Herbin Cacao​ du Brésil

[Sandy1]

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Nota Benne:

◇ I was concerned that HCdB had become a Grey ink after seeing well-renderd depictions of HCdB from late 2011. e.g. Post № 1 onward LINK and Post № 24 onward LINK

◇ Comparing my HCdB from mid 2009 to the late 2012 ink shown here, I reckon HCdB is now back on course, hence worthy of a Review.

See also:

◦ March 2012: Concerns about HCdB being discontinued LINK

◦ March 2013: Encounter with SITB LINK

 

~|-O-|~

Fidelity

One may compare the appearance of the ink I used to the depiction on the J Herbin site jherbin dot com LINK

 

Figure 1.

Swabs & Swatch

Paper: HPJ1124.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK105a_zps6201c086.jpg

Figure 2.

NIB-ism ✑

Paper: HPJ1124.

Depicts nibs' line-width and pens' relative wetness.

Distance between feint vertical pencil lines is 25mm.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK104_zpsb1ad1add.jpg

L → R: Elite, P99, W5, 45, Somiko, M200.

 

WRITTEN SAMPLES: Moby Dick

Ruling: 8mm.

 

Figure 3.

Paper: HPJ1124.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK107_zpsac458997.jpg

Figure 4.

Paper: Rhodia.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK108_zpsa7e38f5a.jpg

 

Figure 5.

Paper: G Lalo.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK109_zps552f96fb.jpg

 

Figure 6.

Paper: Royal.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK110a_zps6196dc35.jpg

Figure 7.

Paper: Staples White.

Pens: P99, 45, M200.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK111_zps4e57705c.jpg

Figure 8.

Paper: Staples Creme.

Pens: W5, 45, M200.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK113_zpsbde1562b.jpg

Figure 9.

Paper: Clairefontaine Triomphe.

Pens: W5, M200.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK114_zpsef5fce0b.jpg

 

OTHER STUFF:

 

Figure 10.

Smear/Dry Times & Wet Tests.

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK106_zpsc8d1ca7a.jpg

Figure 11.

Bleed- Show-Through on Staples.

(Obverse of Figure 7.)

http://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy116/Sandy1-1/FPN_2013/Ink%20Review%20-%20Herbin%20Cacao%20du%20Bresil/INK112_zpsa5a0ae84.jpg

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

 

Type:

• Dye-based fountain pen ink.

Presentation:

• Bottle.

Availability:

• Available at time of writing.

Daily writer?

• Quite possible.

A go-to ink?

• When one seeks a subtle and unusual ink.

USE

 

Business:

(From the office of Ms Blue-Black.)

• The appearance of HCdB is very dependent on the value (light - dark): When it is light, I really don't think it would be welcome in my office. When very dark, almost saturated, someone else could use it for their personal work product or to write me pleasantries & ephemera.
• From a personal point of view I couldn't see using this ink for personal work product. The writing experience is just fine, but I find the readability is somehow awkward, perhaps because the ink is unusual, I am distracted from that which is written. (?)
• HCdB is quite warm and neutral, so it may convey a sense detachment or indecision. That said, HCdB might sneak onto the page if one is a neutral party or observer, in a temporary or 'acting as' role, fence-sitting, or just doesn't give a rodent's rump about a certain matter.
• Use of HCdB as an alt/aux ink seems unlikely.

Illustrations / Graphics:

• Will do the necessary for charts & graphs to represent data[sets] of low importance, especially for area/block formats. As the combination of hue and chroma are unusual, it may be used to extend one's palette for complex work.
• If shading can be suppressed it would be a good pick for feint lines, and minor annotations. May be an interesting pick for large text & headings that are not meant to dominate.
• I would be concerned that typical office colour copiers/printers would not be able to render the colour with the necessary fidelity.
• As a watercolour, there is some promise. The dyes act quite differently: the warm dye/s washed away with ease, leaving a remnant that has an usually sharp edge. That enables reworking with wet brush and other wet media to generate washes with gradients of density and colour over distinct lines.

Students:

• Hmm - not so convinced.
• As for business use, personal preference would be the attraction.
• I reckon that achieving the dark value required for high readability would cause bleed- show-through on 'lowest bidder' papers.
• The high degree of water resistance is a definite plus for those who are not always effective in safeguarding their work.

