Keeping Track Of Which Ink In Which Pen

[Marcwithac]

Yes, indeed, the Pen Jottings notebook from FPH is small.4"x 6" x 1/2". How do you fit all that information on the tiny page? I find it hard to use with a fountain pen.

I have many types and sizes of notebooks and notepads but really like the FPH book for tracking my inks precisely because it is compact. And the paper is excellent and works well for two-sided writing.

[gyasko]

Put the same ink in all of them. Problem solved.

 

Not that i ever felt the need to remember. If the pen writes, its good.

[thx1138]

An A4 clairfontaine notebook with date, pen, nib grade and ink.

[N1003U]

An A4 clairfontaine notebook with date, pen, nib grade and ink.

+1. A good plan.

[Maurizio]

A table in OneNote (synced to OneDrive, so available to me on any device). One line per pen. As an ink is used, I cross it out and add any notes about it. I will also frequently note pen/ink in journal entries.

Ditto. I use the same program. I just have a simple text document. Love it because it’s free, and cross-platform, so I have it on my phone and 2 computers. When I change an ink I usually remember to update the list on whatever device I’m closest to. Recently, I’ve begun using a red asterisk and entering a date for the pens into which I put Platinum Carbon Black to increase the odds that I will flush such pen roughly every 30 days. Currently 18 pens inked, including 5 with PCB and which sit in a pencil case dedicated to sketching.

[jvr]

I use a tiny clairefontaine notebook. When I fill a pen, I write down which ink goes in which pen. The last mention of that pen in the notebook will always tell me which ink is in it.

[A Smug Dill]

I use an APICA CD10WN notebook — 105mm x 148mm, with 52 sheets (i.e. 104 pages) — as my inking log book. I manually numbered the pages, and created an index allocated different numbers of pages to various (groupings of) letters of the alphabet, proportional to the number of pens of different brands grouped by the first letter of their respective brand names. The brands in which I have the most pens have their own separate group. Effectively, it's a hash function that creates unevenly sized hash buckets to linear search in reverse chronological order, when I want to find out with which ink a pen is inked and see a sample.



Of course, I failed to take into account — or simply could not reasonably estimate — the actual amount of inking activity for different brands. Even though I have many Delike pens, I have rarely inked them; whereas not only did I buy a whole lot more Aurora pens since I started the book, but it's also the brand of pens that has seen the most number of inkings, and so I've now run out of space for A–C, but have hardly used the pages allocated for Delike.

[Maurizio]

I use an APICA CD10WN notebook — 105mm x 148mm, with 52 sheets (i.e. 104 pages) — as my inking log book. I manually numbered the pages, and created an index allocated different numbers of pages to various (groupings of) letters of the alphabet, proportional to the number of pens of different brands grouped by the first letter of their respective brand names. The brands in which I have the most pens have their own separate group. Effectively, it's a hash function that creates unevenly sized hash buckets to linear search in reverse chronological order, when I want to find out with which ink a pen is inked and see a sample.

 

 

Of course, I failed to take into account — or simply could not reasonably estimate — the actual amount of inking activity for different brands. Even though I have many Delike pens, I have rarely inked them; whereas not only did I buy a whole lot more Aurora pens since I started the book, but it's also the brand of pens that has seen the most number of inkings, and so I've now run out of space for A–C, but have hardly used the pages allocated for Delike.

Wow. It's impressively neat and your handwriting is beautiful and envy-worthy. You’ve obviously invested a lot of time into it.

 

If you don’t want to use a digital tool, maybe something with some flexibility to add and remove pages like an almost obsolete Filofax ring binder? I think you can still get these in some nice leather configurations. If you don’t like the stock papers available, you can buy a special hole punch and use paper you like (if you can spend the time to measure and cut to size). I did that for a while but found cutting and measuring paper too time-consuming.

[Paul-in-SF]

I don't think anyone's mentioned this specific notebook so far, that is made for this purpose. Currently Inked by Inky Fingers, made of wheat straw paper, 11 cm x 21 cm, (there is also a smaller size, I believe), 44 pages, 4 entries per page. It has spaces for the pen, the nib, the ink, the date inked, date cleaned (I don't use this, I just cross out the entry when I clean out the pen), and room for a swatch, which I like to have as reference. I started my current notebook around March 2019 and I have 8 pages left, so it takes me a while to use it up.

