What inks don't bleed through/feather as much?

[firesong]

Hi all,

 

I'm fairly new to the world of Fountain Pens - been using a few f.pens for just over a year. Not sure if this helps, but the pens I own are the Lamy Safari (EF), Lamy Vista (EF), Waterman Hemisphere (F), a Pilot Eyedropper (M), and 3 Pilot Birdies (M). Yeah, rather inexpensive pens since I can't afford anything better for now. The hemisphere was gifted to me in May 09.

 

However, when it comes to inks, I've tried to hunt for better inks... So far, I've bought the following inks:

- Noodler's Bulletproof Black

- Private Reserve Sherwood Green

- Private Reserve Naples Blue

- Pilot Iroshizuku Kon-Peki

- Noodler's Navajo Turquoise

 

Yes, 3 similar blues, one black and one green. However, of all the inks, only the Bulletproof Black behaves properly on most papers/notebooks that are available cheaply here in Singapore - it does not feather except on low grade paper (eg, exam paper), and does not bleed through too much on most sub-S$5 notebooks I can buy from local stationery stores.

 

The thing is, I love the colours of my 3 blue inks much more than I do black - black is nice, but rather boring.

 

Now, all that said, could anyone recommend me inks that are generally well behaved and do not feather or bleed, preferably like the Bulletproof Black? I bought the Navajo Turquoise thinking it would behave like it's brother, but I was woefully mistaken.

 

I do have 2 more expensive notebooks that I've bought that don't allow the other inks to bleed/feather (ie, better grade paper), but I would prefer if I could also use my inks on other papers, like my journal notebook at work (which behaves very well only with the Black).

 

So, are there any recommendations for me?

[Ondina]

Waterman and Pelikan inks work in any pen and paper( but for toilet one and perform well. If you are searching for permanence with zero feathering, Diamine Registrar's, MontBlanc, and Lamy Blue-Black, R&K Salix and Scabiosa. I have read reports on Platinum an Sailor Carbon Inks exhibiting very good behavior in problematic paper, but I have no personal experience yet. It may be a trial and error kind of thing, as pens play a role in the trinity of problem free writing. As I see you don't want another Black, I will not mention Sheaffer Black, but yields surprisingly good results.

 

I see you have Kon-Peki: a kind member exchanged a sample with me a year ago and I've been wanting more since. Amazing ink.

[Toolan]

There is a review of Noodlers' Bad Blue Heron where one respondent says he uses it for newspaper crosswords:

 

BBH Review

 

... if it's good enough for that - in the correct pen - it should prove worthwhile

 

Toolan

[firesong]

Waterman and Pelikan inks work in any pen and paper( but for toilet one and perform well. If you are searching for permanence with zero feathering, Diamine Registrar's, MontBlanc, and Lamy Blue-Black, R&K Salix and Scabiosa. I have read reports on Platinum an Sailor Carbon Inks exhibiting very good behavior in problematic paper, but I have no personal experience yet. It may be a trial and error kind of thing, as pens play a role in the trinity of problem free writing. As I see you don't want another Black, I will not mention Sheaffer Black, but yields surprisingly good results.

 

I see you have Kon-Peki: a kind member exchanged a sample with me a year ago and I've been wanting more since. Amazing ink.

 

Wow. That is quite a list... I've tried Pelikan inks and don't really like them... I'd assume you meant MontBlanc Blue-Black and Lamy Blue-Black, yes? I don't think I can get the others easily in Singapore - would have to import them.

 

Yes, Kon-Peki is one of my favourite inks.. I love my 3 blue inks - they are amazing colours that I wish behaved like B.Black. But they are shades of blue I'd love to use on everything. Especially the PR Naples Blue, where it is just - and very, very barely so - dark enough to be used as formal... Kind of shows my rebellious streak, I suppose.

 

I won't need another black as I'm eyeing a bottle of Noodler's X-Feather for examination-grade and foolscap paper for more everyday use. Between the BulletProof Black and the X-Feather, I'd probably have enough black ink to last a long, long time. Especially since I won't really use it much if I could get away with that.

 

Thank you.

 

There is a review of Noodlers' Bad Blue Heron where one respondent says he uses it for newspaper crosswords:

 

BBH Review

 

... if it's good enough for that - in the correct pen - it should prove worthwhile

 

Toolan

Bad Blue Heron, you say? Will check that out.

 

Thank you Toolan.

[eilu]

Bleed through may also mean either (1) paper is too thin or (2) pen is a wet writer.

i.e.:

Noodler's Black will bleed through my usual bond paper if I use my Pelikan (wet writer) but not my Lamy Safari (dry writer).

