The Quest Is Over. I've Found The Perfect Paper

[KKay]

Do the MD notebooks have stitched binding? I prefer that to glue or stapled binding by far.

[TassoBarbasso]

Thank you very much for this review! I read it when you first posted, and then today when I was browsing one of the local online stores to Australia I find they have introduced a new range of paper- Midori MD!

 

I think I am right in this, but just want to check before I buy- the Midori paper is thicker (or at least less easily folded/creased) than Tomoe? I don't mind the thinness of Tomoe, but I don't like how easily it gets a fold or crease in the paper!

 

Correct. I don't have the exact information, but it's definitely thicker than Tomoe

[GranTorino25]

I've just put an order in for an A4 pad (formal writings such as final notes), an A5 pad (doodling and notes), and an A5 notebook (to use as a journal)! I love the look of their leather covers for the notebooks, but they are out of my price range at the moment!!!

[adamselene]

Thank you for your great review.

I too have tried many paper types. I use different papers for different purposes. I love Tomoe River, but like you mentioned it isn't feasible for me in loose sheets. I do, however, use refill No. 13 in my Traveler's Notebook (full size), which is my journal when I travel (which is a great deal).

For work, I recently bought a Levenger Circa notebook. What a huge disappointment! The paper was like writing on a thin paper bag. And the Arc paper from Staples (Circa doppelgänger) is not very good either.

So, then I stumbled upon your review. I had tried all of the others you mentioned, and was ready to give the Midori MD paper a try. I ordered an A5 notebook on Amazon. I put pen to paper and fell in love. By the end of the first day of use, I ordered another 8 notebooks. The only problem was to find a suitable notebook cover. I knew the little wax paper cover would not stand up to my travel. So, I ordered an cheap leather cover from Amazon, was horribly disappointed (the smell was so bad it would have scared off a bear!) and sent it back (I guess you get what you pay for). I then found a good deal on a leather notebook cover made by Midori that comes with 3 Midori MD notebooks. While it was a bit expensive, the quality is quite good.

HP 32 lb paper is good for Levenger. Light papers don't hold up well with the "mushroom" cutouts, " and it's very ink friendly. Office Depot 28 lb is also adequate. IMHO Circa's biggest fault is that the pages tend to fall out over time, and that pages don't turn freely. It is much better for writing than for reading.

 

My Circa pages that are important enough to archive (less than ten percent) wind up in a Leuchterm Springback cover, which I seem to enjoy more and more the longer I use it.

[TMLee]

Looks like I have to test out this paper

 

Would be great if someone can post pics to illustrate

 

If I recall correctly, they (MIDORI) are not cheap.😬

Edited October 12, 2017 by TMLee

[TMLee]

Hrm, that's different paper then. Mine has gray dots and is a pale cream color, not white. This is the paper product line, comes in different rulings (plain, lined, dot, graph):

https://fabriano.com/en/267/ecoqua

 

"The notebooks are made of ecological paper “Book Bioprima” 85 g/m² showing an eye relaxing pale ivory shade. Produced with 100% of T.C.F. (Totally Chlorine Free) and F.S.C. certified cellulose pulp issued from forests managed according to strict environmental standards. Acid Free paper with alkaline reserve to guarantee Long Life (ISO 9706).[/size]

The cover is made of ecological paper “Sirio Tela” 290 g/m² and is scratch-resistant. Available in 8 different lightfast colours. Federottica certified (cert. No. 654): the paper respects the standards apt to writing and reading. Ideal for any kind of writing: ball pen, fountain pen, felt-tip pen, etc."[/size]

 

Fabriano EcoQua line can be purchased on Amazon and also in places like the art store chain Dick Blick (excellent prices):

http://www.dickblick.com/products/fabriano-ecoqua-notebooks/

"Dot Gluebound" are the ones I use. I just wish there were a Dot Spiral-bound version.

 

I did a review of this FABRIANO EcoQua (glued) Bioprima 85g dot grid here ...

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/328185-fabriano-ecoqua-glued-a5-dot-grid/?do=findComment&comment=3930153

 

HTH

[milkb0at]

I've been trying out this magical paper, first in a Traveller's Notebook passport size refill, and now also as an A5 lined pad in my journal (as far as I can tell they're the same paper apart from the latter being creamier).

 

It is indeed lovely paper. I generally use Rhodia because it's a safe bet but I do prefer some tooth to the paper, like with Leuchtterm. It's mostly great with the fountain pens and is fantastic with pencil. The A5 MD notebook has a good number of pages and I appreciate the ribbon - both of which help to offset the shock of the high price. So it's a great paper.

 

EXCEPT it hates the stub nib on my Carène. I would write a few lines and it will all be sweetness and light, then at random points it suddenly shifts to looking and feeling like I'm writing on wax. I don't understand why; perhaps it's the nib, the angle of the pen and nib on the paper, the Waterman ink, perhaps some inconsistency in the paper. I don't have this problem on other paper, nor did I have the problem with the italic nib on my Sheaffer No-Nonsense. Strange.

