Good-Flowing Permanent Black Ink

[Notebookish]

I have been using Noodler's Bulletproof Black for a while. I really like its tone of black, and love how permanent it is, but it has often been dry in my pens: Lamy Safari (EF and F) and Levenger Truewriter (F). I was wondering if people knew of permanent black ink that flows better.

 

It really MUST be permanent. I have had a leak accident that completely washed away text in several notebooks.

 

It also must be black.

 

I typically use Leuchtturm Master notebooks if that matters.

 

I have tried Sailor's Kiwa-Guro Nano Carbon black, which I heard flowed well and was permanent, and I didn't like it.

[jotterius]

I use noodler's x-feather. I have heard here on fpn that it is darker than bulletproof blak and hod. But I believe that this ink will suit you because from my experience this ink is really wet and good flowing. It is the only ink that I could use in my VP which suffered from baby bottom but with this ink things worked out great.

[wallylynn]

I dunno about x-feather. I thought it was less flowing than regular black. I'd say Eel Black, or Heart of Darkness.

[Notebookish]

Should also state that I disliked Heart of Darkness -- bled through many things, clogged several pens.

 

So far I should therefore sample:

- X-Feather

- Eel black

 

More suggestions would be appreciated.

[Notebookish]

Of course, I might also need tips on how to make BP black flow better, but I think I've tried them all -- rinsing with soapy water or plain water, running different inks through pens, broadening the nibs. Maybe there is no perfect combination of permanent non-bleed-through black ink / A4 hardbound cream-colored-paper black book / fine fountain pen. Noodler's Fox Red flows perfectly with all my pen on most of my papers. Why can't BP black? Ugh.

Edited September 9, 2011 by Notebookish

[Uncle Red]

Some thoughts

1) I've been using Noodler's Bad Black Moccasin and it's wet. I use it in a Hero 616 now because it was too wet for the other pens I tried. A bit of feathering on cheap paper but that's not what you use. Show through of course but no bleed through. It's part of the Warden series which means it's tamper proof. If someone tries to remove the ink with water or chemicals the ink will smear a bit and leave a permanent line on the page. It smears to let you know someone tried to tamper with your writing.

 

2) Noodler's El Lawrence is supposed to be bulletproof. The color is described as "dirty motor oil". Might be worth a sample. I haven't tried it yet.

 

3) Platinum has a Carbon Black. I tried the pigmented blue and it was fine in a dry-writing pen.

 

4) Diamine Registrar's Ink or another comercially availibe Iron-Gall ink. Diamine's RI flows fine in my Scheaffer No Nonsense and after it darkened it held up to 25 min soaking in hot soapy water. Fresh it does wash away more but there is still a dark line.

 

5) I tested Private Reserve Velvet Black and it's very water resistant. A 25 min soak in hot, soapy water washed some of the ink off but there was a black line left. I don't know about it's archival properties yet, call me in 20 years.

Edited September 9, 2011 by Uncle Red

[dcwaites]

Consider Mont Blanc Blue-Black (now called Midnight Blue). It is free-flowing, more so than Lamy's Blue-Black. Like the Diamine Registrar's ink, MB MB is an Iron Gall ink, and does dry to a very permanent (> 1000 years on real sheep parchment) solid black.

[Mr Ink]

You might want to consider Private Reserve Invincible Black. I have not used it myself, but I have read elsewhere on FPN that it is permanent and flows very well.

[UDog]

Not quite as permanent but flows exceedingly well is Noodler's Dark Matter.

[mrt77]

Sometimes you might need to dilute standard black very slightly, but you can do that with simple distilled water. Maybe that will fix the dryness problem?

 

Borealis Black is waterproof but NOT bulletproof. But I'd assume it's archival, provided you store it in a dry, dark place. I haven't tried it (yet), so I can't speak as to how well it flows.

Edited September 10, 2011 by mrt77

[GreenVelvet]

I also find Noodler's Black to be quite on the dry side. I love Heart of Darkness, but that's too wet for you. You may have a tough balance to strike there.

 

You didn't say what you don't like about Sailor Kiwa-Guro Carbon Black...?

[psfred]

Polar Black might work better for you, it's reputed to be very wet in comparison to Bulletproof Black.

 

I've only had flow trouble with Black in pens with poorly fitting caps myself (and one chinese pen that refuse to write properly with anything!). Don't know if you pens have caps that fit airtight or not.

 

I use bullet proof inks at work -- too much risk of water damage. Personal work I'm not so worried about.

 

Peter

[pharmacist]

I suggest iron gall ink, type: Urkundentinte, like the one I make myself

Before you can remove the writing, the paper is already destroyed...

[Notebookish]

You didn't say what you don't like about Sailor Kiwa-Guro Carbon Black...?

 

Kiwa-Guro wrote poorly in my Leuchtturm Master Dotted notebook, almost as if the paper resisted the ink. The dotted version is smoother than the squared version, which usually has translated into a smoother writing experience (if longer drying time), but in Kiwa Guro's case the ink was really resistant.

 

Also, Kiwa-Guro smelled strongly. And, it had a dullish black color like HOD, while BP black is kinda glossy, which I prefer.

 

I really like BP black, and if it wasn't for the dryness I constantly experience with non-Japanese notebooks, I wouldn't be looking elsewhere. BP black glides flawlessly on Maruman and Kokuyo paper; unfortunately, these aren't avaiable in the hardbound grid A4 format that I like.

[wallylynn]

I didn't mention before, because it's not a standardly available ink, but check out Old Manhattan Black (OMB) also. Look for the reviews and the "blackest black" thread wars. The impression I get from them is that OMB keeps most of the feather resistance of regular Black, yet flows better and blacker similar to HoD.

 

Another thing you can do is get a regular black, e.g. Aurora Black which is reputed very dark, flowing and oh-so-smooth. And taint it with a little bit of bulletproof black. The mix can wash away, but not completely away.

[psrivats]

Not sure what kind of 'permanent' you are looking for, but Herbin's perle noir is waterproof and is the only black ink in my meager collection. It flows very well and is trouble free in all the pens I've so far. It is also a very dark black and looks equally nice coming from a EF pen or a B nibbed pen.

[mstone]

Just add some water to the noodler's.

[edmund]

I have found that mixing Noodlers 50:50 with a less saturated ink such as Waterman black gives me a freer flowing permanent ink. That might work for you

[AtomicLeo]

For waterproof, but not BP, try Noodler's Dark Matter. Best behaved Noodler's black ink I've tried.

 

If you like Noodler's Black, try Noodler's Black Eel. It's my favorite Noodler's black. Smooth flowing ink that I use in dry nibs all time. Great ink.

[Iwao]

Not sure what kind of 'permanent' you are looking for, but Herbin's perle noir is waterproof and is the only black ink in my meager collection. It flows very well and is trouble free in all the pens I've so far. It is also a very dark black and looks equally nice coming from a EF pen or a B nibbed pen.

 

Not to be argumentative, but I've had the opposite in Perle Noire in regards to waterproof. I actually take a wet brush to Perle Noire to get a nice gradient wash. Maybe it's just my bottle though? But it does flow very very well and is fairly black.

Edited September 12, 2011 by Iwao