Pretty much any pen/ink combination will bleed through toilet paper, while it is impossible to have it bleed through 6-ply bristol board

[cocojj]

Have you tried Diamine? I have no personal experience as point of comparison, but when I was looking for ink (have to import as we only have Parker and the occasional Waterman here), I picked Diamine over PR and Noodlers due to the opinions here that seem to indicate it is more behaved. As mentioned above, though, I noticed that it depends a lot on the pen as well. My Pilots have never let me down so far when it comes to feathering issues (I use fines, however).

Edited January 29, 2010 by cocojj

[lapis]

Most of the 30 Herbins and 9 CdAs don't bleed very much, even on inexpensive copy-paper.

 

Mike

[gillyohan]

It really depends on the pen, since you are already committed to using cheaper papers. My Safaris are dry writers, so almost any ink can go in them for cheap papers. My Custom 74 is kind of wet, and I have had a hard time trying to find an ink I really like to go in it.

 

Herbin inks are pretty wet, in my limited experience, and will bleed and feather (slightly) on cheap paper in my Custom and Safaris. Colors are wonderful though.

 

Noodlers Bad Blue Heron has been pretty good in my Custom for cheap paper, and very good in my Safaris for cheap paper. It's a different kind of blue, too, which I really like.

 

Lamy Blue Black (iron gall in bottle) writes the best on cheap paper (of the inks I have) in any pen I put it in. I have never had a problem with it. It is a bit more boring, but when it comes to handwritten exams and such, boring colors should not be your biggest concern, IMO. It dries fast and is very well behaved.

 

You may also want to try diluting the inks that feather and bleed more with a bit of water, especially with the more saturated inks. There should be a post about it somewhere in the inky thoughts board. I'm not convinced it made much of a difference to prevent feathering, but you may want to try it out.

 

You may just need to get certain inks for certain pens for certain papers.

[Goodwhiskers]

Also look for Pilot or Namiki Blue (not the brands' blue-black or black).

It is bright and, unlike its Iroshizuku cousins, not expensive at all. It is one of the world champions for two-sided writing on bad paper. Furthermore, it resists plain water amazingly well but can be washed out of fabrics by a stain remover and your regular laundry detergent.

 

Platinum Blue-Black is in fact a nice, dark blue. It is another world champion for two-sided writing on bad paper, and it is as water-resistant as Pilot/Namiki Blue. The same is true for Platinum Black (not "carbon").

 

The iron gall inks (which require more pen maintenance) that have been mentioned in this thread (Montblanc Blue-Black in bottles, Lamy Blue-Black in bottles, Rohrer & Klingner Salix, Rohrer & Klingner Scabiosa, Diamine Registrar's) are also world champions for two-sided writing on bad paper, as is the very expensive yet low-maintenance Sailor Kiwaguro (nano-particle carbon). Platinum Carbon is not, and neither are Sailor Sei Boku pigment particle blue-black nor Platinum Pigment Blue.

 

Sailor Jentle Blue, Blue-Black, and Black do fairly well on bad paper, and they resist plain water well after 24 hours of drying.

 

Waterman Florida Blue is the best-behaved Waterman on bad paper, but in my experience (southern California) it still shows through a lot; other Waterman colors have done poorly on bad paper in my experience. Florida Blue is "washable," which is desirable to some people and undesirable to others.

 

Pelikan Blue (washable) and Black do well on bad paper, as do Sheaffer's new Skrip Blue (washable) and Black, and Montblanc Royal Blue.

 

Except for the Registrar's ink, Diamine inks are not designed to do well on bad paper, as consistently reported here on the FPN. Maybe one exception is Diamine Prussian Blue.

[bwnewton]

I've had good experience with Lamy Blue-Black (bottled), Sheaffer Skrip Blue-Black (Slovenia), Private Reserve Copper Burst & Lamy

Blue (one of my favorites for when I don't need water resistance). I've read that Sheaffer Skrip Blue (Slov.) is excellent on low-quality paper.

[biffybeans]

It's really the paper that's causing the bleeding/feathering - not the inks. Though like someone above mentioned, a really wet writing pen might push through anything. I used to use Moleskine and would get so frustrated at bottle after bottle ink feathering & bleeding... It took a while for it to sink in but once I started using a better quality paper, I found that I can use any kind of ink that I want.

 

One thing to keep in mind is that cheap paper is constantly re-sourced. Take Staples Bagasse for example. Made from recycled cane pulp, it was super cheap & worked very well with all inks. Once they made up a new batch, all bets were off. Feathering & bleeding. So even if you think you have found the right ink/pen combination for the paper you are using... you may be surprised when you go to by that product again.

 

My best recommendation for consistently writing on lower quality paper is Noodler's Bulletproof Black.

