Pen/Ink/Paper Trios

[Mechanical]

On 3/28/2025 at 12:19 PM, Mercian said:

I advise you to read through some reviews of Salix.

I ♥ the stuff, but you need to know that it is an iron-gall ink, so it doesn't remain that shade of blue for long, but instead 'cures' to a blue-grey colour.

Its 'USP' is that it is the i-g ink that remains bluest on the page after fully 'curing'.

 

@Mercian, you're quite right.  Salix is a very nice ink, but it does fade to blue-gray.    I tried my best to do a side by side, with the photo on the right taken a few days after the one on the left. Well, the lighting that day was a bit different, but perhaps you can see the trend.

 

 

 

[USG]

4 hours ago, Mechanical said:

 

@Mercian, you're quite right.  Salix is a very nice ink, but it does fade to blue-gray.    I tried my best to do a side by side, with the photo on the right taken a few days after the one on the left. Well, the lighting that day was a bit different, but perhaps you can see the trend.

 

 

 

 

Thanks MCL, that's very illuminating.🙂👍 

I don't know which version I like better? 

The bluer version seems to pack more punch but the grayer version looks looks pretty solid too.

I wonder if my very blue Platinum BB looks as different days later...  I'll have to check it out. 

 

 

[USG]

19 hours ago, Mechanical said:

 

@Mercian, you're quite right.  Salix is a very nice ink, but it does fade to blue-gray.    I tried my best to do a side by side, with the photo on the right taken a few days after the one on the left. Well, the lighting that day was a bit different, but perhaps you can see the trend.

 

 

 

 

14 hours ago, USG said:

 

Thanks MCL, that's very illuminating.🙂👍 

I don't know which version I like better? 

The bluer version seems to pack more punch but the grayer version looks looks pretty solid too.

I wonder if my very blue Platinum BB looks as different days later...  I'll have to check it out. 

 

 

Haha, I got very similar results.... how about that!

 

Top: 3-10-25      Bottom:  4-1-25

[Mechanical]

14 minutes ago, USG said:

Haha, I got very similar results.... how about that!

 

What's surprising is that Platinum Blue Black remains so blue.  Salix too, but the Platinum is even a bit more robust. 

[USG]

Vintage Staples Graph Pad: Shows colors but no shading, sheening or nuances

CLICK TO ENLARGE (this is a big pic)

[Mechanical]

When I recently bought a Pilot Custom 823, it came with a 70 ml bottle of Pilot Blue Ink.  I use Pilot Blue-Black ink all the time, but this is my first time using the Blue.  First is an image from my new Wonderland222 notebook with (some version of) Tomoe River paper.

 

 

It shades nicely.  Next is a shot of the same Pilot Blue ink on 2023 Tomoe River Sakae paper from a notebook I got from Kinokuniya.

 

 

There is a hint of red sheen, but I was totally unable to capture it.  Poor skills!   

 

Finally a gratuitous photo of the 823 uncapped!  With its generous ink capacity and shut-off valve, I imagine to be a little like a traditional Japanese eyedropper.  

 

 

Around home, I always leave the shut-off valve open, only sealing it when I'm going out.

 

[Penguincollector]

    I really like Pilot blue, it’s so pretty. It seems more turquoise leaning in the Wonderland 222 paper. Your new 823 is gorgeous! 

[USG]

14 hours ago, Mechanical said:

When I recently bought a Pilot Custom 823, it came with a 70 ml bottle of Pilot Blue Ink.  I use Pilot Blue-Black ink all the time, but this is my first time using the Blue.  First is an image from my new Wonderland222 notebook with (some version of) Tomoe River paper.

 

 

It shades nicely.  Next is a shot of the same Pilot Blue ink on 2023 Tomoe River Sakae paper from a notebook I got from Kinokuniya.

 

 

There is a hint of red sheen, but I was totally unable to capture it.  Poor skills!   

 

Finally a gratuitous photo of the 823 uncapped!  With its generous ink capacity and shut-off valve, I imagine to be a little like a traditional Japanese eyedropper.  

 

 

Around home, I always leave the shut-off valve open, only sealing it when I'm going out.

 

 

I like your work MCL...😀👍  Nice Review...  I really like your new pen ...👍👍  I put it on my list. 😁

Do you think Pilot Blue is the same as vintage Namiki blue?

 

[Mechanical]

15 hours ago, Penguincollector said:

    I really like Pilot blue, it’s so pretty. It seems more turquoise leaning in the Wonderland 222 paper. Your new 823 is gorgeous! 

 

I'm really liking both the pen and the ink. I think the TR-Sakae paper is a bit more absorbant and the Wonderland TR is a bit more "coated" so the tint does come out a bit different.