Personal:

• Getting there . . .
• This continues to be one of the 'on purpose' inks, not one of my usual personal correspondence inks: an outlier.
• Initially I thought this might be one of Herbin's light/pale inks, and perhaps best not to work against its native properties. But one should not be so hasty as to underestimate an Herbin ink.
• A wide range of appearance can be generated according to choice of pen+paper combo: from a soft warm Grey-Brown to a fairly crisp warm Dark Grey. While I consider HCdB very much a shading ink, the shading can be suppressed.
• A combination of hue and chroma at the appropriate value may replicate the appearance of faded ink, hence emulate a document from days of yore. e.g. M200 on G Lalo.
• As is my oh-so-typical approach to somewhat unusual inks, I tend to start with the narrow wet nibs to suppress the colour and lower the amount/coverage of ink on the page. Yet in the case of HCdB, that would also suppress the exquisite shading, and we can't have that, so for me it's either narrow wet nibs or wide nibs that encourage and show-off the shading.
• It seems that the ink itself has fewer foibles than usual, so there's no particular limitation to choice of pen or paper.
• As always, I look forward to learning from the experience of other Members who use this ink on a routine basis.

PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE & CHARACTERISTICS

 

Flow Rate:

• Lean.
• Very responsive to nib+feed.

Nib Dry-Out:

• Not noticed.

Start-Up:

• Immediate.
• With confidence.

Lubricity:

• Adequate.
• Varies quite a bit according to the wetness of the pen.

Nib Creep:

• None.

Staining (pen):

• None after five days.

Clogging:

• Not experienced.
• Seems unlikely.

Bleed- Show-Through:

• Staples White: See Figure 11.
• HPJ1124: W5, M200.
• Staples Creme: W5.
• All other pen+paper combos were OK for two-sided use.

Feathering / Wooly Line:

• Just a bit on Staples & Royal from the M200 at peak ink flow.

Aroma:

• Very faint.
• Slightly sharp inky goodness.

Hand oil sensitivity:

• Not apparent.

Clean-Up (pen):

• Fast and thorough with plain water.

Mixing:

• Expressly forbidden by J Herbin.
• Non, non et non.

Archival:

• Not claimed.

THE LOOK

 

Presence:

• Soft.
• Understated.
• Elusive.

Saturation:

• Typically quite low.
• A fully inked line may be achieved.

Shading Potential:

• Can be encouraged.
  
• Can be suppressed.
  

Line Quality:

• Typically high.
• The textured ink-repellent surface of the G Lalo was a challenge for the M200. I wonder if the texture is too great for the wide nib to maintain the close nib+ink+paper interface achieved by the narrower nibs. (?)

Variability:

• Pen+nib combos used:
  • Much more than expected.

  [*]Papers used:

  • About as expected.

Malleability:

• High.
• As Member Ad_Astra astutely observed, "Crazy how little things add up to a different effect." LINK
• This ink will appeal to those who have the time and patience to get a very specific appearance from this ink, and those efforts will be well rewarded.

PAPERS

 

Lovely papers:

• Crisp to Natural Whites.

Trip-Wire papers:

• I would avoid dirty whites, and papers loaded to the gunnels with optical brightening agents, OBAs.
  

Copy/Printer Paper:

• The overall quality of what was written was very good indeed.
• It was a pleasant surprise to see attractive shading even on the Staples 20lb papers.

Tinted Papers:

• A bit tricky.
• I think that Creme - Ivory would be about it for me, but Buff would be of interest.

Is high-end paper 'worth it'?

• Absolutely, though certainly not necessary.
• These papers seem necessary to explore the considerable potential of what comes in the demi courtine bottle.

ETC.

 

Majik:

• Not seen, but it would be subtle if it is lurking.

Billets Doux?

• Not from yours truly.

Personal Pen & Paper Pick:

• Another tricky one, but the Somiko on Rhodia gets the nod.
• The nib is just a bit wide, so the shading is apparent, yet the nib is also a bit dry, so the visual weight of the line is not great.
• The Rhodia keeps the line tight & crisp, and accentuates the shading, which is balanced by the slightly warm base tint which keeps the shading from overriding the pale line.