 

However, it looks like they are not available any more. Vanness had them but they are marked as Out of Stock. I think I read or heard warnings that they would cease production, and maybe that has come to pass. I bought a new one maybe three months ago and I haven't gotten into it yet, but I guess it will be my last one. I might try my hand at making my own, maybe A5 size to allow for more information. At the rate I use them, I may worry about that in 2022.

 

I have a database for my pens, and I thought about adding the ink being used to that, but I prefer having a small notebook handy that I can flip open and see the colors.

[ParramattaPaul]

I use an APICA CD10WN notebook — 105mm x 148mm, with 52 sheets (i.e. 104 pages) — as my inking log book. I manually numbered the pages, and created an index allocated different numbers of pages to various (groupings of) letters of the alphabet, proportional to the number of pens of different brands grouped by the first letter of their respective brand names. The brands in which I have the most pens have their own separate group. Effectively, it's a hash function that creates unevenly sized hash buckets to linear search in reverse chronological order, when I want to find out with which ink a pen is inked and see a sample.

 

 

Of course, I failed to take into account — or simply could not reasonably estimate — the actual amount of inking activity for different brands. Even though I have many Delike pens, I have rarely inked them; whereas not only did I buy a whole lot more Aurora pens since I started the book, but it's also the brand of pens that has seen the most number of inkings, and so I've now run out of space for A–C, but have hardly used the pages allocated for Delike.

How do you maintain alphabetic order IF you buy a new pen and add it to your book? Say for instance, you have pages full of Pilot pens and never having one before you buy or are gifted a Platiinum or even a vintage Platignum.

[A Smug Dill]

Wow. It's impressively neat and your handwriting is beautiful and envy-worthy.

Thank you very much! Given that the written content in the inking log book is intended to be for my and my wife's own reference only and not for 'sharing', I usually just jot down entries in my 'true' casual style of handwriting, and don't take much care in trying to keep them neat.

 

You’ve obviously invested a lot of time into it.

More time in ideation and planning, I suppose, than actual 'doing'; but it has paid off reasonably well. As you can see from the top entry, that the 'project' dates back to April 2019; and there's still quite a bit of 'life' left in that little notebook.

 

If you don’t want to use a digital tool,

It was actually the inadequacy of my digital tool of choice that made me start using a log book as an adjunct, despite previously thinking I wouldn't need it).

 

maybe something with some flexibility to add and remove pages like an almost obsolete Filofax ring binder? I think you can still get these in some nice leather configurations.

I think I still have the one I bought when I started my professional career. Somewhere.

 

If you don’t like the stock papers available, you can buy a special hole punch and use paper you like (if you can spend the time to measure and cut to size). I did that for a while but found cutting and measuring paper too time-consuming.

Thanks for the suggestion, but I think that's just too much trouble; I have difficult remembering (or just making time) to keep the spreadsheet up to date as it is. When I decide to replace the little log book, I may move to a Taroko Enigma with plenty of pages, because I don't like using Tomoe River paper even though it's supposedly the best for showing off ink, and so the two Taroko notebooks I have bought are just sitting there in a drawer unused all this time (measured in years).

 

How do you maintain alphabetic order IF you buy a new pen and add it to your book? Say for instance, you have pages full of Pilot pens and never having one before you buy or are gifted a Platiinum or even a vintage Platignum.

 

It's not in alphabetical order per se. If I get and ink a Platignum, entries for it will just go under P (starting from page 37) along with Pelikan, PenBBS, Parker and Pali. The alphabetical index just gives me an idea of where to look. Platinum as a brand has its own separate section. At the time of starting my log book, the page allocation planning looked something like this:

 

I also had another pivot table for the individual brands, and so made adjustments to the plan accordingly.

