Ink Review: Monteverde Horizon Blue

[Hallel]

Horizon blue has actually become my personal favourite true blue. I have it and Visconti Blue inked ip right now and I consistently reach for the pen with HB. To my eye it's also a richer colour than Diamine Blue Velvet.

 

Now it's in a shoot out between it and Robert Osters School Blue for my all time favourite true blue.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Finally, close enough for Government Work.

I can now use my PS cartridges........ I have 3-4.

[DasKaltblut]

How much does the Horizon Blue stain pen parts?

[radellaf]

Doesn't seem to be staining or clinging to this Jinhao converter after like 5 months. Also re-photographed the paper swatches comparing it to Penman Sapphire and Diamine Blue Velvet, and they still all look exactly the same to me. I probably won't use my bottle of PPS as it probably doesn't behave as well, and seems to still be gaining value. My mistake not selling only if the purists paying $50 a bottle do decide that one of the current clones is good enough and stop looking for the real thing.

 

 

 

[bobje]

Monteverde really nailed both color and performance on its new ink series. I love red velvet.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I have a couple of LE MB bottles that I could sell for more than they are 'worth'.

I've some of that Christmas brown....that feathers much more than wished.

Diamond isn't quite as good as I thought it was either when I grabbed a second bottle quickly.

Decisions to dither on................sell or not...........laziness has it's own rewards.

[SamCapote]

I have three separate lots of PPS, two original in bottle (one almost untouched except for tiny samples to verify the colour), and one from a set of cartridges (100, I think) that I bought from Pokydady a few years ago.

 

All three have the same colour, so I am confident the colour is accurate.

 

Dave, that was an incredible find from Pokydady in Asia somewhere. I think I ended up getting 4-5,000 of those PPS cartridges after we all inspected them for authenticity, and especially for a while since he was giving double lots for the same price because they had dehydrated, and didn't want anyone to get half as much!!!

 

Distill water hydrated those puppies with a syringe up to the original fill line, and the cartridge itself was good to go in a Parker pen, or what I mostly did was extract the rehydrated back into glass jars and the small sample screw top vials. I think I got about 500 of them hydrated, and got bored, and already have more than a lifetime from those and my 11 remaining full bottles. He had Penman Emerald too--another ink unlike any other.

 

Anyway, maybe I'll check this Horizon to see how close I think it is.

[welch]

This is a comparison I did a few weeks ago comparing MHV and PPS

 

 

Two pens, Sailor 1911 Large (Naginata Medium Fine nib) filled with Monteverde Horizon Blue and Jinhao 159 (#6 Medium nib) filled with Parker Penman Sapphire. The Jinhao was adjusted to have the same degree of wetness as the Sailor.

The paper is Rhodia A5 notebook (obviously written on the other side as well).

I interleaved the lines of MHB and PPS so you could truly see how similar they are. Colour is the same, as is shading and sheening, and the same minimal degree of spreading. Obviously on Rhodia there is no feathering or bleeding.

 

 

Thank you, dcwaites! I've been using MV Horizon Blue since I noticed this comparison to Parker Penman Sapphire. I cannot tell the difference. For the last month or so, I've been using it in A P51 Special while using PPS in another P51. To my eye, there is no difference. Both have that special glow.

[SamCapote]

OK, I have to do this experiment now. I have to control for variables, so must use 2 new pens...probably a Lamy, same nib, same papers.

 

Just contemplating that some ink may be threatening "my precious" has me quite befuddled. There have been so many attempts over the years, and so many "well it's almost the same as PPS..."

Edited March 13, 2018 by SamCapote

[Chrissy]

Both Sapphire and Horizon Blue look like excellent blue inks to me.

[Honeybadgers]

Not my favorite. I find souten to be a better true blue, and if I need it cheap, hero 233 carbon blue or noodler's liberty's elysium.

[eharriett]

Like Tas says, "That's that." I don't own a bottle of Penman Sapphire, but I've wanted to experience it. Looks like now I can for a fraction of the price. Order placed. I'll have a bottle of Horizon Blue here shortly.

[katerchen]

Love the color, but it's an absolute firehose ink. I think they overdid it with the surfactant a little :/

 

I'll need to try it with a drier, finer pen as well.

 

-k

[Donald2]

Cool, good to know. Was going to get the 90mL but this bottle is cute. Not 10mL Iroshizuku cute, but still.

 

I see on Jetpens that the 30mL are also filled like mine.

 

http://i.imgur.com/T3nJQfAm.jpg

I've also noticed that some of the Iroshizuku inks do not come fully filled either.

[sirgilbert357]

Like Tas says, "That's that." I don't own a bottle of Penman Sapphire, but I've wanted to experience it. Looks like now I can for a fraction of the price. Order placed. I'll have a bottle of Horizon Blue here shortly.

 

 

This thread convinced me too. I bought a 30 ml bottle and have been using it for the last week in several pens. I like it...but the lack of sheen is a bit of a disappointment. I don't know that I had any real expectations, but I was certainly HOPING there would be some serious sheen. Well, there isn't, but it still flows great, the color is beautiful and it's cheap. I'll stick to Sailor Bung Box Hatsukoi for the same color with sheen....I can use Horizon Blue when I don't care if I get sheen or not.

[radellaf]

I have trouble getting sheen out of any ink that hasn't at least partly dried out in the pen: 50% is a decent compromise between sheen and flow. I've seen some from all three inks at times, but even PPS doesn't sheen for me on normal paper from a freshly filled pen. And at 50% dried out, it's practically crystallizing on the nib (referring to converter volume; typically ink at the nib is more dried out).

 

I'd suggest anyone wishing the flow or sheen were maybe a little different to try the Diamine Blue Velvet. Direct from Diamine, and add a few 30mL colors that fit under the shipping threshold, and it's really not that expensive. Cool pie bottle, too.

[dcwaites]

Both PPS and MHB are low/medium sheen inks, compared to some other modern inks. You need to use a wettish pen and a low absorbence paper to get noticeable sheen.

[eharriett]

 

 

This thread convinced me too. I bought a 30 ml bottle and have been using it for the last week in several pens. I like it...but the lack of sheen is a bit of a disappointment. I don't know that I had any real expectations, but I was certainly HOPING there would be some serious sheen. Well, there isn't, but it still flows great, the color is beautiful and it's cheap. I'll stick to Sailor Bung Box Hatsukoi for the same color with sheen....I can use Horizon Blue when I don't care if I get sheen or not.

Well this is interesting.

 

Can you post some comparison scans of the two inks? I don't own any Bungubox inks, but I hear good things.

[Flaxmoore]

Looking for a really vibrant washable blue, and Horizon Blue has passed my tests- washed out completely after staining on cloth. Are my eyes deceiving me (wouldn't be the first) or is this nearly identical to PPS?

[dcwaites]

Look at post #8 in this thread