Fast Drying Ink for Exam

[theuberprof]

I've got finals coming up for all my classes, and there's going to be a lot of writing involved.

 

So, what is the best fast drying ink for an exam? By that I mean, I need an ink that dries quickly on any cheap paper they throw at me, in a dark blue (preferably) or black. I've seen the other threads, but often they assume "perfect" writing conditions (Swisher-branded Noodler's, etc).

 

I'll be writing with either a Cross Townsend XF (which is a Pelikan nib, as I understand) or a borrowed Parker "51" in Fine (assuming she lets me borrow it!).

[Shangas]

Hey there.

 

Good quick-drying ink?

 

Parker Quink.

 

Specifically designed to be non-clogging and fast-dryinig. It should work perfectly fine in a Cross fountain pen, and is available in blue-black and jet black.

[Brianetta]

Parker Quink.

I've only actually used Quink so far, but I'll happily corroborate that it dries very quickly. When I write quickly, the smudge-risk has vanished after only a couple of words. Mere seconds after finishing writing, I can slide my hand all over the page without smearing the words or getting an inky hand.

 

Not to say it's the best; my grounds for comparison are none.

[Shangas]

I don't know of any other ink that dries as fast as Parker Quink. I have Montblanc jet black, and that takes quite a while to dry, but I've never had ANY problems with Quink. It was developed in the 1940s, I believe, in response to problems with inks not drying fast enough. It's main claims were that -

 

- It was non-corrosive.

- It was fast-drying.

- It was non-clogging.

- That it would actually clear out the pen of dried ink.

 

So if you want a good, all-round fountain pen ink, get Quink. Available in cartridges or 57ml glass bottles with nice heavy bases to prevent tipping.

 

 

[ViolinWriter]

What the others said.

[rroossinck]

That's so weird...must be just me. I haven't observed that at all. It dries reasonably fast, but I still have problems with smudging. The best I've seen for that is Pelikan Royal Blue, which for some reason typically dries quickly for me.

 

Whatever you do, for God's sake, don't try Swisher's Tahitian Pearl. Ugh...awful! I wrote with it last night and you ought to see the side of my left hand (I'm a lefty). Horrific! Changing that one out is the first item on my list this morning after this bowl of cereal and a shower.

[Djehuty]

I'd never used Quink before, but some came with my new Parker Frontier, and after reading this I decided to give it a shot. On Rhodia paper, it dried completely in about three and a half seconds. After three seconds, everything except darker spots with a greater accumulation of ink was dry. And it's mostly dry even sooner; in fact, smudging was minimal when I rubbed my thumb over a word immediately after writing it. The only problem was that the blue (blue-black? no label on the cartridge) ink is somewhat pale and faded in appearance. Hopefully Quink black will be darker.

 

I've been using Aurora black for note-taking, and it's relatively quick-drying. It usually takes about five seconds to dry. But before that time is up, it will smudge, and if you have to turn a page and keep writing there's a good chance there will be smudging and spotting. So Quink is probably better for note-taking and exams and other uses for which speed in drying is the most important quality.

 

[Shangas]

I think you probably have Quink Blue there. I used to have a bottle of that stuff, but when it ran out, I didn't bother buying another one because the ink was just bloody awful. When it dried, what you thought you'd get (a nice, rich, darkish-blue), just didn't happen. When it dries, it fades, and it turns a sort of light-tinted blue. Terrible stuff.

 

Parker Black works wonders, though. It's fast-drying and no, it does NOT fade. It'll be as jet-black as it is on your page as it is in the bottle. The only exception to this is when your pen is beginning to run out of ink. (A sort of 'safety-feature', I suppose. "Fill pen when colour fades!!").

Edited May 8, 2007 by Shangas

[Brianetta]

Washable black looks washed out. We have a couple of washable blue Quink cartridges, but never used them (they were just the bundled ones). Permanent black Quink seems blue as I write, turning black as it dries, which makes it much easier to determine when it's safe from smudging.

[Jeff E]

Waterman Florida Blue and Blue/Black are also fast drying inks. I've also had good luck with Swisher North Sea Blue and Blue/Black, but the Swisher inks do tend to feather badly, especially on cheap paper.

[guitarman19853]

I have issues with Quink being too dry of a writer. I will also throw in my vote for Waterman Florida Blue. Love the color and it is one of the only inks i use that is completely dry once i finish a page of notes. All of my others i have to use a blotter sheet in between pages when i flip over to write on the back.

[Latro21]

i vote for namiki ink [specifically the blue-i havent used the other colors...yet]. it dries every bit as fast as or faster than quink with the added bonus that its highly water resistant. i love namiki blue and cant wait to buy more of it and the other namiki colors as well as i am sure they will be just as great as the blue. with my pens that have been loaded with the namiki blue [fine vista and med knight] the ink isnt pale and washed out looking either. rather, it is a nice true blue just a hair on the light side. im not sure if its as a result of the finer nibs or what, but it surprises me when i see a scan online and it looks light and pale like some noodlers bulletproof blues.

 

ive only used quink black, but with quink you may wind up smudging it if you touch or rub against the paper with sweaty skin. also, the black quink will leave a faint blue color on the page after a soaking so it can still be read if need be.

Edited May 9, 2007 by Latro21

[AndreaDuni]

IMO with a XF or a F nib there wouldn't be problems with any inks. Infact my experiences with these nibs are that all of my inks dry fast to permit me to write a line after another also in exams and fast writing lesson's notes. The following list contains all my inks and in red there are inks that gave me some problems with large M and B nibs:

• Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue (cartridges and bottles)
• Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Black (cartridges and bottles)
• Pelikan 4001 Red (cartridges)
• Sheaffer Skrip Blue (bottle)
• Waterman Blue Washable (cartridges)
• Waterman Florida Blue (cartridges)
• Waterman Black (cartridges)
• Waterman Red (bottle)
• Parker Blue Washables (cartridges)
• Mont Blanc Bordeaux (bottle)
• Noodler Blue Ghost (bottles)
• Visconti Black (cartridges)
• Visconti Blue (cartridges)

[theuberprof]

I've had a lot of trouble on ruled Moleskine notebooks with my XF nibs using Noodler's Midnight Blue (which is my favorite color, but not my favorite ink because of those issues).

 

I ended up with Waterman Florida Blue, and it worked like a charm. Two days of exams left!

[Mighty_Pir]

My vote would be either the Pelikan 4001 blue black or Waterman Florida Blue. But as someone said earlier, if your pen has a F or an XF nib there should be no problem with most inks.

 

 

regards

 

Farooq

[Carrie]

Way back in the dim and distant past when I was doing exams I used either Quink or Cross Blue. That was before I realised the wide variety of inks available, and indeed before many of those inks were available. I've got a number of different colours of Diamine inks and can't fault the drying times - this coming from a lefthander too.

[Shimon]

My vote would be either the Pelikan 4001 blue black or Waterman Florida Blue. But as someone said earlier, if your pen has a F or an XF nib there should be no problem with most inks.

 

 

regards

 

Farooq

My 4001 was too fast for me (there are some dead minutes during class) the Parker quick is slower. If you need fast drying ink I'll vote like Farooq.