The Substitues Of Pilot Iroshizuku

[VincentChou]

I like Pilot iroshizuku ink very much because of its color, wetness and its bottle.

It is so sad that they are expensive.

Could anyone tell us the close substitutes of Pilot iroshizuku??

(I mean in color and wetness.)

Thanks a lot.

 

[welch]

Diamone Sapphire Blue is close to Asa-gao.

[random_display_name]

If you like Pilot Iroshizuku Syo-ro you might be happy substituting Diamine Eau de Nil. I'm not saying it is an exact match, I don't have the two handy side by side right now, but when I tried Eau de Nil I immediately thought Syo-ro...

[Gloucesterman]

Keep in mind that the Iroshizuku is also (suppose to be) ph neutral. Not sure on the other inks, although I am not saying they are or are not.

[ttakacs]

Omas Blue. It is almost the same color as Asa-gao and is similar in flow and lubrication. It's a premium quality ink.

 

Pilot BlueBlack. I don't know what color in the Iroshizuku line it resembles (if any), but it is also a premium quality ink. (See Sandy1's review here.) Ditto for its superior flow and lubrication.

[UDog]

One bottle of iroshizuku = two or three bottles of their competitors'.

[lancecreeks]

Pilot BlueBlack. I don't know what color in the Iroshizuku line it resembles (if any), but it is also a premium quality ink. (See Sandy1's review here.) Ditto for its superior flow and lubrication.

 

Pilot BB is a good blue black on many fronts - water resistant, nice shading, well-behaved, doesn't feather/bleed with many combinations, etc. Yet if you have to compare it with Iro's blue black, Shin-kai, then there are certain differences, though subtle. Pilot BB isn't dry, but I've found Shin-kai to be a lot wetter, with a higher tendency to feather. Pilot BB also has a purplish tint which Shin-kai does not exhibit, as it is greyer/ steelier, though that might just be due to my sensitivity to the purple colour. It really depends on your preferences. I dislike any hint of purple in my writing so Pilot BB is out (well, I should say that to most people the purple-ness is quite subtle), yet when I use Shin-kai I'll have to tame it with a dryer fp. If you are looking for a less expensive, all-round blue black, and don't mind purple, Pilot BB is a good option.

[Fabienne]

Noodler's Golden Brown is a great substitute for Ina-Ho.

[Gloucesterman]

It would be interesting and valuable if we were able to assemble a chart that provided alternative ink choices for, at least, the major ink colors and brands.

 

It sounds like a project for a small group of really dedicated "ink aficionados". BTW, that's fountain pen ink rather than tattoo inkers.

[parnesh]

Depending on where in the world you live, you can get iroshizuku inks imported from Japan for a more reasonable price.

[Lloyd]

It would be interesting and valuable if we were able to assemble a chart that provided alternative ink choices for, at least, the major ink colors and brands.

 

It sounds like a project for a small group of really dedicated "ink aficionados". BTW, that's fountain pen ink rather than tattoo inkers.

From what I recall of SamCapote's testing, Iroshizuku inks (and many other Asian inks) are quite alkalyne.

[inkstainedruth]

I don't know about the ink properties, but IMO PR Rose Rage is a pretty close color match to Kosumosu, for a fraction of the price. Yama-budo is similar to Noodler's BSiAR, but definitely a more red-violet color (the best way I can describe is is "brighter", but that doesn't really given a good indications because I'm thinking in musical terms).

Haven't tried enough other Iroshihzuku inks (although I have a few samples lined up in the queue) to find possible substitutes for any others, offhand.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[nomadhacker]

I found Eau de Nil to be a really close match to Ku Jaku actually. Very close. I can't tell the difference in the written samples unless I look closely. (this is in a fine-nib pen). Ku Jaku is just a tiny tiny bit more vibrant.

[Giordana]

Not exactly a dupe, but Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo looks pretty close to Diamine Twilight. It certainly looks nice in a broad, flexy, or italic pen.

[FPFan]

I don't really think anything would be a good substitute for the vibrancy and characteristics of the Iroshizuku inks. I stick with the real deal!

[mhosea]

Keep in mind that the Iroshizuku is also (suppose to be) ph neutral. Not sure on the other inks, although I am not saying they are or are not.

 

I don't see where they're supposed to be pH neutral, rather that they have pH above 7.0 and are supposedly archival safe. The two measurements I've seen were between 9.5 and 9.9.

[SeeksAdvice]

Wow, a pH pushing 10. That beats the Blue That Shall Not be Named's pH.

 

Anyway, I agree with FPFan on the accept no substitutes feeling. Don't get me wrong, I'm not enamored with every Iroshizuku ink I've tried. Don't like Shin-Kai, and found Take-Sumi ... weak (only have carbon blacks now).

 

But, it is hard to beat the combination of qualities that they have. Just wish they could match the water resistance of the Sailor "nano" inks.

[FPFan]

 

But, it is hard to beat the combination of qualities that they have. Just wish they could match the water resistance of the Sailor "nano" inks.

 

Many of the inks that I use regularly have a semi-decent water resistance to 15-30 minute soaking and the pH test I ran on some colors only reached an 8.0 reading others only 6.9 pH rating. Many of them were the early editions. Haven't tested any newer ones at this time.

[GeekyGirl]

I don't use either of these a lot, only for special purposes, but Noodler's Ottoman Rose is similar in color to Yama-budo. Ottoman Rose has a bit more red in it and I would describe it as a "magenta red," if that makes any sense, whereas Yama-budo has more magenta. It might even compare to Diamine Shiraz as well.

 

Not that this helps price-wise, but looking at color swabs on Rhodia, Edelstein Tanzanite looks almost exactly like Shin-kai, though they look different when actually writing with them and I actually like both a lot.

 

Dromgoole's Texas Steel Blue (Noodler's exclusive) looks similar to Syo-ro though it's more saturated and not quite as smooth. I think Steel Blue might be waterproof though. Both are beautiful inks. Look for the Steel Blue review by amberleadavis. She's actually posted several and all are great and really show variations in color. I think she's also posted water test images.

[napalm]

There's a list here:

 

http://dizzypen.livejournal.com/

 

However, as previous posters have mentioned, while you may find a reasonable match in color, they're pretty unmatched in overall properties.