Diamine Chocolate

[Sandy1]

I was deeply disappointed with this one from Diamine. I so wanted it to be like my favourite brown by far - Iroshi Yama Guri - but it has too much red in it. Alas, the quest continues...

 

Hi,

 

How unfortunate that you were disappointed by DChoco.

 

It seems that the ink itself is not 'flawed', but that most of the Pilot iroshizuku inks seem to defy replication, so those who seek a substitute are often let down.

 

I do hope you come to enjoy DChoco for what it is, and overcome disappointment in what it is not.

 

Bye,

S1

 

- - -

 

Pilot yama-guri: LINK

[Steffen Larsen]

I see only a very little red in this ink. And it depends on pen and paper. F.ex. the Pelikan M600 EF writes a wetter, more saturated, and slightly darker line than the Cross Townsend with a Medium steel nib, and the latter has a faint hint of red and a bit more shading. But it has so far been the only ink to feel smooth and lubricating when writing with the Cross, and it's there to stay.
The red is nowhere near that of the Waterman Absolute Brown. Or such inks as Diamine's "Rustic Brown" and "Ochre".
I have no other browns, perhaps the red would be more obvious to me if I had a really dark, pure and saturated brown for comparison. I do think 'Chocolate Brown' is close.

[smiorgan]

Perhaps it's good that this 18 month old thread is resurrected -- because now Cult Pens Deep Dark Brown is available, and it could be the answer for someone who likes dark brown but feels Diamine Chocolate is too red for their tastes (that's me).

 

I don't own any Yama-Guri but DDB looks very similar in scans.

[Sandy1]

I see only a very little red in this ink. And it depends on pen and paper. F.ex. the Pelikan M600 EF writes a wetter, more saturated, and slightly darker line than the Cross Townsend with a Medium steel nib, and the latter has a faint hint of red and a bit more shading. But it has so far been the only ink to feel smooth and lubricating when writing with the Cross, and it's there to stay.

The red is nowhere near that of the Waterman Absolute Brown. Or such inks as Diamine's "Rustic Brown" and "Ochre".

I have no other browns, perhaps the red would be more obvious to me if I had a really dark, pure and saturated brown for comparison. I do think 'Chocolate Brown' is close.

 

Hi,

 

I appreciate your description of this ink, and your experience using it in other pens

 

As I'm finding out, Brown inks can be rather tricky to pin down. In part that is because they are a blend of many colors - not found on a colour wheel - so what makes a 'pure' Brown is really up to each person.

 

Also the perceived hue of Brown ink varies with value (light - dark) more than say a Blue ink. I try to bring that to the fore by showing a range of values in the Swab samples.

 

Bye,

S1

[Sandy1]

Perhaps it's good that this 18 month old thread is resurrected -- because now Cult Pens Deep Dark Brown is available, and it could be the answer for someone who likes dark brown but feels Diamine Chocolate is too red for their tastes (that's me).

 

I don't own any Yama-Guri but DDB looks very similar in scans.

 

Hi,

 

There are many Brown inks in the market, yet the introduction new a new ink is often welcome.

There are several entries for that ink elsewhere in the Ink Review Forum.

 

Sometimes the luxury of choice can be a bit overwhelming, but I'm learning to cope - I just reinforce my ink shelves to increase their load capacity . . .

 

Bye,

S1

[Steffen Larsen]

I wrote four lines with Waterman 'Intense Black'.
Then four lines with Rohrer & Klingner 'Leipziger Schwarz'.

Four lines from an old bottle of Platignum 'Permanent Black Ink'.
Four lines with Sheaffer Black.

Comparing all four of them, from cold dark grey to a bluish and harsh cast, to four lines of Private Reverse 'Velvet Black', this last one a certain angles looks like a warmer and very very dark brown. Difficult to see when viewed alone.

[Mercian]

I happen to be using this ink today, so am making this post to attempt to restore Sandy1's image to her review.

