Diamine Grey

[yazeh]

Diamine Grey

 

Ink Review # 209

 

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🧾 Description

 

It’s a pure pencil grey, with below average lubrication, like most greys. 

I thought flow was wet, but the ebonite feed of the Karas was ink starved at times. 

Dry times are off. I think the higher ones were done when the feed was saturated. 

 

If there’s shading, I don’t see it. There's some show through and bleed through on copy paper. 

Cleaning was easy-peasy.  

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🧪 Chroma

 

 

 

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✍️ Writing Samples (scan)

Rhodia  / Iroful

 

 

 

Midori  /Tomoe River 68gsm

 

 

 

Hammermill 20lb  

 

 

 

 📸 Photo (artificial light, LED)

Rhodia/ Iroful

 

 

 

Midori / Tomoe River 68 gsm

 

 

 

Hammermill copy paper (20lb)  

 

 

Close-up on Iroful

 

 

 

 🔍 Comparison

 

 

 

 

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 💧 Water Test

 

 

 

 

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 🎨 Artwork

Inktober 2025 - Day24 - Rowdy

Inspired by the “rowdy” Stanley Kowalski from A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), reimagined through my cat & mouse theme:

Stanley Chatowski & Blanche DuSouris.  

Talens Mixed Media notebook. 

 

 

Inktober - Day25 - Inferno

Cat & mouse fight forest fires. 

 

Diamine Grey, Noodler's Apache Sunset, J Herbin Corail des Tropiques, Buton d'or, Talens Mixed Media Notebook. 

 

 

 

 

Inktober - Day 27 - Onion (Twist)

 

A square took a free spirit to a diner, not knowing that she would launch the hula-hoop craze in the 50s and change his life forever.

 

Diamine Grey, Tintenlabor Echinacea, Blausee (iron gall inks), Uniball Signo White Gel pen. Pebeo metallic marker Red, Talens Mixed Media notebook. 

 

 

 

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- Pens Used: Pilot Elite EF,  Lamy (EF/F/M/B/ Stub 1.1), Karas Vertex with FPnib flex and ebonite feed. 

- What I Liked: Drawing.

- What I Did Not Like: Lack of lubrication, dryness, paleness. 

- What Some Might Not Like: Same as above.

- Writing Experience: Depended on the nib, paper combo. But generally, not memorable. 

- Pros: Neutral darkish grey. 

- Cons: Same as above. 

 

 🧷 Ink Characteristics

 

- Shading: I didn’t see much. 

- Ghosting: Ok with most nibs. 

- Bleed Through: Ok with most nibs. 

- Flow Rate: ok, but couldn’t handle flex nib. 

- Lubrication: below average. 

- Nib Dry-out: Did not notice. 

- Start-up: ok.

- Saturation: Medium grey. 

- Sheen: No. 

- Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line:  Did not notice.

- Nib Creep / Crud: Did not notice.

- Staining (Pen):  No. 

- Clogging: No.

- Cleaning: Easy

- Water Resistance: Meh. 

 

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 🛒 Availability

 

- Available in 30/80 ml bottles and cartridges.  

 

 

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 💬 Closing

 

I don’t appreciate grey inks for writing. Only for drawing. This was darker than Herbin Gris Nuage, but sort of neutral. I wasn’t wowed. If I were to choose one, I would go for Diamine Graphite. 

 

No fountain pens were hurt in preparing this review.

 

Please don’t hesitate to share your experience, writing samples, or any other comments — the more the merrier.  

 

 

 

[Sailor Kenshin]

@yazeh, your sketches have surpassed themselves here. Bravo!

JH Gris Nuage, Montblanc Oyster, Diamine Silver Fox, Monteverde Smoke. My own Greystoke mix. ™️
 

Yes, I seem to have a few gray inks, and this is gray all right. And it has some water resistance.  

Thanks for gray ink on a gray rainy day!

 

 

 

[yazeh]

52 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

@yazeh, your sketches have surpassed themselves here. Bravo!

Thanks! It means a lot!

 

54 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

JH Gris Nuage, Montblanc Oyster, Diamine Silver Fox, Monteverde Smoke. My own Greystoke mix. ™️

Is it dark grey or light grey? It's an intriguing colour!

 

55 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

Yes, I seem to have a few gray inks, and this is gray all right. And it has some water resistance.  

Same here. Blame it on @LizEF and her graphite, grey episode.  

55 minutes ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

Thanks for gray ink on a gray rainy day!