Yickity Yackity:

• Another ink that invites one to embark on a voyage of discovery. Those who enjoy working with the likes of R&K Scabiosa may well find that HCdB offers a similar combination of challenges & rewards.
• In my own way I'm more pleased to see that Cacao du Brésil was recovered than I was to see Bleu Ocean when it arrived.
• Ah kushbaby, does the idea expressed by the Japanese word 'shibui' have an equivalent in the French language?
  

== = = ==

 

NUTS BOLTS & BOILERPLATE

 

Pens:

Written Samples:

A. Pilot Elite + 18K Script nib.

B. Pelikan P99 Technixx + steel F niib.

C. Waterman W5 + 18K nib.

D. Parker 45 + g-p steel M nib.

E. Sailor Somiko + TIGP steel B nib.

F. Pelikan M200 + g-p steel 1.0 Stub.

*

*

An over-the-counter hand-ground nib from richardspens dot com. As this nib is of 'known' wetness, (six on the ten-point Binder scale), it provides some means of comparison to the other pens.

Lines & labels:

◇ Omas Turquoise from a Pilot Penmanship + XF.

Papers:

• HPJ1124: Hewlett-Packard laser copy/print, 24lb.
• Rhodia: satin finish vellum, 80gsm.
• G. Lalo Verge de France: natural white, laid, 100gsm.
• Royal: 25% cotton, laser/inkjet copy/print, 'letterhead', 90gsm.
• Staples White: house brand multi-use copy/print, USD4/ream, bears FSC logo, 20lb.
• Staples Creme: house brand multi-use copy/print, 20lb.
• Clairefontaine Triomphe: brushed vellum, 90gsm.

Imaging:

• An Epson V600 scanner was used with the bundled Epson s/w at factory default settings to produce low-loss jpg files.
• Figure 2 was scanned at 300 dpi, other Figures at 200 dpi.
• No post-capture manipulation of scanner output was done, other than dumb-down by Epson, Photobouquet, IP.Board s/w, and your viewing gear.

Densitometer Readings on HPJ1124:

• Red 138
• Grn 130
• Blu 127
• Lum 132

Other Inks

◊ This Review uses the same Written Sample format, atrocious handwriting and some pen+paper combos common to most of my previous Reviews of Brown inks. Consequently, ad hoc comparisons through manipulation of browser windows is supported.

◊ Should that functionality not meet your requirements, I welcome your PM requesting a specific comparison. Additional scans may be produced, but the likelihood of additional inky work is quite low.

 

Fine Print

The accuracy and relevance of this Post depends in great part upon consistency and reliability of matériel used.

Ink does not require labelling/notice to indicate (changes in) formulation, non-hazardous ingredients, batch ID, date of manufacture, etc.

As always YMMV, due to differences in materials, manner of working, environment, etc.

Also, I entrust readers to separate opinion from fact; to evaluate inferences and conclusions as to their merit; and to be amused by whatever tickles your fancy.

 

-30-

Tags: Fountain Pen Ink Review Sandy1 J Herbin Cacao du Brésil 2012 2013 Cacao du Brazil Brown Cocoa Brown Grey Brown Gray

Edited March 27, 2013 by Sandy1

[wastelanded]

Your work, as always, is top-shelf Ms. S. But I'm not convinced about this one: it reminds me of that bleurgh colour one gets when the kids dump all their paint-pots into one. It would seem Feigenbraun is postively vibrant in comparision. Or am I missing something? Please enlighten.

 

I would have liked to have tried the earlier formulation.

[Bo Bo Olson]

A gray. :blink: :hmm1:

I was under the impression it should be some sort of brown...from coffee or something. Like Lie d'The` was tea'ish.

 

I did not get this ink, when I had my Herbin binge. The other more off 'dark blackish brown' looking samples, made me glad I didn't.

[beak]

An ink I use often.

 

I was interested that you noted as a possible objection that this ink's colour is perhaps difficult to reproduce, and I agree. Though my monitor is graphics adjusted, all of your writing samples strike me as noticeably, though slightly, less brown than I am used to seeing on the page in front of me when I write. The colour is subtle, and a devil to reproduce!

 

The wide range of pens you have used also makes it clear that there is a marked difference in tone when used with a dry or a wet nib.

 

Thanks for your diligent work once more.

Edited March 29, 2013 by beak

[K. Cakes]

An ink I use often.

 

I was interested that you noted as a possible objection that this ink's colour is perhaps difficult to reproduce, and I agree. Though my monitor is graphics adjusted, all of your writing samples strike me as noticeably, though slightly, less brown than I am used to seeing on the page in front of me when I write. The colour is subtle, and a devil to reproduce!

