EFNIR: Diplomat Caramel

[LizEF]

Extra Fine Nib Ink Review: Diplomat Caramel

This is review #252 in my series. Here's the YouTube video:

Post-recording notes: This is a nice burnt orange or brownish orange color.  Shading is very paper-dependent.  The sheen is everywhere, but it's only visible when you angle the page to the light. I never saw nib crud, but I wouldn't expect to given that I use the pen every day, the cap seals well, and the ink was only in the pen for a week.  Cleaning was easy with plain water, but did require a few extra flushes - lots of dye in this one.

As usual, dry-time was strange - in testing, some of the intermediate hashes didn't smear where as some at both ends did.  In filming, the 1m mark was the last to smear, so I chose half way between that and the hash that didn't smear and called that the dry time...

Sorry about the constant hum - I think maybe someone was doing some kind of yardwork nearby (or maybe there was a microphone issue, I'm not sure - I wasn't aware of the sound while recording).

Zoomed in photo (Shading is harder to see and the text is darker in real life.)

Screenshot (Best representation of what the ink looks like!)

Scan of Completed Review (Very close in color, but not quite enough orange.)

Absorbent Paper Close-up (top is puzzle paper like thick newsprint, bottom is old 20lb copy paper) (Both: The text is darker and browner in real life - camera seems to amplify the orange element.)

Line width (One of the lines used for dry time. Magnification is 100x. The grid is 100x100µm. The scale is 330µm, with eleven divisions of 30µm each. The line width for this ink is roughly 304µm. With 252 inks measured, the average line width is 296µm.)

Microscope image (100x. Colors are less-vibrant and darker than reality.)

Microscope image (100x. With cell phone camera. Colors are closer to reality.)

Other (Sheen on original 52gsm Tomoe River paper (esp. the word "Pilot").)

Previous Review: Rohrer & Klingner sketchINK Klara.

Images also available on Instagram: @zilxodarap.

Want to influence the inky sequence? Take the "next ink" poll. For those interested, I added these 21 inks (samples gifted to me by a generous FPNer) to my poll:

• Aurora Black
• Diamine Aqua Blue
• Diamine Aster
• Diamine Bilberry
• Diamine Blaze Orange
• Diamine Flamingo Pink
• Diamine Pumpkin
• Diamine Wild Strawberry
• Diamine Winter Miracle
• Herbin Violette Pensée
• Herbin Éclat de Saphir Ink
• Jinhao Sunny Orange (cartridge)
• Koh-I-Noor Document Blue
• Organics Studio Nitrogen
• Pilot Iroshizuku Ajisai
• Pilot Iroshizuku Yama-guri
• Rohrer & Klingner Königsblau
• Rotring Brilliant (Black) (cartridge)
• Sailor Blue
• Sailor Manyo Nadeshiko
• Sailor Shikiori Kin-mokusei

View a list of my inks, complete with review results in a google sheet.

Need to catch up on The Adventures of Quin and Makhabesh? Find the whole story here.

Hope you enjoy. Comments appreciated!

[yazeh]

Another excellent review with live and headless skeletons for our Tuesday feast @LizEF  

So the High Wizard is our Saruman, ô Precious  

Diplomat inks are identical to Octopus as far as I know (made by Octopus)

Love those microscopic images very season appropriate !

Thanks for making Tuesday's so special 🙏

[LizEF]

2 minutes ago, yazeh said:

Another excellent review with live and headless skeletons for our Tuesday feast @LizEF  

  Thank you!

 

2 minutes ago, yazeh said:

So the High Wizard is our Saruman, ô Precious  

 

2 minutes ago, yazeh said:

Diplomat inks are identical to Octopus as far as I know (made by Octopus)

Good to know.

 

3 minutes ago, yazeh said:

Love those microscopic images very season appropriate !

Yes, not as dramatic as some, but still quite interesting and a lovely color.

 

3 minutes ago, yazeh said:

Thanks for making Tuesday's so special 🙏

  You're most welcome!

[Sailor Kenshin]

Soooo muchhhhh orannnnge!   Including the Earl Orange Sea!

 

I absolutely love burnt orange/brownish inks.  And I like sheen!  But those other properties?  Not so much.  
 

Thanks a million, @LizEF, for these unique looks at ink, and the story, and for brightening up a dreary Tuesday.

 

I guess we'll have to wait and find out whether The High Wizard has gone bad, or it's just a (aHEM) head-fake.

[LizEF]

51 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

Soooo muchhhhh orannnnge!   Including the Earl Orange Sea!

 

51 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

I absolutely love burnt orange/brownish inks.  And I like sheen!  But those other properties?  Not so much.  

Apparently we can't have it all... (not in this ink, anyway)

 

52 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

Thanks a million, @LizEF, for these unique looks at ink, and the story, and for brightening up a dreary Tuesday.

You're most welcome!

 

52 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

I guess we'll have to wait and find out whether The High Wizard has gone bad, or it's just a (aHEM) head-fake.

Klaw says, "Mrrrow."

[InesF]

Thank you @LizEF for the ink review and for the Tuesday entertainment with the story part!

Same as @yazeh, Saruman was also my first thought.  

 

Despite knowing about their existence, Diplomat / Octopus inks were not on my radar so far. Comparing the writing sample with the microscope image, I think these ink is more made for writing than for experiments with glass plates. There had been examples in the past where it was the opposite.

 

PS - imagining a scene in my head: if Klaw would be a dog, neither the skeletons, nor the High Wizard may have fun now ... 😲

[LizEF]

8 hours ago, InesF said:

Thank you @LizEF for the ink review and for the Tuesday entertainment with the story part!

You're most welcome!

 

8 hours ago, InesF said:

Same as @yazeh, Saruman was also my first thought.  

 

8 hours ago, InesF said:

Despite knowing about their existence, Diplomat / Octopus inks were not on my radar so far. Comparing the writing sample with the microscope image, I think these ink is more made for writing than for experiments with glass plates. There had been examples in the past where it was the opposite.

I suppose their goal was for folks to write with it, so they'll be pleased, I'm sure.  (Of course, they probably don't really care, as long as someone buys it...)

 

8 hours ago, InesF said:

PS - imagining a scene in my head: if Klaw would be a dog, neither the skeletons, nor the High Wizard may have fun now ... 😲

Especially since I think that if your dog isn't almost as big as a horse, it's not big enough...