering from Noodler's that I've tried, and I own several. Would sometimes do 2-3 fills of this in my M400 or Pro-Gear without cleaning. Can have a red sheen to it. Really, really good choice for waterproof blue-black.

Just don't mix Kiwa-Guro and Sei-Boku. You don't get a darker "blue-black." Wound up with an almost green-black.

Imagination and memory are but one thing which for diverse reasons hath diverse names. -- T. Hobbes - Leviathan

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Kiwa-Guro vs. Platinum Carbon Black.

I own both of these inks, and they behave differently from each other. Kiwa-Guro has more grey "sheen" to it than Carbon Black. Kiwa-Guro dries faster than Carbon Black, and exhibits less feathering/bleed on the expletiving paper we use. Carbon Black gives a "blacker" black, mostly due to the lower sheen. Both have excellent lubrication. Both are impossible to fade due to what they are made out of, but can be smudged when dry similar to a pencil. (had that happen with an exhibit sticker). Both appear to be 100% waterproof when dry. Have only had serious issues with one pen, a Phileas EF, which never did fully clean from Kiwa-Guro use. A TWSBI 580 trapped some residue in the "dead space" between the piston and the feed section.

 

Overall, I have no issues with recommending either of these pigmented inks. Pretty sure that the limiting factor on how long a document written in these inks will last is the durability of the paper itself.

Sei-Boku.

 

Like the waterproofness of this ink, and the fact that it is tolerant of far worse paper than any "bulletproof" blue or blue-black offering from Noodler's that I've tried, and I own several. Would sometimes do 2-3 fills of this in my M400 or Pro-Gear without cleaning. Can have a red sheen to it. Really, really good choice for waterproof blue-black.

Just don't mix Kiwa-Guro and Sei-Boku. You don't get a darker "blue-black." Wound up with an almost green-black.

so you sir just gave me a good justification about liking the Kiwaguro but man... in my country thats about 1800 php a bottle... and can be rarely stocked

Edited by Algester
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I have a bottle of Kiwaguro which I'm hesitant to use but I like how it flows with my TWSBI the hesitance is there because its not a cheap ink to say... good but not cheap... but if I burn through it I might just get me Platinum carbon inks... though honestly I do not like Platinum ink bottle design so I wonder what would I do with the bottle. I wonder if someone will also like the bottle... I like the sailor bottles more compact and is esthetically and ergonomically pleasisng

 

hmm... turning the bottles I do not like into empty inkwells that I may just give a wooden box... huh

If the price is the main thing turning you off then have you tried Hero's carbon black ink (works pretty well, about $5 a bottle and no problems with it yet)? I like it a lot and it's not clogged any pens that I know of (I only used it in pens I can toss or disassemble though), if you want to try a cheaper carbon ink I recommend it as a good place to start, you can find it on eBay.

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Sailor Sei Boku and Platinum Pigment Blue. I like Platinum Pigment Blue. If you ever wished Waterman Florida Blue was waterproof and wouldn't fade, here's your ink. I only use them in FPs I can dismantle completely and with dip pens. They've caused no problems.

I love the smell of fountain pen ink in the morning.

 

 

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I almost always have Sei-Boku and Kiwa-Guro inked, I use them in any pen I own from a TWSBI to a Nakaya. I've never treated them differently from any other ink I use - I start with a clean pen, try to remember to refill every 2 or 3 months, and clean normally before switching to a different ink.

 

These are definately 2 of my go to inks. When I want water and light permanence they are hard to beat, and I love how Kiwa-Gura makes any pen feel like your writing with oil.

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I will say this much. I terminated some ink experiments the other day, which included some dry-out experiments with sac fragments in various inks, including one with Sei Boku. The result of letting Sei Boku dry out is nothing to be trifled with. It dries to a hard solid which I suspect would be quite difficult to remove from a feed. Don't let it dry out. If you're prone to leaving pens inked in the drawer and then forgetting about them for years, Sei Boku is not for you. You have been warned. No complaining allowed. :)

Edited by mhosea

I know my id is "mhosea", but you can call me Mike. It's an old Unix thing.

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I don't have any pigment inks currently, but I have been pondering to get the Sailor Kiwaguro. Not for writing, but for random doodling. Usually I use india ink with a dip pen when I feel like drawing with ink, but having some waterproof black ink in a fountainpen seems convenient. I find it hard to work with bottled ink out in the open. That said I do like the slightly more flexible dip pen nibs for drawing so I never could make my mind up if it would be worth it. Especially since I don't do a lot of sketching anymore.

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[...]I like Platinum Pigment Blue. If you ever wished Waterman Florida Blue was waterproof and wouldn't fade, here's your ink. [...]

 

I don't really need a "permanent" fountain pen ink but I was intrigued too by its color (as seen in reviews) and just ordered a bottle to see it in real life. Planning to test it in a cheap unloved pen first though :)

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