 

As you can see from the first page of the log book, there are multiple entries for the Aurora 88 Minerali (amber), Talentum Full Black and Alpha Tuscan Night, even though I only own one of each; and the entries are not in alphabetical order within that section, but instead (naturally) in chronological order, as I simply add new entries to the first available blank line. Some entries are for refills and top-ups, others are for change of ink colour all together. I don't really need to know the history of it all (although it could be 'interesting' to review); and I'd just scan from bottom up to see that my Aurora 88 Minerali is inked with Diamine Golden Honey and stop backtracking once a matching entry is found.

[ParramattaPaul]

ParramattaPaul, on 23 Oct 2020 - 16:43, said:

How do you maintain alphabetic order IF you buy a new pen and add it to your book? Say for instance, you have pages full of Pilot pens and never having one before you buy or are gifted a Platiinum or even a vintage Platignum.

It's not in alphabetical order per se. If I get and ink a Platignum, entries for it will just go under P (starting from page 37) along with Pelikan, PenBBS, Parker and Pali. The alphabetical index just gives me an idea of where to look. Platinum as a brand has its own separate section. At the time of starting my log book, the page allocation planning looked something like this:


I also had another pivot table for the individual brands, and so made adjustments to the plan accordingly.

Aha. Thank you.

Edited October 24, 2020 by ParramattaPaul

[Runnin_Ute]

Currently using a Field Notes sized notebook. The current one was given to me by a fellow FPN'er that she made. The pages are 52 gsm Tomoe River.

 

Each entry includes ink name, pen (including nib size if known), some scribbles and date filled. Whether I refill with the same ink or change inks, each new fill gets a new entry.

 

A recent entry:

Pelikan 4001 Blue Black

Pelikan 140 (F)

scribbles October 22, 2020

 

A quick search tells me the previous fill of this pen/ink combination was on September 28, 2020

 

I usually have between eight and twelve pens inked at any given point in time. Right now is eight.

 

Right now:

Newton Townsend F - Lamy Dark Lilac - October 20(?)

Parker Vacumatic Emerald Green - Edelstein Aventurine (nib is supposedly an OM - seems wider than that though- a lot wider)- October 18

Guider Capsule B - Noodler's Apache Sunset-October 4

Pelikan 140 F - Pelikan 4001 Blue Black - October 22

Pelikan M200 Blue Marbled old style OB - KWZI Pine Green-October 4

Pelikan M200 Gold Marbled B - Edelstein Olivine - October 6

Pelikan M400 White Tortoise B - KWZI El Dorado - October 6

Platinum 3773 Century Borgogne B - Diamine Merlot - September 8 - at least that is my last notation, but it may have been filled since then and I forgot to write it down.

 

The Townsend was this past week, and I think after the 18th but before the 22nd. The 20th is a guess - hence the question mark.

[rkesey]

I have small notebooks - Kokuyo Buncobon in A6 - that I keep tucked into the desktop box with the inked pens. Simple, but it works for me.

[thx1138]

An A4 Clairfontaine notebook with a couple of lines written with each pen when it's inked.

Date, pen and nib, ink colour, and whether dipped or filled.

 

[aimi]

I have a planner so I just write new fills on the day of. This year I’ve got a weekly planner so it’s even easier to leaf backwards and check which day I started a pen on a specific colour. Then again I only ink about four pens max so I have it easier than some. 

[sgphototn]

First, I've eliminated all but 7 inks, with three of those inks saved for special occasions (Diamine Imperial Blue, KWZ IG Turquoise, KWZ IG Gold).

 

My desk pens, 10 inked at any one time, have KWZ IG Blue #5 or #6. One pen, a vintage Eversharp Skyline, always has Waterman Serenity Blue in it.

 

My 'traveling pens', those that go with me out the door or live in the kitchen, bedroom, and library, always have KWZ IG Blue Black.

 

At one time I used 15-20 inks and kept a log. Referring to the log got old in a hurry as it seemed I spent more time searching for a certain pen with a certain ink. By the time I found what pen/ink combo I needed, I forgot what I wanted to write.

 

It's not that inks aren't interesting and fun, but too many inks became a hassle I didn't need. Now when I pick up any pen it's going to be a professional color, legible, and I can get on with writing.

 

Yes, I'm that boring.

[Stompie]

I put a little sticker with the ink name on the pen cap.