 

 

 

Hi all,

 

I'm fairly new to the world of Fountain Pens - been using a few f.pens for just over a year. Not sure if this helps, but the pens I own are the Lamy Safari (EF), Lamy Vista (EF), Waterman Hemisphere (F), a Pilot Eyedropper (M), and 3 Pilot Birdies (M). Yeah, rather inexpensive pens since I can't afford anything better for now. The hemisphere was gifted to me in May 09.

 

However, when it comes to inks, I've tried to hunt for better inks... So far, I've bought the following inks:

- Noodler's Bulletproof Black

- Private Reserve Sherwood Green

- Private Reserve Naples Blue

- Pilot Iroshizuku Kon-Peki

- Noodler's Navajo Turquoise

 

Yes, 3 similar blues, one black and one green. However, of all the inks, only the Bulletproof Black behaves properly on most papers/notebooks that are available cheaply here in Singapore - it does not feather except on low grade paper (eg, exam paper), and does not bleed through too much on most sub-S$5 notebooks I can buy from local stationery stores.

 

The thing is, I love the colours of my 3 blue inks much more than I do black - black is nice, but rather boring.

 

Now, all that said, could anyone recommend me inks that are generally well behaved and do not feather or bleed, preferably like the Bulletproof Black? I bought the Navajo Turquoise thinking it would behave like it's brother, but I was woefully mistaken.

 

I do have 2 more expensive notebooks that I've bought that don't allow the other inks to bleed/feather (ie, better grade paper), but I would prefer if I could also use my inks on other papers, like my journal notebook at work (which behaves very well only with the Black).

 

So, are there any recommendations for me?

[Sandy1]

I've had good experience with Lamy Blue-Black (bottled), Sheaffer Skrip Blue-Black (Slovenia), Private Reserve Copper Burst & Lamy

Blue (one of my favorites for when I don't need water resistance). I've read that Sheaffer Skrip Blue (Slov.) is excellent on low-quality paper.

+1 on the Lamy BlBk. Also consider the Montblanc BlBk bottles. (Boring? Perhaps. But beautiful? For sure.)

[firesong]

Hi guys... Thanks... I do realize it's the paper... For those pointing out the pens, bear in mind I did mention I'm using Lamy Safari/Vista with EF nibs... I think that's the driest of the dry.

 

Guess I'm stuck to buying X-Feather for the lousier paper, and getting more expensive notebooks if I want to keep using my Kon-Peki and other nicer inks.

 

Will keep on looking. I'm pretty sure Black's not the only colour I'm "condemned" with to use on lousier grade paper. Someone mentioned Noodler's Bad Blue Heron, so I will consider that. Especially since it apparently has some dark Turquoise shading, and I think I lean towards that shade of blue quite a lot (the 3 blues should have given hints. Heh!)

[firesong]

It really depends on the pen, since you are already committed to using cheaper papers. My Safaris are dry writers, so almost any ink can go in them for cheap papers. My Custom 74 is kind of wet, and I have had a hard time trying to find an ink I really like to go in it.

 

Herbin inks are pretty wet, in my limited experience, and will bleed and feather (slightly) on cheap paper in my Custom and Safaris. Colors are wonderful though.

 

Noodlers Bad Blue Heron has been pretty good in my Custom for cheap paper, and very good in my Safaris for cheap paper. It's a different kind of blue, too, which I really like.

 

Lamy Blue Black (iron gall in bottle) writes the best on cheap paper (of the inks I have) in any pen I put it in. I have never had a problem with it. It is a bit more boring, but when it comes to handwritten exams and such, boring colors should not be your biggest concern, IMO. It dries fast and is very well behaved.

 

You may also want to try diluting the inks that feather and bleed more with a bit of water, especially with the more saturated inks. There should be a post about it somewhere in the inky thoughts board. I'm not convinced it made much of a difference to prevent feathering, but you may want to try it out.

 

You may just need to get certain inks for certain pens for certain papers.

Thank you

 

You got me sold on Bad Blue Heron. I love blue, but I do not like the normal blue or blue-black shades... They are quite awfully boring. I've seen the colour samples and comments, so it's very high on my list of to-gets. And yes, I always like different.

 

You're right, which is why I'll be sticking to X-Feather for exams... I've just got an email from Aesthetic Bay to say their X-Feather inks are finally in, but they don't have Bad Blue Heron in stock.

 

 

Also look for Pilot or Namiki Blue (not the brands' blue-black or black).

It is bright and, unlike its Iroshizuku cousins, not expensive at all. It is one of the world champions for two-sided writing on bad paper. Furthermore, it resists plain water amazingly well but can be washed out of fabrics by a stain remover and your regular laundry detergent.

 

Platinum Blue-Black is in fact a nice, dark blue. It is another world champion for two-sided writing on bad paper, and it is as water-resistant as Pilot/Namiki Blue. The same is true for Platinum Black (not "carbon").