I have inserted the images as embedded links to edited urls to the photos on Photobucket so, if you wish to view any of the images without the watermark on it, you will need to click on the image to open it here, and then click on it again to open it on Photobucket.

Previous experience suggest that some of these images may display at inconsistent sizes, but at least they will be visible again.

 

Sandy1's reviews were one of my favourite features of FPN when I first joined.
I hope that you, dear reader, will find that the restoration of the pictures revivifies this review, and encourages you to read Sandy1's words of wisdom.

I miss her knowledge, her warmth, her humour, and her generosity with providing helpful advice for new FP users.

 

All credit for the images, and the review, is owed to Sandy1.

 

Enjoy!

-----

 

Please take a moment to adjust your gear to accurately depict the Gray Scale below.

As the patches are neutral gray, that is what you should see.

 

Mac

http://www.wikihow.c...te-Your-Monitor

 

Wintel PC

http://www.calibrize.com/

 

Gray Scale.

 

= - =

 

Figure 1.

Swabs & Swatch

Paper: HPJ1124 24 lb.

 

 

 

Figure 2.

NIB-ism ✑

Depicts nibs' down-stroke width and pens' relative wetness.

Paper: HPJ1124.

 

IMG-thumb:

 

Pens: L → R: Somiko, P99, C74, 45, Phileas, Prelude.

 

Figure 3.

Paper base tints:

 

L → R: HPJ1124, Rhodia, G Lalo white, Royal, Staples 20 lb.

 

 

WRITTEN SAMPLES - Moby Dick

Ruling: 8mm.

 

Figure 4.

Paper: HPJ1124.

 

 

Figure 5.

Paper: Rhodia.

 

 

Figure 6.

Paper: G Lalo, Verge de France, white.

 

 

Figure 7.

Paper: Royal - 25% rag.

 

 

Figure 8.

Paper: Staples Creme 20 lb.

 

 

Figure 9.

Paper: Staples multi use 20 lb.

 

 

Figure 10.

Grocery List

Paper: Pulp.

 

 

OTHER STUFF

 

Figure 11.

Smear/Dry Times & Wet Tests.

 

 

 

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

 

Type:

• Dye-based fountain pen ink.

Daily writer?

• Possible.

A go-to ink?

• When a delectable Dark Brown is desired.

 

USE

 

Business:

(From the office of Ms Blue-Black.)

• My search continues for Brown inks which I could consider as appropriate for business. i.e. Business Browns that are alternatives to Business Blues.
• DChoco certainly has the dark tone appropriate for business. I could easily see use for personal work product, and in an egalitarian / team environment.
• It may still be necessary to keep a Dark Blue or Blue-Black handy for items that need a bit more gravitas.
• A pleasure to use, and its high readability suits those who write and read tomes.
• While not as fleet-of-foot as some inks, there is sufficient energy at densities shown to keep from bogging down.
• Not enough zip for working on Black-printed documents, but if one's daily writer is a Medium Blue, then DChoco could be called upon for mark-up / editing of that text.
• Not nearly enough zap for grading or error correction. (This ink is a pleasure to look at, so a mixed message is possible.)

Illustrations / Graphics:

• Certainly.
• Invites all manner of application. (That plump sable water colour brush beckons!)
• Suitable for figures at high densities, and space-defining grounds when diluted.
• Line quality is quite good, and when care is taken choose the wetness of a pen, can do well on papers of various wetness and surface characteristics.
• There is little risk of shading, so a fair choice when lines of even density are required.

Students:

• Quite possible.
• Performance on 20lb 'lowest bidder' paper is OK, but two-sided use on such is not all that likely.
• As for Business Use, the writing experience and readability are very good, so DChoco is likely a good pick for general notes - but do watch for the possibility of extended smear/dry times.
• Safeguard what's written against exposure to fluids. It is one of the inks that if were to be wet and kept wet, the sheet might be rinsed free of ink that has come adrift - a disaster recovery technique.