[Intensity]

Hmm I write with different cursive italic nibs all the time without this problem. Do you mean that the ink flow stops? If so, I might have an explanation. Floss between the pen's tines with very thin flat dental floss or a sturdy fabric string to make sure there's no physical debree accumulation. If your writing style or this nib in particular has the tip dig into the paper, the tip scrapes off some top layer fibers, which get stuck in the ink flow channel between the tines. Clairefontaine is better for misaligned or otherwise scratchy nibs, as the paper surface is very smooth, comparatively. Rhodia is not as smooth but still has a smoother texture than Fabriano. I'd check your nib under high magnification after cleaning it. It may need a bit of realignment or smoothing.

Edited October 27, 2017 by Intensity

[milkb0at]

It's not the tines, since it works just fine on other papers, and the No-Nonsense nib works ok on the MD paper too (and that's a scratchier true-italic nib). So there's something in the interaction between the Carène, ink and paper that sometimes doesn't work.

 

I suspect it's something as boring as my nib rotating away from the page so the ink becomes thin and the pen skips over the paper, but it doesn't happen with other papers. Something to do with the feedback between nib and MD paper, perhaps?

[Intensity]

It's not the tines, since it works just fine on other papers, and the No-Nonsense nib works ok on the MD paper too (and that's a scratchier true-italic nib). So there's something in the interaction between the Carène, ink and paper that sometimes doesn't work.

 

I suspect it's something as boring as my nib rotating away from the page so the ink becomes thin and the pen skips over the paper, but it doesn't happen with other papers. Something to do with the feedback between nib and MD paper, perhaps?

 

Was worth checking It's something I only learned about by trial and error myself recently, after I thought something was wrong with the feed or with paper. I now floss the nib first, if I notice any hint of odd ink flow onto paper, then move on to checking other issues.

 

Oddly enough, Clairefontaine's 90g/m² paper, while super smooth in writing feel, has the undesirable behavior of making most of my writing with different pens and inks (to varying extent) put down fairly jagged-edged lines. I don't know if it's because the paper has some kind of hydrophobic surface coating, but for example writing with a 1.5mm Lamy nib, which is one of my good smooth ones with high ink flow, results in some very jagged edges of the ink lines. Noticeable enough from normal reading distance. There's no problem with the ink flow within the ink line, just the outer edges of it. It's also sometimes difficult to write on it with some pens that don't have great ink flow. Each paper type definitely has its own peculiarities.

[dumaresq]

I've been trying out this magical paper, first in a Traveller's Notebook passport size refill, and now also as an A5 lined pad in my journal (as far as I can tell they're the same paper apart from the latter being creamier).

 

It is indeed lovely paper. I generally use Rhodia because it's a safe bet but I do prefer some tooth to the paper, like with Leuchtterm. It's mostly great with the fountain pens and is fantastic with pencil. The A5 MD notebook has a good number of pages and I appreciate the ribbon - both of which help to offset the shock of the high price. So it's a great paper.

 

EXCEPT it hates the stub nib on my Carène. I would write a few lines and it will all be sweetness and light, then at random points it suddenly shifts to looking and feeling like I'm writing on wax. I don't understand why; perhaps it's the nib, the angle of the pen and nib on the paper, the Waterman ink, perhaps some inconsistency in the paper. I don't have this problem on other paper, nor did I have the problem with the italic nib on my Sheaffer No-Nonsense. Strange.

 

 

It's not the tines, since it works just fine on other papers, and the No-Nonsense nib works ok on the MD paper too (and that's a scratchier true-italic nib). So there's something in the interaction between the Carène, ink and paper that sometimes doesn't work.

 

I suspect it's something as boring as my nib rotating away from the page so the ink becomes thin and the pen skips over the paper, but it doesn't happen with other papers. Something to do with the feedback between nib and MD paper, perhaps?

 

milkb0at, I had the same problem. Halfway down the page, my stub nib which was working fine would start skating over the paper surface and not lay down ink reliably.

 

The culprit, I found, was skin oils, deposited invisibly on the parts of the paper where I'd laid my wrist. That's why the head of the paper would take the ink fine but not the lower stretches.

 

Once I placed a protective sheet between my hand and the writing paper, the problem went away.

 

As for why your No-Nonsense works OK, my experience is that the oil patches affect different nibs differently. I have other pens that are unbothered by the oils on the same paper. (Smooth nibs seem to be more badly affected; whereas nibs with more tooth have a better chance of "biting" through the resist and writing cleanly!)

[milkb0at]

Ah, that could well be it. Time to bring a spare sheet of paper into play as a hand rest and see if that makes a difference. I wonder why Rhodia isn't affected by it. Perhaps because it's already coated with something?

[TassoBarbasso]

 

 

 

milkb0at, I had the same problem. Halfway down the page, my stub nib which was working fine would start skating over the paper surface and not lay down ink reliably.

 

The culprit, I found, was skin oils, deposited invisibly on the parts of the paper where I'd laid my wrist. That's why the head of the paper would take the ink fine but not the lower stretches.

