Noodlers Old Manhattan Black

[dayonfire]

Have my first bottle on the way. Very excited! Unimpressed with Yard-O-Led and Visconti thus far in my search for the "Black Hole" of blacks.

 

Michael

 

 

In my eyes it definitely. It was the oddest feeling doing a review thinking, man, how can one black be blacker than the other. That's actually the reason I like this black better than the regular one. I like normal bulletproof black mind you, but just a deep black color is great and i really enjoy it.

 

Regards,

 

Tom

 

My quest to find the blackest black started years ago, and before I came across FPN, I'd been using Levenger Raven (although I'd used and been impressed with J. Herbin Perle Noire, having bought a tiny canister of the cartridges on a visit to Kate's Papeterie in New York in 1998, as it turned out, and then not being able to find them at all in Rhode Island). I'd also liked Pilot and Pelikan and Sailor, but not Lamy, Montblanc, Parker, Namiki, Visconti... and so you see, I had plenty of trial-and-error.

 

I'd started to hear about Noodler's just before finding FPN. When I finally ordered a bottle of the OMB and started using it, I was ecstatic! This was the one!

 

And I tried the Aurora. Very black, yes, BLACK! but problematic in my pens and on my papers. Heart of Darkness? Same blackety-black, but feathery.

 

OMB remains champion of the blackest blacks.

 

I'll use J. Herbin Perle Noire in my vintage or ebonite pens, but OMB is my favorite black ink.

 

[amateriat]

I've been writing with Noodler's OMB for a few months now, just before going off the deep end and into the high end of the Pilot FP line (Custom 823 and 74 Demonstrator).

 

Indeed, the stuff is black. Really, deeply black. Essentially no shading, at least based on writing with the Lamy 2000 and, a little later on, the 823, both with M nibs. (The Lamy is now loaded with Pilot's Signature Black ink...more about anon.)

 

I don't believe OMB is officially billed as Bulletproof, but my testing proves it's at least damned close. Tonight's test was full of surprises: In addition to OMB, Pilot's own Blue-Black also turns out to be pretty hardy when wet, only showing the slightest fading after about a few minutes' soaking. Waterman B-B, however, is horrible...almost as bad as my J. Herbin Violette Tinte, which I ended up tossing as a result. So, my two newest go-to inks are at least near-bulletproof, while still exhibiting overall good writing qualities.

 

(Hmm...I still have a bottle and a half of Penman Ebony left here. Anybody up for a water-soaked shoot-out between OMB, Pilot Sig, and Ebony?)

 

 

- Barrett

[Thornton]

I finally bought a bottle of OMB a couple of weeks ago. I've been using it in my Lamy 2000 and Stipula Vedo and am grateful to have finally found a "black" black. This is going to be my go-to black from now on.

[tmenyc]

wow, I'm sure impressed, and I'm using Noodlers Black at home and Nile Ebony at work! I guess my next black will be OMB!

thanks for the great review.

 

Tim

[amateriat]

Okay, here we go (Cliff Notes Edition):

 

http://mysite.verizon.net/bwbenton/Pens/Black%20Ink%20Comparo/blackink3way01.jpg

Pre-Water-Torture...

 

http://mysite.verizon.net/bwbenton/Pens/Black%20Ink%20Comparo/blackink3way02.jpg

Post-Water-Torture (60-second cool spray)

 

(Note: Clairefontaine notebook paper, spiral-bound)

 

And, no, I wasn't expecting Penman Ebony to fail like that at all. Never tested the stuff until now. (After all these years...sheesh!)

 

So, it really is OMB, before and after the deluge. (Thank you, Neil Young.)

 

 

- Barrett

[gross]

I think I must have some Noodler's Old Manhattan Black after this great review and the water test. However, I am unable to find it anywhere I have looked. Please, where may one purchase a bottle of this great ink?

[amateriat]

Gross: Noodler's makes this ink specifically for Fountain Pen Hospital, so you can give them a holler and they'll likely be happy to sell you a bottle or three.

 

 

- Barrett

[gross]

Gross: Noodler's makes this ink specifically for Fountain Pen Hospital, so you can give them a holler and they'll likely be happy to sell you a bottle or three.

- Barrett

Barrett, Thank you very much! I really appreciate the information.

[amateriat]

gross: Happy to oblige.

 

And, now that I've discovered Penman Ebony's susceptibility to water, I'd love to know how Penman got the rep for being the Destroyer of All Things Sacred and Beloved in Fountain Pens (well, at least vintage FPs). I used Penman inks for the better part of fifteen years, yet I never had any of those inks pull a switchblade on my pens the way a bottle of PR Plum recently did with my Lamy 2000 (SITB and all). Granted, all the pens I loaded up with Penman were contemporary models, so the answer may lie there, at least in part. And now I discover my long-used Ebony washes away like a hastily-built sand castle.

 

The King is Dead, etc.

 

 

- Barrett

Edited March 26, 2010 by amateriat

[penguinmaster]

I still have OMB in at least one pen at all times. It is my go to black. It's just a great all around ink! Thanks for the comments on the review as well!

 

Regards,

 

Tom

[WillSW]

I'd like to know more about spreading. I use OMB as my favorite black, preferring it to Aurora and Platinum Carbon Black because they both cause a wider line. Does anyone have any experience with both OMB and regular Bulletproof Black with regards to spreading and effecting line width?

[jsntsmth]

Nice review. The HOD black does come close but this is my everyday black!!

[trace]

Has anyone noticed any nib creep? I like Legal Lapis, but the nib creep is terrible.

[jniforat]

That is a DARK black!

[Silas]

Been using Old Manhattan for about a year now in several pens...vintage and new, flex and stiff. Works well in all.

 

In fact, this is the FIRST ink I put in my Montblanc Alexandre Dumas....came in this week! A beautiful fine/medium line.....very, very black!

 

I'm waiting for Montblanc Toffee. But....now I'm not sure I'll dump the OMB for it.

 

I also have Heart of Darkness too....but the OMB flows better!

[Crobe]

Has anyone noticed any nib creep? I like Legal Lapis, but the nib creep is terrible.

 

If there is, it is very little. I had OMD in a Parker 75 recently and now have it in a Scheaffer cartridge pen with no 'creep.'

 

I have yet to find a nib that Legal Lapis does not creep on.

 

Mike

[Nib Joy]

So which is more lubricated? The OMB or HOD?

[Belles-lettres]

Could someone comment where this ink falls on the wet/dry spectrum, please?

[ticoun]

why isn't it on noodlers' website? i would like to buy it but i don't find it

[majorworks]

why isn't it on noodlers' website? i would like to buy it but i don't find it

 

It is available only from Fountain Pen Hospital in New York City.