Personal:

• No doubt.
• This stuff is tastieeee.
• Far too nice for pro forma personal business writing, so I'd use whatever default Blue is closest to hand for such tasks.
• Without a doubt more 'personal' than my typical Blue-centric choices, I still would not use DChoco as a default ink for closest family and friends: some times for some people is perfectly wonderful.
• The ink is moderately saturated and offers a tantalising flicker of shading, so would be a good choice to run with a variety of nib shapes, widths & wetness.
• Billets doux? Not quite.

 

PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE & CHARACTERISTICS

 

Flow Rate:

• Generous.
• Controlled.

Nib Dry-out:

• On the 45 after just a few minutes upcapped. (?)
• Ink in the feed was OK, so only a few mm of virga resulted.

Start-up:

• Prompt.

Lubrication:

• Very nice.
• Ran smoothly from all pens on all papers.
• Watch for loss of fine control when/if using slick nibs on smooth papers.

Nib Creep:

• Not seen.

Staining:

• Not seen after three days contact.

Clogging:

• Not seen.

Bleed- Show-Through:

• HPJ1124: C74.
• White & Creme 20 lb: 45. Both sides of the page could be used in a pinch.

Feathering / Woolly Line:

• Not seen on papers used.
• Line width varies across different papers.

Smear/Dry Times & Water Resistance: ☂

• As shown in Figure 11 above:
  • HPJ1124: 10 - 20 seconds.
  • Rhodia: 15 - 20.
  • Staples: <10.

   

Smell:

• No apparent scent.

Hand oil sensitivity:

• Not seen.

Clean Up:

• A bit slow but thorough with plain water.

Mixing:

• No stated prohibitions.
• I see no reason to mix into this ink.

Archival:

• Not claimed.

 

THE LOOK

 

Presence:

• Comfortable.
• At ease.

Saturation:

• Moderately high.

Shading:

• Very low.
• Seems possible, but not sure if DChoco can be pushed that far.

Variability:

• Pen+nib combos used:
  • A bit less than expected

  [*]Papers used:

  • A bit less than expected - setting the line-width variance aside.

  [*]Malleability:

  • Low.
  • Suitable for a daily writer ink.

   

Hi-Res Scans:

 

As I do not wish to be known as 'Queen of The Bandwidth Bandits', these are IMG-thumbs .

 

C74 on Rhodia

 

45 on G Lalo

 

Prelude on Royal

 

 

FIDELITY

 

Is the name appropriate?

• Well within the realm of imagination. :clap1:

Are swatches accurate?

• The sample shown on the Diamine site for Product 059 is ever so slightly cooler than my scans, and is of greater density than my three-pass swabs. LINK http://www.diaminein...px?prodcode=059

 

 

SIMILAR COLOURS:

 

Diamine Chocolate is one of the 'One of The Eleven' series of Brown inks for which care was taken to prepare Written Samples that support comparison through manipulation of browser windows.

However, if you feel the need for a specific comparison Topic or Post, please do not hesitate to send a PM.

 

 

PAPERS

 

Lovely papers:

• White.
• Warm white.
• Cool white.

Trip-wire Papers: ☠

• Those which cannot suppress bleed- show-through, or constrain line-width variation.

Tinted Papers:

• I would keep to the Buff, though warm tints up to Champagne should be OK if DChoco is used at high density.
• May actually do well on pale Powder Blue stock.

Pre-Printed Papers:

• Forms:
  • Pleasantly do-able.
  • There is just enough warmth in DChoco so that it detaches ever so slightly from the typical Black-printed text, making what's written very clear and comfortable to read.
  • Watch for plump lines on low-grade paper - a narrow/inverted nib may be a good idea on poorly designed forms.

  [*]Charts & graphs:

  • Possible.
  • Unlikely to be mistaken for other primary/secondary colours.

   

Is high-end paper 'worth it'?

• Perhaps.
• DChoco seemed to offer most of what it has on the penny-a-page HPJ1124. With its good lubricity, the writing experience is fine even on somewhat toothy papers.
• Only if one is determined to wring some/any shading from the ink would high-end paper be in the mix.

