Hana Inks and "Black" Inks

[a student]

Just wondering if any of FPN friends have knowledge of these inks, there suitability for fountain pens, reviews, and such:

https://mitasanshodo.myshopify.com/en

[yazeh]

It is my understanding that these are niche, scented inks, made by Kuretake for Mita Sanshodo. 

You have all the info in the link you provided: 

https://www.mitaclub.co.jp/craftsmanship/

I had AI search for pertinent info: 

"Inks are dye-based and safe for fountain pens, though I’ve seen mixed comments on flow and show-through depending on paper quality. The bottles themselves are quite beautiful (Edo Kiriko cut-glass style) and the scent is said to be very subtle and fades after writing."

 

If I were to extrapolate, I would say, you're paying for a concept, a niche product, a certain aesthetics, rather than ink itself. 

 

 

You can find a sample video here, showing the Coffee and Black Tea inks in use:
 

Tip: You can enable CC (Subtitles/Closed Captions) on YouTube and then set it to auto-translate into English to get the gist of the review.

[inkstainedruth]

@a student Sorry, not a clue, other than what yazeh said.  But if you scroll down on the page link, they do seem to have a link in IIRC the first column called "Inquiry".  And I suppose that you could click on the link and see if you get to a page to contact them (although it might not hurt to go to the Google Translate page and see if your question(s) can be translated into Japanese to copy and paste into the query....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[a student]

 

@yazeh @inkstainedruth

Thank you both for your thoughts and suggestions. I must confess that I would surely fail if I tried to create the butterflies shown in the video produced by an enthusiast!!

 

I fully agree that the bottles are a niche product, and attractively presented it seems to me! The sense of a certain scent or whiff does seem odd, after all ink has one of its own. The fact that these are dye based and safe for fountain pens is important in the present context. 

 

This shop goes for some truly unusual stuff, thats for sure- there is also an "ink", actually made from ground coffee beans: (https://mitasanshodo.myshopify.com/en/products/cofeesumi)

 

Nonetheless, attracted by the bottle, I am of a mind to get the "tea" (red shade) and the "coffee" (sepia shade) exhibited in the video- two familiar smells I live with anyway.

 

But I have used the inquiry button on the website to ask whether these inks are safe for fountain pens with piston and cartridge/converter filling systems.

 

I'll of course share my thoughts once I have tried out the two.

 

Thanks again!

 

PS: Incidentally my inquiry on "deepseek" came up with the following: 

 

This is a classic topic of discussion among fountain pen enthusiasts, and the answer requires a bit of nuance.

In short: Yes, many of them are safe, but you must be very selective. Mitasanshodo is a renowned and respected ink maker, but they produce inks for various writing instruments, not all of which are suitable for fountain pens.

Here’s a breakdown to help you navigate their products safely:

The Safe Bet: Hana-fuji ("Soft Flow") Series

This is Mitasanshodo's specific line of fountain pen ink. If you are buying from this series, you are on safe ground. These inks are designed and tested for use in fountain pens.

Key Identifier: Look for the words "Soft Flow" or "Hana-fuji" on the bottle. This is their dedicated fountain pen line and includes a range of beautiful colors.

Characteristics: These inks are typically well-behaved, with good flow and properties comparable to other major fountain pen ink brands.

The "Proceed with Caution" Category: Standard Hana-iro and Sumi (Black) Inks

This is where you need to be very careful. Mitasanshodo is famous for its traditional, beautiful inks, many of which are designed for calligraphy (like dip pens) and art.

• Pigment-Based Inks: Many of their stunning, vibrant inks, especially some of the Hana-iro (flower-color) series, are pigment-based. Pigment particles can clog the delicate feed mechanism of a fountain pen, leading to difficult cleaning and potentially permanent damage.
• Shellac-Based Inks: Some of their traditional black inks (sumi) may be shellac-based or contain binders that are perfect for dip pens but will dry and harden inside a fountain pen, effectively destroying it.

How to Tell the Difference and Stay Safe

• Read the Label Carefully (Use Translation): The most reliable method. Look for the explicit phrase "フountain Pen" (ファウンテンペン) or "Soft Flow" on the bottle or product description. If it doesn't explicitly say it's for fountain pens, assume it is NOT.
• Check the Viscosity: If you can see the ink, fountain pen ink is typically very fluid, like water. Inks for dip pens can be thicker and more viscous.
• Ask the Retailer: When buying from a specialty store (online or in-person), always confirm with the seller that the specific ink you are looking at is formulated for fountain pens.
• Stick to Known Brands for Complex Feeds: If you have a vintage pen, a piston filler, or a pen with a very complex feed system that is difficult to disassemble and clean, it is often wiser to stick with well-known, universally safe fountain pen inks from brands like Pilot (Iroshizuku), Sailor, Pelikan, Waterman, or Herbin.

Summary & Recommendation

Ink Type	Fountain Pen Safe?	Key Identifier
Hana-fuji / Soft Flow	Yes, definitely	"Soft Flow" or "Fountain Pen" on label
Other Hana-iro (Flower Colors)	Likely NO	Often pigment-based for calligraphy
Traditional Sumi (Black)	Likely NO	Often shellac-based for dip pens

Conclusion: 

Mitasanshodo's "Hana-fuji (Soft Flow)" inks are excellent, safe, and a wonderful choice for fountain pens. Their other inks are fantastic works of art in their own right, but they belong in a dip pen, brush, or airbrush.

When in doubt, err on the side of caution. A clogged fountain pen feed is a high price to pay for a beautiful but incompatible ink.

