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Tintenlabor Purple Black 2 - (New Formula) Ink Review # 186 --- 🧾 Description Purple Black 2 is a gorgeous, mysterious, dark purple, waterproof iron gall ink by Tintenlabor. David the Ink-Mesiter graciously sent me the new formula, and it was worth the wait. German name: Eisengallustinte 2, purpur / schwarz It has a delicious flow and looks lovely on all papers. However, it's not suitable for thin, absorbent papers like Hammermill. It can feather, ghost, and bleed through to some extent. It uses the same unique stabilizing dye as Purple Black 1, but in a lesser quantity. The iron content is 4 gr/l as opposed to 3 gr/l of Purple Black 1. The oxidation process is slower; it hasn't darkened compared to Green Black 2 and retained the smoky purple colour. Finally, the price is a fraction of Purple Black 1's. I have only cleaned the Pilot Kakuno. After soaking overnight, the pen was clean. However, I had to scrub the section and the Con-40 converter with a Q-tip, and the feed was covered with purple dye, even though when I wrapped the pen filled with water around tissue paper, the paper was clear. I have noticed that many inks, IG or not, like to cling to the plastic component of the Kakuno. Update: Cleaning Lamy Safari and Kanwrite was straightforward. After overnight soaking in water and a little soaking in diluted vinegar, the pens were as clean as a whistle. And as a reminder, don't use ammonia-based fountain pen cleaners with Iron gall inks; white vinegar in diluted form should be ok. It would be prudent to soak the pen in a white vinegar solution as a safe measure. Regardless of this, I enjoyed writing and drawing with this ink. It was as delicious with a Japanese Ef nib as any other nib. --- 🧪 Chroma --- ✍️ Writing Samples Rhodia / Iroful Midori/ Tomoe River 68gsm Hammermill 20lb --- 📸 Photos The colour is more accurate here: Midori/ Hammermill Oxidation in real time (iroful paper) --- 🔍 Comparison I've kept the old formula swatch so that you can observe their respective oxidation process. --- 💧 Water Test --- 🎨 Artwork Rock n'Roll Tinten labor, Dark Purple 2 (New formula), Gold, and Violet Blue Unconditional Tintenlabor Dark Purple 2 (New formula, Dark Green 1 Flamenco (Old formula) Purple Rain (old formula) Paper is Talens Mixed Media. Ink has not oxidized over time. A Delicate Balance Pilot Kakuno Ef/ Talens Mixed Media Paper --- - Pens Used: Pilot Kakuno EF, Lamy (EF / F / M / B / Stub 1.1), Kanwrite with FPR ultraflex nib. - What I Liked: Very well-behaved ink, lovely colour, a joy to write or sketch with, nice lubrication. Price - What I Did Not Like: If I want to nitpick, it's the cleaning. - What Some Might Not Like: Iron gall inks. - Writing Experience: Excellent. Lovely interior colour. - Pros: Stable ink, stable color. Waterproof. - Cons: Cleaning might be a bit more labour-intensive, but not as bad as other inks I've had. 🧷 Ink Characteristics - Shading: Yes. - Ghosting: Yes, on cheap paper. - Bleed Through: Yes, on thin, cheap paper. - Flow Rate: Wet - Lubrication: Good - Nib Dry-out: Did not notice. - Start-up: Excellent. - Saturation: Gorgeous. - Sheen: No. - Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: Yes on this Hammermill paper. - Nib Creep / Crud: Did not notice. - Staining (Pen): Pilot Kakuno needed a Q-tip. - Clogging: No. - Cleaning: It could be - Water Resistance: Excellent. --- 🛒 Availability - Available in 30/50 ml bottles directly from Tintenlabor --- 💬 Closing This is another excellent colour from Tintenlabor; it is elegant, mysterious, and royal—a pleasure to use. No fountain pens were hurt in preparing this review. Please don’t hesitate to share your experience, writing samples, or any other comments. The more the merrier