 

The wide range of pens you have used also makes it clear that there is a marked difference in tone when used with a dry or a wet nib.

 

Thanks for your diligent work once more.

 

My monitor is correctly calibrated as well, and this ink is coming up a true grey instead of the warm purple-y/grey/brown I see when using the ink. I'm not sure if its the scans or the ink itself that is varying from my experience. I believe my current bottle was purchased last October or November.

[Bo Bo Olson]

From another thread on Brown inks.

 

Sandy said, """"It seems that HCdB has crossed-over to the Greys, and no amount of hula dancing can entice it back the Brown clan. """"

 

The "motor oil" some one quoted Ghost Plane on...is also gone.

 

One of the samples looked like a heavy grayed blue, then it seems to have lost the 'blue' too.

 

A couple of years ago when I got some Herbin inks, to me it was more a 'motor oil' brown/black ...something that looked sort of like a coffee in one stage or another.

It did not in that color seem to give me enough shading to buy it.

 

I only have two semi-vintage @ '90 gray's from Pelikan, in cartridge, Gray and Silver Gray. I like them both.

I'm still working on Purple, some Greens, and what not.

I will eventually get to gray.

 

Sandy is now exploring gray...including what was once brown and what remained gray.

It will be worth while seeing what the 10 or so Gray's look like when this is finished.

We have seen that MB Einstein needs a wide wetter nib on good to better paper to be something.

 

What is, is, what was, was...gee vintage brownish Herbin Cacao​ du Brésil, will start commanding high prices, like that very hated MB Racing Green.

[SamKl]

As others have mentioned, I'm surprised it's not more brown.

 

Thanks for the review--such panache! You elevate the genre to an art. :clap1:

[beak]

To be clearer, I get through a bottle in about two months, and buy them from the USA regularly, I have never noticed a colour change, though I guess one can't tell the age of the bottles one is buying.

[snark0285]

the hand writting is hard to recgnize for me

I need to practise more on reading

[Bo Bo Olson]

Sandy's handwriting is just fine, very legible.

 

I grew up with cursive. Due to "modern" education, many do not learn it in the US. Many in the US with English as a first language from my reading here can not read written instead of printed writing.

 

They can not read a clock either that is not digital, one of the reasons wrist watches are not selling as well as before...to hard to learn to read a wristwatch and they have digital on their cell phone.

 

Snark you are doing just fine; it is a second language in a completely different script.

For some unknown reason, just about everyone uses the same passage of Melville's Moby Dick, to show off inks.

 

After only four years with fountain pens, my hen scratch; which needed a retired English teacher to decipher the next day...(who could afford an employed English teacher?) developed into Rooster scratch. Something I can read (with luck), but my wife can't. :roflmho:

 

We will not worry about today or tomorrow; it is a hobby, which means it is a journey of a lifetime. Some where I must have that Melville passage. If I find it, I'll send it to you, so you too can sail under an azure sky.

[Sandy1]

Your work, as always, is top-shelf Ms. S. But I'm not convinced about this one: it reminds me of that bleurgh colour one gets when the kids dump all their paint-pots into one. It would seem Feigenbraun is postively vibrant in comparision. Or am I missing something? Please enlighten.

 

I would have liked to have tried the earlier formulation.

 

Hi,

 

Thanks for the compliment!

 

HCdA is not a pure vibrant colour; and as it is also quite malleable, it seems to resist being pigeon-holed / defined in the manner of a paint chip.

 

As ever, I do try to show the range of appearances that an ink can achieve, yet in the case of HCdB that is just a glimpse of this elusive ink.

 

A comparo to Standardgraph feigenbraun may be added as time & tides allow.

 

Bye,

S1

 

___ ___

Standardgraph feigenbraun: My Review

[Sandy1]

A gray. :blink: :hmm1:

I was under the impression it should be some sort of brown...from coffee or something. Like Lie d'The` was tea'ish.

 

I did not get this ink, when I had my Herbin binge. The other more off 'dark blackish brown' looking samples, made me glad I didn't.

 

Hi,

 

I believe HCdB is "some sort of brown", but very low chroma. As described in the Review proper, the appearance can vary " . . . from a soft warm Grey-Brown to a fairly crisp warm Dark Grey."