 

[yazeh]

Note that with AI can have difficulty with niche products. 

 

I couldn't find the pigment products it was mentioning. 

 

Herbin and De Atramentis have also a line of scented inks. KWZ inks have a distinct vanilla scent. 

 

Looking forward to seeing your reviews, impressions.

 

[inkstainedruth]

@a student -- I have tried a few scented inks.  Some I liked (De Atramentis and J Herbin both have rose-scented ones that are quite nice -- they smell like vintage roses (and I DON'T mean ones like R. foetida).  But some other scented inks I tried were just atrocious smelling.  

And of course the problem with scented inks is similar to one of the problems with shimmer inks -- the scent is fugitive.  So if you're writing a love letter to someone, the recipient might not smell ANYTHING by the time the mail is delivered (the same way that the particles in shimmer inks don't stay on the page when the ink dries (unless of course you then use spray fixative...).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[a student]

 

@yazeh @inkstainedruth Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience. In the meantime I have had a response from Mitasanshodo and I copy that below (I have not actually ordered the inks yet): 

 

"Thank you for your inquiry.

Both SUMI-ink and HANA-ink are dye-based inks for fountain pens.

You can safely refill them into a converter and use them in your fountain pen.

We hope you enjoy our original inks!" 

 

So that's one aspect, and an important one, clarified! Deepseek it seems did not get it right on this one!

[yazeh]

17 hours ago, a student said:

 

@yazeh @inkstainedruth Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience. In the meantime I have had a response from Mitasanshodo and I copy that below (I have not actually ordered the inks yet): 

 

"Thank you for your inquiry.

Both SUMI-ink and HANA-ink are dye-based inks for fountain pens.

You can safely refill them into a converter and use them in your fountain pen.

We hope you enjoy our original inks!" 

 

So that's one aspect, and an important one, clarified! Deepseek it seems did not get it right on this one!

Most welcome.  One has to double-check AI. most of the time. It sometimes can be very cocky and sure of it's findings. It remind me of a teenagers or kid in his twenties who knows all and wants to change the world.  

[inkstainedruth]

I'm guessing Deepseek is some sort of AI?  IME most AI search engines are pretty awful -- they're poorly coded and are yet more instances of "garbage in/garbage out".  A concept I understand better than most actual software engineers seem to....  

Not to mention the concept of unit tests -- I listen to my husband up in his office during work meetings shouting at co-workers on a regular basis about how "NO!  Writing unit tests is NOT a 'junior level' job!!!!"

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[yazeh]

@inkstainedruth Deepseek is a Chinese AI like a distant cousin of. Chat GPT.

We can use AI in different ways. As long as we don't forget it's AI and it can make mistakes. 

 

[a student]

@inkstainedruth @yazeh

Thank you for sharing your experience with AI. I entirely agree. Though I find it relatively reliable for the long past issues that may have been topical years back. The closer one gets to the present, the more error prone AI becomes in my experience

 

I have now ordered the red one (tea) and the sepia (coffee). Will definitely post an account of my experience with the two colours- once I have had an opportunity!

 

Thanks again

[yazeh]

58 minutes ago, a student said:

@inkstainedruth @yazeh

Thank you for sharing your experience with AI. I entirely agree. Though I find it relatively reliable for the long past issues that may have been topical years back. The closer one gets to the present, the more error prone AI becomes in my experience

 

I have now ordered the red one (tea) and the sepia (coffee). Will definitely post an account of my experience with the two colours- once I have had an opportunity!

 

Thanks again

Looking forward to reading about your experience.

[a student]

@inkstainedruth @yazeh

 

Finally, I received the coffee and tea inks a couple of days ago or so.

 

First, I must report a couple of my personal limitations: My photography and my writing skills are close to non-existent. I first tried a rather fancy camera and that did not work out well. Finally, I resorted to a Samsung phone camera. 

 

The images on the inks' website are much closer to what the bottles and their boxes looks like. That is to say very attractive to look at. 

 

The Coffee ink definitely has a coffee aroma. The tea one has an aroma but it is not Assam or Darjeeling, nor does it smell of Chinese tea from my limited experience of a couple of Chinese teas in two tea houses in Beijing– the variety there was inumerable. I have not experienced Japanese teas.

 

The colours are much like what the website shows.

 

I used some half decent hotel paper for the writing sample. First I tried the Kakimore dip pen with a metal nib and that did not take well to the paper; perhaps I lack the necessary skill. (It seemed only right to me that a Japanese ink should be first tried out with a Japanese pen.)

 

Sticking with Japanese pens, I next pulled out a couple of pens from a Sailor pen case and "assumed" that one had a Music nib and the other a Medium nib. I experienced rather odd behaviour by what I thought was a Sailor Medium. So I checked, and it turned out to be a Pilot 743 with a Stub, and one that had not been performing well since day one. The Sailor Music was working nicely. To make the colour explicit, I used a cotton swab to make some bold lines.

 

(I am a little distracted as I am involved in some writing (unfortunately on MS Word as a necessity) right now, otherwise with some persistence I should have been able to offer a better account and and also hopefully better images.)

 

My sincere apologies for a rather patchy report

 

 

 

[inkstainedruth]

Thanks for posting the photos.

The "coffee" one looks to be a very nice shade of brown.  The "tea" one, though, is a little too red/brown, orangey brown for my taste.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[yazeh]

Congratulations! Great job! 

Enjoy them. 

Japanese have some very nice black teas: Benifuki & Wakoucha. They are earthy teas, with lower caffeine