Platinum (Standard) Black

[cybaea]

I wasn't going to post this one since there are already two reviews of this ink on FPN. But one of them has lost all but the thumbnails and neither seem very enthusiastic about the ink, so here goes.

 

Can I have two cheers for Platinum's standard black ink, please?

 

1. It is a black ink that shades. That's got to be worth something.

 

 

2. The ink doesn't feather. Ever. As proof, I give you Platinum Black on toilet tissue (!) written with a wet Nakaya Music nib (!!) compared with a much more expensive ink written with a Lamy 1.1mm:

 

All reviewers should test their inks on toilet tissue

 

(I have paper purchased as writing paper from a reputable shop that feathers more than toilet tissue, but we won't go into that now. Platinum black holds up very well.)

 

Convinced yet?

 

Review

 

 

Rinse test

 

 

Writing samples

 

Rhodia No 18 Dotpad

 

 

Rhodia 'R' pad

 

 

Corporate 'cartridge' paper

 

 

I hope this convinces someone to dig out that spare cartridge they have and try this really rather nice ink.

 

[inkstainedruth]

You have lovely handwriting.

As for the ink, it's a nice color, but I think I would call it grey, not black. I have a sample of this that I haven't tried yet, as part of my "hmm, what works well in a Preppy rollerball in sub-optimal (i.e., very humid) conditions on crummy copy paper" experiments. So far this year's contenders are Aurora Black and Sailor Nano Black, with one pen still drying from being flushed out (the previous year's entries were Noodler's Black and PR Invincible Black); but given how light this looks here, it may get pushed aside for the moment in favor of one of the other samples. Or Noodler's Old Manhattan Blackest Black.

Thanks for the review. I gather that this is a different ink from Platinum's pigmented black ink (which is the Goulets' substitute for Sailor Nano Black, now that they've been dropped as an authorized Sailor dealer)? Or from Platinum's Mix-Free series?

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[cybaea]

As for the ink, it's a nice color, but I think I would call it grey, not black. [...]

[...] I gather that this is a different ink from Platinum's pigmented black ink (which is the Goulets' substitute for Sailor Nano Black, now that they've been dropped as an authorized Sailor dealer)? Or from Platinum's Mix-Free series?

 

1. Dark grey, light black, whatever Deep, deep black can be overwhelming, especially from a wet music nib....

 

2. Yes, different from both. This is a standard dye-based ink and it is not the mix-free. If you buy any Platinum (or Nakaya ) pen you probably get a cartridge of this stuff.

[rudyhou]

this black look more like dark grey. LOVE it . i really like a charcoal grey look to a black. i should get a bottle of this in the future when i need a new black.

[Nonsensical]

Out of curiosity, is this in cartridge or bottle form? I have a bottle of this stuff, and from memory it wasn't THAT well behaved, but it was darker than what your reviews seem to suggest.

[cybaea]

Out of curiosity, is this in cartridge or bottle form? I have a bottle of this stuff, and from memory it wasn't THAT well behaved, but it was darker than what your reviews seem to suggest.

 

This was a cartridge but I also have the bottle and it seems to me to be the same ink.

[pbhat]

Platinum Black has one of the best flow and gives a decent black colour with sound shading

Excellent ink!

pbhat

[manolo]

I have just finished a cartridge of this ink and:

 

(1) very well behaved

(2) definitely blacker than shown in this review, a good black

(3) I have liked it. In fact, I have been trying Platinum inks in my Platinum pens and the combination works really-really well. I might buy some bottles if I find any.

[arcadeflow]

Any reason to use this instead of Pilot Black or two similar inks?

[cybaea]

I have just finished a cartridge of this ink and:

(2) definitely blacker than shown in this review, a good black

 

Depends on the flow of the pen, of course. That Nakaya nib is about as dry as a Safari (even after John Sorowka did his best with it). If a free flowing pen it gets very dark indeed.

[dneal]

Any reason to use this instead of Pilot Black or two similar inks?

 

Pilot black is "blacker", but is more prone to feathering. I can't use it on copy paper at work, but I can use Platinum.

[arcadeflow]

 

Pilot black is "blacker", but is more prone to feathering. I can't use it on copy paper at work, but I can use Platinum.

 

I agree Pilot Black has more trouble with feathering than Pilot Blue, which is quite good in this regard. Pilot Black is not very black either, so if Platinum Black feathers considerably less, it is a good reason. I wonder if the flow of Platinum (and Sailor) inks are as good in Pilot pens as Pilot inks.

[bluebellrose]

Someone forward this review to Muji. They silly folks think you can't use this on recycled paper when this ink works on everything including toilet paper.

[Paganini]

Odd. My bottle of Platinum Black is a few years old, but not 7 years old. It is considerably blacker than the OP's, but has a marked tendency to feather. This feathering is what lead me to stop using it and switch to LAMY Black. 

I haven't found ANY black ink that won't feather on cheap school paper (i.e., the kind of Meade and Tops notebooks you can find in the grocery store stationary aisle), but out of the sort of standard line-up (Pilot, Platinum, LAMY, Waterman, Quink, Perle Noire, Aurora, and Pelikan 4001) LAMY is the best behaved of my bottles. 

 

It always seems like there's more variation than I would expect from bottle to bottle of the big brand-name inks. (LAMY Black does seem fairly consistent, but my sample size is small... only 3 bottles.)