 

Very much a personal choice as to which side of the imaginary Grey-Brown boundary one chooses to place HCdB. (My own contradictions as to where Blue ends and Turquoise begins is well documented.)

 

Even though I do not use this ink on a routine basis, it has a reserved space on my ink shelves.

 

Bye,

S1

 

 

[Sandy1]

An ink I use often.

 

I was interested that you noted as a possible objection that this ink's colour is perhaps difficult to reproduce, and I agree. Though my monitor is graphics adjusted, all of your writing samples strike me as noticeably, though slightly, less brown than I am used to seeing on the page in front of me when I write. The colour is subtle, and a devil to reproduce!

 

The wide range of pens you have used also makes it clear that there is a marked difference in tone when used with a dry or a wet nib.

 

Thanks for your diligent work once more.

 

Hi,

 

You're welcome!

 

Good to hear that someone uses this ink on a regular basis

 

I think this is one of the times that it will be worthwhile to show the colour of the ink by putting it in context with other inks - generate some simultaneous contrast if you will.

 

Bye,

S1

[Sandy1]

An ink I use often.

 

I was interested that you noted as a possible objection that this ink's colour is perhaps difficult to reproduce, and I agree. Though my monitor is graphics adjusted, all of your writing samples strike me as noticeably, though slightly, less brown than I am used to seeing on the page in front of me when I write. The colour is subtle, and a devil to reproduce!

 

The wide range of pens you have used also makes it clear that there is a marked difference in tone when used with a dry or a wet nib.

 

Thanks for your diligent work once more.

 

My monitor is correctly calibrated as well, and this ink is coming up a true grey instead of the warm purple-y/grey/brown I see when using the ink. I'm not sure if its the scans or the ink itself that is varying from my experience. I believe my current bottle was purchased last October or November.

 

Hi,

 

Thanks for describing the ink you have, which seems to be 'current production'.

 

My monitor is also calibrated, though it is just a wee Mac, not a graphics monitor, such as an Eizo.

 

As a matter of interest, you may wish to take a look at my recent Review of the Montblanc Albert Einstein ink, which appears as a very neutral Grey to my eye and on my monitor.

 

Bye,

S1

 

___ ___

MB Albert Einstein: My Review

[Sandy1]

As others have mentioned, I'm surprised it's not more brown.

 

Thanks for the review--such panache! You elevate the genre to an art. :clap1:

Hi,

 

You're welcome!

 

Many thanks for your compliments

 

Bye,

S1

[wastelanded]

Your work, as always, is top-shelf Ms. S. But I'm not convinced about this one: it reminds me of that bleurgh colour one gets when the kids dump all their paint-pots into one. It would seem Feigenbraun is postively vibrant in comparision. Or am I missing something? Please enlighten.

 

I would have liked to have tried the earlier formulation.

 

Hi,

 

Thanks for the compliment!

 

HCdA is not a pure vibrant colour; and as it is also quite malleable, it seems to resist being pigeon-holed / defined in the manner of a paint chip.

 

As ever, I do try to show the range of appearances that an ink can achieve, yet in the case of HCdB that is just a glimpse of this elusive ink.

 

A comparo to Standardgraph feigenbraun may be added as time & tides allow.

 

Bye,

S1

 

___ ___

Standardgraph feigenbraun: My Review

 

BTW, I'm expecting a bottle of Standardgraph Kaffeebraun any day now: I'll post a sample soon as I'm able.

[cybaea]

I find this is an ink that looks brown in daylight but grey-ish in artificial light, which might explain why the scans look 'wrong' to some readers (the scanner would presumably qualify as artificial light).

 

Here is a photograph I took of this ink which I really like a lot:

 

[dragondazd]

Sandy's handwriting is just fine, very legible.

 

I grew up with cursive. Due to "modern" education, many do not learn it in the US. Many in the US with English as a first language from my reading here can not read written instead of printed writing.

*I am NOT criticizing Sandy's writing*

In defense of snark, It's not the usual handwriting taught in school. I find the overlapping onto previous lines of text a bit difficult. This is my issue, not Sandy's, but "very legible" is merely your opinion.

[athenian]

I do appreciate the vintage look of this ink. Especially with italic nibs.

Great review by the way.

[dragondazd]

Would like to see it next to Diamine Salamander when it comes out...