Camel Ink

[Nikhil]

Hi all,

What are your opinions on Camel ink? I just got a bottle of black, blue, green and red and want to know if they are safe for fountain pens. What do you think?

[pinaki]

Camel - Made In India ? Yes that is good for any fountain pens , the black tends to dry up in the feed / nib so clean regularly . Blue and Red are

THE BEST FP ink in India in those colors IMHO ( and who can beat the Rs 12 / Quarter dollar US price per 60ml bottle ?) . The Green is kinda ugly in my eyes . They used to make a fantastic "permanent" violet of which I only have a bottle and a half left .

cheers

[Taurean]

Camel makes nice, free flowing inks and these are deemed safe for fountain pens, i've been using them since i started using FPs in school.

I like the royal blue best, its a rich color. The Camel violet is also fantastic.

 

For other colours, i prefer the brands Bril(widely available in South India) and Chelpark.

Chelpark ruby red and emerald green are wonderful. I picked up Chelpark turquoise blue and blue-black today, can't wait to try them out.

 

Edit to add: and the prices are unbeatable!

Chelpark bottles (60ml)cost 15 INR(approx 0.3 USD), while Bril and Camel 12 INR.

Edited December 28, 2009 by Taurean

[Nikhil]

I know about the prices. My dad got all 4 for 1 USD! I was thinking that you could buy 4.5 liters of Camel ink for the same price as 50ml of Waterman or Parker ink! I knew the blue was great, but now I can't wait to try out the others, espicially red.

 

For those of you who have used Camel Black: What shade of black is it? Does it have gray tones like Quink or is it pure black.

 

For everyone else: These will be reviewed, and will be posted soon enough when I post all of mine together.

[pinaki]

I just did test it again ( since black is not my regular color ) , and the current camel black in my good-flow cheapo old indian "Artex" pen is super black , deep opaque and very minor shading . I tested out all my available blacks here ; Chelpark , Bril , Camel , Sulekha and Parker-quink and if I am going to use black regularly it will be the camel for sure . It is so deep and rich that I am afraid they may have put pigments or fine-carbon in this new formula instead of dyes :hmm1:, also a very

neutral kinda black with neither blueish or reddish tones . All the others looked grey compared to it . It is also very permanent in nature and after drying on paper and a 30 minutes water-soak spreads and fades a bit but is perfectly normal readable , unlike parker "permanent" black . After water soaking it is far more readable than even the Bril "iron-based" ( iron-gallic-acid ? ) permanent blue-black . Let it stand in the pen for a few days after the first fill , it kinda matures I felt . Dries in the nib ( not in the feed i hope ) a bit making the pen slow start if not used daily , just wipe the nib with a wet rag / finger :-) .

[mikeyp]

Where can I get this ink in the US? Is it really only 25 cents a bottle? I assume shipping adds to it! Any color samples?

[Nikhil]

Where can I get this ink in the US? Is it really only 25 cents a bottle? I assume shipping adds to it! Any color samples?

Check the review forum as I posting green, blue and black. Search in the first couple of the pages as they are not in the index yet. Have not found a place to buy in the US.

[mikeyp]

Where can I get this ink in the US? Is it really only 25 cents a bottle? I assume shipping adds to it! Any color samples?

Check the review forum as I posting green, blue and black. Search in the first couple of the pages as they are not in the index yet. Have not found a place to buy in the US.

 

The blue looks nice. Maybe someone can order a bunch from India here and sell it to us for cost plus shipping.

[pinaki]

@ mikeyp

yes it's a US quarter a 60ml bottle . i don't think you'll get in regular shops in the US . ask any Indian friend you may know , he can easily get you some :-) .

Shall try to post a dip test sample of all the camel inks I have . Green , Royal Blue , Black , Crimson Red & Violet by this weekend .

[Aysedasi]

Do we have any enterprising India-based members who would be interested in sourcing some bottles for us? There is clearly a great deal of scope for a little profit here without ripping anyone off!

[Tweel]

"At cost" is probably too much to hope for, but it would be nice if someone stocked it. I stumbled across the Camelin website a few years ago, and have had their ink tagged in the back of my brain since then.

 

Shipping would probably be the stinker for small amounts -- I imagine a web store could carry it for less, overall.

 

-- Brian

[mikeyp]

Well my at cost I meant plus the both shipping charges and maybe a little profit. Now I need a friend from India!

[pinaki]

Wait till you hear of the "Bulk" size bottles , works out half this price per ml .... In my schooldays (1980s) the general

practice in my home was to buy the 500ml / 1 liter Bulk bottles of these inks , typically in royal-blue-washable color ,

and refill the childrens individual bottles when they were empty . We'd even steal some to smear on hapless friends

for Holi . .

 

Check the makers websites - write to them asking if they will ship .

 

http://www.brilindia.com/penink.htm

 

http://www.camlin.co...tain_penink.asp

 

http://www.camlin.co...fountainpen.asp

 

ps - Bril inks have wider color range but are a bit lighter than the camel colors IMO . Bril has this unique iron-based

( the old iron-gallic-acid formula ? ) permanent-Blue-black which I love .

Edited January 28, 2010 by pinaki

[mikeyp]

Noodlers has a 32oz bottle too.

[Nikhil]

Noodlers has a 32oz bottle too.

I thought that was Pelikan, no?

[mikeyp]

Noodlers has a 32oz bottle too.

I thought that was Pelikan, no?

 

Pelikan has 1L bottles too.

[pinaki]

Noodlers / Pelikan bulk for how much ? I have always wanted the well praised noodler's Black ( eel ) and Baystate Blue , dunno if I can afford those

on my Indian wages

[mikeyp]

Noodlers / Pelikan bulk for how much ? I have always wanted the well praised noodler's Black ( eel ) and Baystate Blue , dunno if I can afford those

on my Indian wages

 

Pendemonium has the Pelikan 1L for 55 as I recall, and Swisher Pens sells the Noodlers, but its special order and you pay the actual ship cost.

[smeden]

Noodlers / Pelikan bulk for how much ? I have always wanted the well praised noodler's Black ( eel ) and Baystate Blue , dunno if I can afford those

on my Indian wages

 

Pendemonium has the Pelikan 1L for 55 as I recall, and Swisher Pens sells the Noodlers, but its special order and you pay the actual ship cost.

 

Here in Europe 1 liter Pelikan 4001 is 23 € or about 32 $ on ebay.

[mikeyp]

They also have a 250ML bottle as well. That would be my size if I bought one.

 

I know Noodlers has a 4.5 bottle, but I would love is they sold a bit bigger one of black. 16 is way to much for me. I would love an 8 though! If the price is right of course.