 

 

ETC.

 

Majik:

• No.
• Not sufficiently malleable.

Personal Pen & Paper Pick:

• Parker 45 on Royal.
• The nib generates enough coverage that the ink is well anchored to the paper. The line is without variation of density or width, which allows the attractive simplicity and balance of the ink to be seen.

Yickity Yackity:

• While chocolate itself is a dietary staple, I'm not so sure if inky Chocolate is a staple on my ink shelves.
• Ah kushbaby, will a wee 30ml bottle find its way onto your ink shelves? Or will you wait for one of your other bottles of Brown ink to run dry first?

= = = = =

 

NUTS & BOLTS

 

Pens:

IMG-thumb:

 

Written Samples:

 

Sailor Somiko + TIGP F nib.

 

Pelikan P99 + steel F nib.

 

Pilot Custom 74 + 14K SFM nib.

 

Parker 45 + g-p steel M nib.

 

Waterman Phileas + steel B nib.

 

Sheaffer Prelude + factory stock steel B stub nib.

 

For lines & labels:

 

 

Noodler's Lexington Grey from Pilot 78G + F nib.

______

Papers:

 

HPJ1124 24 lb. Laser Copy.

 

Rhodia.

 

G Lalo, Verge de France, white.

 

Royal, 25% cotton rag.

 

Staples Pastel, creme.

 

Staples 20lb. multi use.

 

Pulp. One-a-Day Calendar page.

______

 

Images:

 

Scans were made on an Epson V600 scanner; factory defaults were accepted.

 

Figures shown were scanned at 200 dpi & 24 bit colour.

 

HiRes Images linked were scanned at 300 dpi & 24 bit colour.

 

Scans were not adjusted post-capture, and went straight to Photobouquet.

______

 

Densitometer Readings:

(HPJ1124)

 

 

Red 138

 

Grn 98

 

Blu 81

 

Lum 103

______

 

FINE PRINT

The accuracy and relevance of this Review depends in great part upon consistency and reliability of matériel used.

Ink does not require labelling/notice to indicate (changes in) formulation, non-hazardous ingredients, batch ID, date of manufacture, etc.

As always, YMMV, not only from materials, methods, environment, etc., but also due to differences between the stuff I used, and that you may have.

Also, I entrust readers to separate opinion from fact; to evaluate inferences and conclusions as to their merit; and to be amused by whatever tickles your fancy.

-30-

 

-----

 

I hope that you have found this post useful.
 

Slàinte,
M.

[knarflj]

@Mercian, like you, I enjoyed and benefited much from Sandy1's posts, and am glad to see the images restored to this one.  Thank you!

[Bo Bo Olson]

Thank you Mercian for retrieving the dead.

Sandy1 is much missed.

Thank you, someone recommended this ink as a shading ink...Sandy1 said not much, but you show the color is good.

I have this ink but never tried it.

It looks like a good brown, light enough to be lively.

[Mercian]

2 hours ago, Bo Bo Olson said:

Thank you Mercian for retrieving the dead.

Sandy1 is much missed.

Thank you, someone recommended this ink as a shading ink...Sandy1 said not much, but you show the color is good.

I have this ink but never tried it.

It looks like a good brown, light enough to be lively.

 

If you are using Diamine Chocolate, and you want it to be 'light' and 'lively', I advise you to not run it through your wettest pens.
 

It can look very dark from some pens - and I would almost guarantee that e.g. a 1950s Pelikan (especially one with a narrow nib) would make it look as close to black as makes no difference.

 

That said, my experience of it is also that, on the right paper, it looks deliciously chocolatey

[Bo Bo Olson]

19 hours ago, Mercian said:

a 1950s Pelikan (especially one with a narrow nib) would make it look as close to black as makes no difference.

Great, Regular flex and narrow...ie F or EF. It's still up there with China Blue, waiting for Godot.