 

The iron gall inks (which require more pen maintenance) that have been mentioned in this thread (Montblanc Blue-Black in bottles, Lamy Blue-Black in bottles, Rohrer & Klingner Salix, Rohrer & Klingner Scabiosa, Diamine Registrar's) are also world champions for two-sided writing on bad paper, as is the very expensive yet low-maintenance Sailor Kiwaguro (nano-particle carbon). Platinum Carbon is not, and neither are Sailor Sei Boku pigment particle blue-black nor Platinum Pigment Blue.

 

Sailor Jentle Blue, Blue-Black, and Black do fairly well on bad paper, and they resist plain water well after 24 hours of drying.

 

Waterman Florida Blue is the best-behaved Waterman on bad paper, but in my experience (southern California) it still shows through a lot; other Waterman colors have done poorly on bad paper in my experience. Florida Blue is "washable," which is desirable to some people and undesirable to others.

 

Pelikan Blue (washable) and Black do well on bad paper, as do Sheaffer's new Skrip Blue (washable) and Black, and Montblanc Royal Blue.

 

Except for the Registrar's ink, Diamine inks are not designed to do well on bad paper, as consistently reported here on the FPN. Maybe one exception is Diamine Prussian Blue.

Thanks there! Looks like I've a few other colours to look out for. Pilot Blue seems to be a cheaper buy than the others mentioned, and looks to be more of a staple. I do appreciate some water-resistance, since Singapore is awfully rainy at times.

 

I'm staying away from iron-gall inks if possible. I've heard some nasty things about them.

 

It's really the paper that's causing the bleeding/feathering - not the inks. Though like someone above mentioned, a really wet writing pen might push through anything. I used to use Moleskine and would get so frustrated at bottle after bottle ink feathering & bleeding... It took a while for it to sink in but once I started using a better quality paper, I found that I can use any kind of ink that I want.

 

One thing to keep in mind is that cheap paper is constantly re-sourced. Take Staples Bagasse for example. Made from recycled cane pulp, it was super cheap & worked very well with all inks. Once they made up a new batch, all bets were off. Feathering & bleeding. So even if you think you have found the right ink/pen combination for the paper you are using... you may be surprised when you go to by that product again.

 

My best recommendation for consistently writing on lower quality paper is Noodler's Bulletproof Black.

Merci... It's hard to come by good paper in Singapore - I really don't see that many nice looking Clairefontaines; over here, Moleskine seems more popular, and I've gotten one for Xmas... Thing is, CF and Moleskine would cost me about S$30-ish. That's high when I can get most other recycled paper notebooks for some S$3-5.

[Sandy1]

... world champions for two-sided writing on bad paper, as is the very expensive yet low-maintenance Sailor Kiwaguro (nano-particle carbon).

Hello,

I must say that my experience indicates that the Sailor Nano Blue Black and by extension, the Black, are very high maintenance. ... Strictly addressing the Blue Black, I found that precipitates were easily formed when in contact with other inks. Given the profound persistence of the SNBlBk in the pen, I am highly concerned that unless one keeps their pen/s extremely clean, precipitates may be formed within the pen. Ick! .. Also, what makes it doubley dangerous is that one cannot predict, without running a sample, if a precipitate may be formed when another ink comes into contact with SNBlBk. ... I'll just stick with a mix of 7 Salix + 1 MB BlBk = 8 SalixX.

Best Regards,

Sandy1

[Axon]

FWIW, I've used Noodler's Legal Lapis (Pendemonium exclusive but out of stock for a little while) for writing on napkins. Very little feathering, which is lot more than I can say about any other ink I've tried.

[firesong]

Got my X-Feather.. And it still feathers on foolscap paper.. So much for anti-feathering.

[dstrollo]

I've had good luck with Graf von Faber Castell Black. I'm not sure if they actually make it, or it's just a re-labeled bottle. I'm not sure how easy it will be to find. I have to use cheap paper at work, and this ink tends to behave a bit better.

[TMLee]

As you have probably concluded by now, it's the paper - not the ink - that's the problem.

Use good paper since you are using premium inks.

start with made in Japan paper.

They are not expensive for the quality they give.

[ailleurs]

I haven't had experience with a lot of the inks mentioned here, but a few that have never done me wrong:

 

Waterman's Florida Blue (bleu effacable)

Waterman's Purple

Parker Quink black, though I should add it's been years since I've used this--I've completely lost my taste for black ink.

 

I've recently begun using Noodler's and J. Herbin inks and find both of them can show through on some papers. I don't mind show through overly much, so I keep using them in my journals. Too pretty not to, IMHO.

 

Good luck!