Ink Review : Diamine Safari (150Th Anniversary Ink)

[namrehsnoom]

Ink Review : Diamine Safari (150th Anniversary Ink)

 

 

Pen: Lamy Safari, M-nib

Paper: Rhodia N° 16 notepad 80 gsm

 

 

Review

 

This ink is part of an 8-ink bottle collection released by Diamine to celebrate their 150th anniversary (1864-2014). It is one of the more interesting colors from this set.

 

Safari... the name evokes images of the African savannah... a proud lion gnawing at the bones of a freshly killed antelope. A ranger in a khaki uniform - blending in with the tall grass and bushes - observing the scene...

 

The color captures the spirit of the savannah well. It's kind of a dark yellow-green, khaki-like color, resembling the yellow-green grass and bushes of the lush grassland. It's a color with character, not dull at all, but at the same time traditional enough to be used in the workplace (e.g. for taking meeting notes - although not really suited for business correspondence). I like the color, not boring and at the same time not an obtrusive color. It keeps you interested, but it doesn't jump in your face.

 

OK - but how does it behave on paper ? For this, I did some tests:

• Rhodia N° 16 notepad 80 gsm - drying time ~20 seconds, no feathering, no show-through nor bleed-through
• Paperblanks journal paper - drying time ~15 seconds, no feathering, no show-through and no bleed-through
• Generic notepad paper 70 gsm - drying time ~15 seconds, no feathering, no show-through, no bleed-through
• Moleskine journal - drying time ~10 seconds, no feathering, definitely noticeable show-through, but almost no bleed-through

The ink behaves surprisingly well, even on Moleskine paper. Keep in mind that I only tested up to a medium nib. With wetter pens, performance on cheap paper will probably worsen.

 

Notice that the ink exhibits a very nice shading. This is something that I really like. The shading catches your attention, but remains subtle and classy. It really shows that you're writing with a fountain pen and not a dull ballpoint. Very well done.

 

Our proud lion - being a big cat - doesn't like water very much. Neither does this ink. Running tap water removes most of the color. However, a greyish trace of your text remains, and is still perfectly readable, even after 30 seconds in running water. Not bad at all !

 

Conclusion

 

Safari is a very well-behaving ink. You also get an interesting color with some very nice shading. You can even use this ink in the workplace without getting strange looks from your colleagues. Good work from Diamine !

 

My overall score: A

 

 

 

 

 

 

[visvamitra]

Great review of excellent ink.

[Tas]

Loving your reviews. Keep them coming, we never tire . . .

[lapis]

Thanks for the good review. I really like this ink -- as you say, one of the top inks out of the 8 -- because it has good properties, especially as to its colour (har, har) but without being over-stated in appearance.

 

Mike

[amberleadavis]

Welcome aboard and thank you for the review.

[The Good Captain]

This is one of my favourites from the excellent set. Nice and understated. Yet another great review!

[amberleadavis]

This is one of my favourites from the excellent set. Nice and understated. Yet another great review!

 

 

Whenever I see this ink, I think of you.

[attika89]

Wonderful review indeed! Really great ink!

[The Good Captain]

 

 

Whenever I see this ink, I think of you.

Thank you, sweetheart! And for the recent paper samples. Letter off to you soon.

[bbs]

Just a slight warning - I had this in a pen for rather a while (ahem, slapped wrist) and thought there must be something wrong with its piston because when I eventually got round to flushing it, no water was expelled. But soaking eventually got it flowing again.

 

I'll use this ink again, but not when I've got a lot of pens in rotation ....

[cleosmama]

Try it on Tomoe River paper--it's gorgeous.

[chingdamosaic]

Just a slight warning - I had this in a pen for rather a while (ahem, slapped wrist) and thought there must be something wrong with its piston because when I eventually got round to flushing it, no water was expelled. But soaking eventually got it flowing again.

 

I'll use this ink again, but not when I've got a lot of pens in rotation ....

I love this one and managed to get a full bottle. However I also had some flow issue before, with an eyedropper. Haven't tried other pen/ink combination yet so not sure which the problem lies in.

 

But still, love this color and the overall performance is satisfying

[Zut Alors]

Flow was an issue in a Sheaffer Nononsense B nib but improved in the F nib.

 

A very attractive ink for multiple purposes. Well suited for sympathy letters.