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Hosia Ink Studio - Shing Tong According to the very excellent Soe &Soe, website: "Shing Tong is a chromoshading ink with muted red base with blue haloing and golden sheen. It is said that this effect is best seen with a dip pen. " Many thanks to @A Smug Dill to introducing me to this brand and this new stationary store. Chromoshading seems to be the new wave in ink. This is the first of the three Chinese brands I'll be reviewing. For now, I found them consistently lacking in lubrication and the hype, is just hype. However, for those of you who use ink for artwork, these inks are fun to use. According to chatgpt, Shing Tong means “Sacred Hall" or "Holy Temple." In Short: Novelty ink, effects are only seen with heavy applications and on some Japanese papers, otherwise you have a dusky purple with nice shading. Inks flow is ok, in Kakuno it was a bit sluggish and laborious. Nib creaper was a bit ink starved. Lubrication is below average (you will have feedback). Dry times are on the long side on Rhodia, water resistance is decent. The complexity of ink appears mostly in washes. Cleaning is a bit difficult you'll need a cleaning solution to remove the pink dye Interestingly when applied heavily, (Or heavy handedly ) the blue dye bleeds through some papers (Copy paper/ Iroful), so I wonder if it can be used with dip pen on normal paper. Bottom line: If you don’t like feedback, it isn’t for you. If you want to see the effect, you’ll need a wet pen/ wide, buttery nib and good Japanese paper. It’s good for journaling, artwork, ink washes, calligraphy. Get a sample, if you can. Chroma: Writing Samples: Color is difficult to scan, and ink looks grey Note how on heavy application, the "chromo" parts bleeds through Photo: Color is correct Closeup: Midori TR68 Iroful Comparison: Note how scanner captures the colour of this ink. However, you can discern a hint of lavender. Water test: Right image (10 seconds under running water, 24 hours after writing) - Paper is Marumann Art Work: I have already posted a drawing, featuring this ink in my Lennon Tool Bar, Cat General review: Beauty Salon Lennon Tool Bar Cat General (tan) *FANYANTAN - Qinghai Wave (Green) *Hosia Ink Studio - Shing Tong Kala Moon light Tide Broken Kala Moonlight Tide (Grey black)/ Noodler's Red Rattler Red) Chromoshading inks: Hosia Ink Studio - Shing Tong FANYANTAN - Qinghai Wave (Green) Modern Connection While Mr. Fish, smoking his bubble pipe, filled the void of his empty castle, watching cute kitty videos on his waterproof custom made TV, Cat & Mouse were watching video deep sea videos on his smart phone. The back ground is Shing Tong Others inks used: KWZ orange Jacques Herbin Rue de la Verrerie (Fish bowl) Kala Moonlight Tide (Grey) De Atramentis Document Cyan (smart phone) · Pens used: Pilot Kakuno Ef, Lamy (EF/F/M/B/ Stub 1.1), Noodler’s Nib Creaper semi-flex · What I liked: Colour doing washes, watching ink dry · What I did not like: Lack of lubrication. Cleaning it. The hype. · What some might not like: Price, lack of lubrication · Writing experience: Not the best. · Pros: Gorgeous colour, great for doing ink washes. · Cons: Lack of lubrication. Availability, cleaning. · Shading: Lovely. · Ghosting: Yes, on cheap paper and heavy applications on Iroful. · Bleed through: Same as above. · Flow Rate: ok · Lubrication: Below average. · Nib Dry-out: If the pen is uncapped, yes · Start-up: Ok · Saturation: Not saturated. · Shading Potential: Good · Sheen: No. · Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: Did not notice. · Nib Creep / “Crud”: Did not notice. · Staining (pen): Did not notice. · Clogging: Did not notice. · Cleaning: l needed a cleaning solution. · Water resistance: Decent · Availability: 30 ml bottles, Please don't hesitate to share your experience, writing samples or any other comments. The more the merrier