What Are Your Opinions On Diamine Steel Blue?

[Raylight]

I'm considering buying the Diamin Steel Blue ink because I think it looks really pretty, but as famous Diamine is, I rarely hear about Steel Blue here. What do you guys feel about this ink? Is there a reason why it's not very popular? How does this ink function in everyday writing activities such as school notes? And also, what other inks of the same or similar colour would you recommend for around the same price range?

 

CREDITS: PENCHALET

 

 

[Uncial]

I use it regularly enough. I think it's a nice colour and in a wet nib it can sometimes show a little sheen. I think it rarely gets a mention because this colour type probably isn't very popular. It can be a small bit bleedy on poor quality papers, but nothing major.

[dennis_f]

I use it to mark-up documents because it stands out on a crowded page and contrasts nicely with most other colours. I've never noticed any issues.

[JakobS]

One of my favorite blues, classic Diamine ink, shades beautifully, performs well on most paper, a medium wetness to it in most pens. I used it a bit in my college note taking days, completely readable for detailed notes. I think a lot of Diamine ink goes under the radar these days in favor of the more heavy saturated inks from the company, but they make a lot of amazing colors that behave exceptionally, and really make me wonder why I havent filled up a pen with one sooner if its been out of rotation for awhile. Which tends to happen more for me with 65+ inks!

Edited February 23, 2019 by JakobS

[goodpens]

I'm considering buying the Diamin Steel Blue ink because I think it looks really pretty, but as famous Diamine is, I rarely hear about Steel Blue here. What do you guys feel about this ink? Is there a reason why it's not very popular? How does this ink function in everyday writing activities such as school notes? And also, what other inks of the same or similar colour would you recommend for around the same price range?

 

CREDITS: PENCHALET

 

 

It is a beautiful, well-behaved ink. It looks great in demonstrators. Go for it. Edited February 23, 2019 by goodpens

[lapis]

I like steel but this is more of a teal and that's likely why many other members aren't all that hot about it, either.

Apart from that, there still has been some talk about it at least since 2008. Check out 11 reviews on it here: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/160612-index-of-ink-reviews/page-1

[Intensity]

I think this is one of Diamine's more popular blues. Might be not so noticeable here, but more on reddit, perhaps.

[ErrantSmudge]

Robert Oster in particular has many blue-greens, teals and turquoises in its color line that are worth checking out. I have a bottle of RO Tranquility, which looks pretty similar to Diamine Blue Steel.

 

Edited February 24, 2019 by ErrantSmudge

[uceroy]

I love it. It's one of those great petrol colors 😂

it's quite close to Diamine Marine, a tad lighter and bit more bluish.

I love how it behaves. Haven't had any trouble, even on cheaper paper.

[Margana]

Thanks for reminding me of an attractive ink I haven't used in years. Time to find the bottle and put it to use again.

[Runnin_Ute]

I don't have it in a pen right now, but did as recently as a week or so ago when I finished up a fill in my Pelikan M200 Blue Marbled (old style) with an OB nib. It plays nicely in a lot of my pens too. Not sure why I went such a long time between fills. I have several other inks in or near this color family. (Lamy Pacific, Iroshizuku Kon Peki among them.)

I like this better than Kon Peki which I think is over-rated and not as good a performer as many people will lead you to believe. It is more green than the Lamy entry, but still a very nice color. This actually performs better in my pens than Kon Peki. (At less than half the cost per ML, and I paid $15.79 for my 50 ml bottle of Kon Peki and about $12.50 (maybe less) for my 80 ml bottle of Steel Blue)

20190224_210539 by Brad Merrill, on Flickr

Edited February 25, 2019 by Runnin_Ute

[Raylight]

thanks everyone!