 

Once I placed a protective sheet between my hand and the writing paper, the problem went away.

 

As for why your No-Nonsense works OK, my experience is that the oil patches affect different nibs differently. I have other pens that are unbothered by the oils on the same paper. (Smooth nibs seem to be more badly affected; whereas nibs with more tooth have a better chance of "biting" through the resist and writing cleanly!)

This usually happens with all papers, albeit more noticeably with some types than with others. Its just due to the fact that sweat and grease from the skin transfer on the paper creating a coating. Use a spare sheet of paper as insulation and the issue is solved

[milkb0at]

I'm not convinced it's the skin oils, since I realised that it sometimes happens at the top of a fresh page.

 

Luckily I have many, many pages left to experiment.

[dumaresq]

This usually happens with all papers, albeit more noticeably with some types than with others. Its just due to the fact that sweat and grease from the skin transfer on the paper creating a coating. Use a spare sheet of paper as insulation and the issue is solved

 

Absolutely I do find Midori MD to be just a little more sensitive than average though.

 

That said, it is my FAVOURITE paper. And it's all thanks to your post, Tasso!

 

Tomoe River (former favourite) brings out lots of sheen, but also has a bit of ink "spread" – not feathering, just a fractional thickening of the line. So hairlines are not as thin as I want them to be.

 

Clairefontaine Triomphe brings out great shading and crispness, but rarely gives any sheen.

 

Midori MD? Sheen, shading, line crispness, it's got everything!

 

However, I can only speak for the A4 Paper Pads, which are cream-coloured and have one chamfered corner, and NOT the Traveller's Notebooks, which say they use "MD Paper" too, but the paper is white, and I notice some ink spread on it, similar to Tomoe River -- which makes a world of difference, to me. (The "Traveller's Notebooks" are different from the "Midori MD Notebooks", which use the cream paper I believe, though I haven't tried.)

 

Thanks again, Tasso, for the excellent recommendation.

Edited October 30, 2017 by dumaresq

[Bookman]

My quest for the perfect paper is over. But not because I found it. By the way, my favorite paper is Rhodia Premium. I arrived at the conclusion quite recently and indirectly, by process of elimination.

 

My quest is over because every time I believed I'd found the perfect paper I eventually grew bored with it—Tomoe River, because its flimsiness made the handling of it too delicate an endeavor; Life Noble notebooks; Apica Premium CD notebooks. The lone exception thus far has been Rhodia Premium. But rather than give it the perfect-paper kiss-of-death, I'll just designate it my favorite and leave well enough alone.

 

I used a Midori Traveler's Notebook Planner (#019) for 56 weeks (2 x 28). I don't know how that paper stacks up to Midori MD. Maybe it is Midori MD. Anyway I was so driven to distraction by the off-putting dimensions (I prefer a true pocket size like A6) that I don't even remember the paper. Let me go retrieve one. They're in a drawer around here somewhere. OK, here's one. Ah, yes. No big deal.

[TMLee]

milkb0at, I had the same problem. Halfway down the page, my stub nib which was working fine would start skating over the paper surface and not lay down ink reliably.

 

The culprit, I found, was skin oils, deposited invisibly on the parts of the paper where I'd laid my wrist. That's why the head of the paper would take the ink fine but not the lower stretches.

 

Once I placed a protective sheet between my hand and the writing paper, the problem went away.

 

As for why your No-Nonsense works OK, my experience is that the oil patches affect different nibs differently. I have other pens that are unbothered by the oils on the same paper. (Smooth nibs seem to be more badly affected; whereas nibs with more tooth have a better chance of "biting" through the resist and writing cleanly!)

+1

 

I have the same experience too.

Skin oils.

 

For some reason, the MD notebook paper seems to be more absorbent?

 

I usually use a soft eraser to get rid of that problem area.

[DrDebG]

I've been using the Midori MD notebooks 15003-006 (grid pattern) for almost three months. I am halfway through my second notebook and I love them. These are working better for me that any other notebook that I have used before in recent years. The notebook in the MD leather notebook holder weigh less than my Traveler's Notebook, so it has been going with me on my travels as well.

 

The paper is wonderful, but not perfect. A couple of my pens remind me that they prefer the Tomoe River more, but they still behave well on the MD paper. The majority of pens love the paper. And I have not found one ink that spreads or feathers on this paper.

 

Overall, I am very happy with them.

[Intensity]

A couple of my pens remind me that they prefer the Tomoe River more

I would say that's all pens in general, but if a pen only writes well on Tomoe River, that's too high of a bar to set, in my opinion Gotta be something off with them.

[DrDebG]

I would say that's all pens in general, but if a pen only writes well on Tomoe River, that's too high of a bar to set, in my opinion Gotta be something off with them.

 

No, there isn't anything wrong with them, but they have a definite preference for the Tomoe River paper. They still write adequately well on other papers, but they do not make my writing "shine" like they do on Tomoe River.

 

You do make a good point, however. Next time I am at a pen show, I will have one of the great nibmeisters take a look at them.