Platinum vs. Sailor's Pigmented Ink Philosophy

[arcfide]

I always love to try to get a glimpse into a pen company's thoughts when it comes to their method of working, at least in so far as I can play the extrapolation game working from the small amount of public data that is published, and in watching their behavior in terms of production lines, and so forth. 

 

I've long noted the consistent observations from others regarding the differences between Platinum's pigmented ink line and Sailor's. It seems that Platinum's Carbon Black and their Blue to some degree, are generally regarded as extremely resilient but also have been noted for not necessarily "behaving" as well as Sailor's inks. I've seen notes about difficulties in working with Platinum's Pigmented Blue, and also noted some people discussing the overall feeling and look of Carbon Black against Sailor's Kiwaguro and Seiboku inks. 

 

I recently was browsing through the Sailor website again and finally uncovered a little tidbit on their page which brings home a difference in philosophy:

 

Quote

- Dye
ink Dye is used as a color material, and it has the property of dissolving in water. It is easy to handle and does not easily cause trouble inside the fountain pen. Currently, many fountain pen inks are dye inks. Because it is weak to water, it is easy to get wet when wet, and it has the property that it is easy to fading (fading) by light.

 

- Pigment
ink It is an ink using pigments with properties that are not soluble in water in colorants. Compared to dyes, it has excellent water and light resistance. In addition, it has a clearer handwriting than dye ink, and it is less likely to seed and slip out.
The water resistance of "Extreme Black", "Blue Ink" and "Blue Ink" does not guarantee complete water resistance (not dissolved in water at all) against water wetting. For example, if the address of an envelope written in extreme black is rained, the letter itself will not flow and become ill-readable, but the wet ink may dissolve in the water and the envelope may become dirty. This is because it is designed as a pigment ink for fountain pens, leaving the property that flows somewhat into water for cleaning properties and reducing troubles during drying up. In addition, please note that the water resistance performance of the handwriting greatly depends on the type of paper used.

 

This would partly seem to be very similar to what Platinum says on their site's FAQs. However, we can take note of a few things that Platinum did: the Slip n' Seal cap, redesigned feed system for the #3776 Century for all but their Music nib (a nib whose original historical designs already existed to increase flow). Platinum makes specific mention of the value of the slip and seal cap as a means of safely using pigmented inks because it avoids them drying out inside the pen, leading to long cleaning procedures. Platinum's FAQ regarding pigmented ink tends to emphasize two things: that dye inks are also annoying to clean out when dried up and that one should continue to write with a pen and keep things flowing. 

 

This is where we can begin to see the contrast. Notice that Sailor's FAQ entry instead emphasizes that their inks are apparently intentionally designed with a little less water resistance as that makes them easier to flush out of a pen if the pen is dried up. 

 

This would seem to explain or justify the two company's apparently different ink properties for their pigmented inks. Sailor seems to have designed theirs to be a little bit more well behaved and easier to work with, at a slight cost to water resistance. Platinum on the other hand appears to have favored a more water resistant formula at the cost of the ink potentially working absolutely best in pens that are strongly sealed and with proper flow. 

 

In both cases, these inks are clearly classic favorites for many users who might not be taking advantage of or relying on the edge properties of the inks, such as those using Carbon Black in pens that don't seal as well, or those who take advantage of absorbant paper and Kiwaguro to achieve higher degrees of water resistance, but it's interesting that the difference in ink properties between the two seems, at least to my educated guess, to be much more than just the personal quirks of the particular inkmeisters, but instead to be rather intentional design choices based on the priorities and interests of each company. 

 

Of course, it could be argued that the companies made what they made and then came up with the story afterwards, but I'm not sure the ordering matters that much here. 

[maclink]

I completely agree with your analysis.  This is well explained.

 

I've recently tried Graf Von Faber Castell's carbon black and they claim that it is document proof.  My wet test washed away quite a bit of the ink, though leaving more than enough behind for easy legibility.  So it would seem the the compromise is even stronger with this ink.

 

I'll be shortly getting some Montblanc Permanent Black to try. Montblanc, and, I think GVFC, compromise with their ink compositions.  Some of their past inks may have been discontinued in this interest. 

 

I've established an interest in document proof inks since I've been using fountain pens at work for some time and recently became aware and concerned about the legal implications of my documentation..... all of it.  I've been admittedly complacent and wish to fix this with some urgency.  Black ink is the requirement, hence my interest is in black inks.  I was using MB Mystery Black which on my own testing is like a washable ink.  Virtually all the ink went down the sink in my water test with nothing legible left.  I quickly switched to Quink Black which is marginally resistant though I can't really consider it document proof as such.  I'm now using Sailor Kiwaguro with my Platinum 3776 but am reluctant to use it with my MB 146.  I'll likely be using MB permanent black or GVFC carbon black instead.

 

I'm all for compromise on this issue in that while I wish for document proofing, I'm not convinced that, for my purposes, I need to be using an ink that's 100% waterproof, especially, at unnecessary risk to my pen's integrity.  I do not always write daily with my pens and I may go several days without writing.  Of course, each persons needs/desires vary and one may well NEED 100% waterproofness to protect their work, especially art or writing that's genuinely exposed to a lot of guaranteed abuse that comes with the 'terrain' etc. 

 

The main thing, IMO, is to be aware of the tradeoff and I'm really happy that it's not a choice of extremes and that there are choices the offer a mix of both worlds to varying degrees.  It will likely get better with time as well!

[Dimy]

I agree here as well although personally I have never faced any issue with either inks and as odd as it may I have seen some facing issue with kiwaguro in extremely wet pens, I saw some issues (some burps with kiwaguro) but what can I say both are very wet inks in my experience with them (ED is pain for both of them especially in demonstrator.....god why did I do that really).

Platinum inks are really pain to clean as you pointed out, but still my favorite waterproof preserving black ink...sigh what can I do

 

For me personally its more with the colour of inks in my case, I find sailor to be more fun with various properties while Platinum to be stiff office look inks. Both great in their own right.....I need to get some sailor pigment inks and all are out from my usual sellers in India...

[arcfide]

I agree that Sailor has a huge variety of ink colors. However, I find the Mixable inks and Classic line from Platinum to have quite a variety of desirable colors in it, if you don't require a pigmented ink. Otherwise, Platinum does have a nice line of pigmented inks, but they are definitely in "standard" colors (for whatever that's worth, is Sepia standard? I guess it sort of is). 

 

If you want "fun" in your inks, Noodler's doesn't disappoint in terms of making your experience memorable, that's for sure. But while we're talking ink philosophy, I don't think there is much question where Nathan stands on things. 🙂

[Dimy]

platinum mixable ones are really interesting, I got 3 with procyon and I mixed the bat out of those 3 cartridges, must say potential in endless when ratio are adjusted (created my favorite dark violet-ish colour with them).

 

True for noodlers as well, still my pick for pigment will be sailor or platinum for a while.