 

7 hours ago, USG said:

I like your work MCL...😀👍  Nice Review...  I really like your new pen ...👍👍  I put it on my list. 😁

Do you think Pilot Blue is the same as vintage Namiki blue?

 

I've wanted to get the 823 for a while now.  I got stuck between choosing the smoke, amber, or clear versions; I like them all!  At some point I added in a Wing Sung 699 when buying another Jinhao x159  -- and that just made want the 823 even more.

 

I've never tried the Namiki Blue!  My impression is that it's a bit paler... but I guess the only way to know is for me to buy. more. ink.

[USG]

@Mechanical  Can you unscrew the section like you can with a 699?  I read that on some of the pens, the sections won't unscrew.

[USG]

b7 teaser:

Sailor Yamabuki was the first ink that I noticed an"Outline" on.  It was on Cosmo Snow paper.  It looked something like this:

 

 

 

 Lately I've gone through a lot of different paper but none of them has been able to produce an "Outline" like Cosmo Snow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Life paper came close but it was yellow and it didn't pick up many other nuances....😠

 

Some paper didn't do anything....

 

 

But check out "b7" paper.  Not bad.  Some definite outlining. It might have some potential.   I wonder what other "nuances" it could pick up?  Like the "blue" phase of Diamnie Jack Frost or the rainbow of colors in J Herbin Emerald of Chivor?

 

 

[Mechanical]

8 hours ago, USG said:

@Mechanical  Can you unscrew the section like you can with a 699?  I read that on some of the pens, the sections won't unscrew.

 

Just checked and the section does not unscrew on the 823.  Is this the kind of thing where the sections used to be removable, but aren't now?

 

 

4 hours ago, USG said:

But check out "b7" paper.  Not bad.

 

Yes, it does well with color!

[USG]

3 hours ago, Mechanical said:

Just checked and the section does not unscrew on the 823.  Is this the kind of thing where the sections used to be removable, but aren't now?

I think that’s the case.  One would think that if the 699 can survive multiple dissembles, the 823, with a higher grade of plastic, could also.  Strange that Pilot would remove a necessary convenance for syringing in ink from sources that aren’t amenable to the vacuum system, like sample vials for instance.  🤷‍♂️

 

 

 

 

[Mechanical]

3 hours ago, USG said:

I think that’s the case.  One would think that if the 699 can survive multiple dissembles, the 823, with a higher grade of plastic, could also.  Strange that Pilot would remove a necessary convenance for syringing in ink from sources that aren’t amenable to the vacuum system, like sample vials for instance.  🤷‍♂️

 We can only speculate!  Sometimes these decisions come from design specification, sometimes from manufacturing considerations... and sometimes simply to save a penny here or there.

 

I wonder if it helps the Pilot create a higher vacuum?  Or maybe they are discouraging tinkering... so there fewer mishaps by users?  Or maybe, with this pen, they are encouraging us to buy these really nice big bottles of Pilot ink.  :-)  I can only guess...

[USG]

1 hour ago, Mechanical said:

Or maybe they are discouraging tinkering... so there fewer mishaps by users? 

 

I think you hit the nail on the head.  If someone cracks the barrel on their 699 while taking it apart, they're not sending it back to Wing Sung for service.  OTOH, if the plastic on an expensive pen like the 823 cracks, you can bet it's going right back to Pilot.... which means they now need a repair center.

 

Of course some people break things and they don't send it back.

[Penguincollector]

  @USG a smiliar break happened to a friend of mine. He found an intact barrel on eBay (the repair shop actually found the listing and alerted him) and sent it plus the broken M800 to Pentiques for a fraction of what (Chartpak, at the time) Pelikan was asking for the repair. 

[Mechanical]

What a sad Pelikan!  It's hard to believe it would break like this!  Did it just roll off your desk?

[Bo Bo Olson]

Somehow I'd forgotten that I have a Pelikan that needs a new gasket, that is under guarantee. So, just put it out on my desk, instead of forgetting it at the edge of my next to the door's bookcase.

Now off to find out how to do that in Germany.

 

Easy enough, too bad their robot don't work Sundays.

[USG]

10 hours ago, Penguincollector said:

  @USG a smiliar break happened to a friend of mine. He found an intact barrel on eBay (the repair shop actually found the listing and alerted him) and sent it plus the broken M800 to Pentiques for a fraction of what (Chartpak, at the time) Pelikan was asking for the repair. 

Thank you. 👍😀

 

7 hours ago, Mechanical said:

What a sad Pelikan!  It's hard to believe it would break like this!  Did it just roll off your desk?

Rolled off the desk, hit the floor and snapped apart ….  That was many years ago…  🤷‍♂️