 

 

[lapis]

Nice! Funny thing is, I have this ink too (hilarious, isn't that?). But I'm mentioning that because your images cough out exactly my own feelings about this ink. This one, at times, does seem pretty pencil-like, resembling a lot of other however slightly greenish greys... but... at the same time (in different pens and/or on different papers, of course) yields more of my all-time favourite, our however slightly bluish Old Man Winter.

[yazeh]

2 minutes ago, lapis said:

Nice! Funny thing is, I have this ink too (hilarious, isn't that?).

 

2 minutes ago, lapis said:

But I'm mentioning that because your images cough out exactly my own feelings about this ink. This one, at times, does seem pretty pencil-like, resembling a lot of other however slightly greenish greys... but... at the same time (in different pens and/or on different papers, of course) yields more of my all-time favourite, our however slightly bluish Old Man Winter.

I have to admit, like you I wasn't wowed by this ink. It was fun for drawing but for writing no. I still prefer Graphite. Mostly, as I said above, I could create contrast. Interestingly most, if not all the grey inks, that I have reviewed have a flow issue with wet pens and are often lacking in the lubrication department.  

Has it been your experience too? 

[Sailor Kenshin]

@yazeh, Greystoke is medium-dark.  I believe I dumped all my ink samples into one of those square Sailor bottles and added Silver Fox.

[lapis]

2 minutes ago, yazeh said:

Has it been your experience too? 

In a way, yes. I actually do have a lot of greys, and I'd say that none of them were even reasonably, let alone very wet. But I'm not sure anymore because I haven't used any lately. OTOH I may well have ignored getting into any brass tacks about that property, thinking (subconsciously) that grey is usually a neutral, non-vivid, concealed, ulterior type of thing, anyway.... 

[yazeh]

1 hour ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

@yazeh, Greystoke is medium-dark.  I believe I dumped all my ink samples into one of those square Sailor bottles and added Silver Fox.

Nice. Thanks. Very clever, especially in a "sailor' bottle.

 

[LizEF]

Thanks, @yazeh, for making a grey ink so appealing!   I actually do rather like this grey, but find I don't enjoy grey inks for extended use.  This one looks nice on white paper.

 

Quotes are fitting.

 

Fun swatches.  Apparently Mousey's umbrella wasn't quite big enough. 

 

The drawings are fabulous!  All carry the feel of their subject matter most effectively.

 

Great job!

[yazeh]

4 hours ago, lapis said:

In a way, yes. I actually do have a lot of greys, and I'd say that none of them were even reasonably, let alone very wet. But I'm not sure anymore because I haven't used any lately.

 

4 hours ago, lapis said:

OTOH I may well have ignored getting into any brass tacks about that property, thinking (subconsciously) that grey is usually a neutral, non-vivid, concealed, ulterior type of thing, anyway.... 

Makes sense.  🙏

[yazeh]

57 minutes ago, LizEF said:

Thanks, @yazeh, for making a grey ink so appealing!  

 

57 minutes ago, LizEF said:

I actually do rather like this grey, but find I don't enjoy grey inks for extended use.  This one looks nice on white paper.

The bottles yours, just let me know. Smoke would love it.   

57 minutes ago, LizEF said:

 

Quotes are fitting.

🙏

57 minutes ago, LizEF said:

 

Fun swatches.  Apparently Mousey's umbrella wasn't quite big enough. 

 

 

57 minutes ago, LizEF said:

The drawings are fabulous!  All carry the feel of their subject matter most effectively.

Thanks!

57 minutes ago, LizEF said:

Great job!

🙏

[LizEF]

1 hour ago, yazeh said:

The bottles yours, just let me know. Smoke would love it.   

Noooo! 😱  With Dill's gift, I now have 238 reviews to go!  My new completion date is 21 May 2030!  I do not want any more inks!   (But thank you!)

[yazeh]

2 hours ago, LizEF said:

Noooo! 😱  With Dill's gift, I now have 238 reviews to go!  My new completion date is 21 May 2030!  I do not want any more inks!   (But thank you!)

Wow, 2030! And that was how, nine elves of nine realms joined Efnir's to do a marathon reviews of one per day.......  

[LizEF]

8 hours ago, yazeh said:

Wow, 2030! And that was how, nine elves of nine realms joined Efnir's to do a marathon reviews of one per day.......  

 I have been trying to figure out if I can do reviews faster without multiplying my work load, but haven't figured it out yet.  I could probably gather the data faster, but recording and processing the video and images is another story.  Also, I estimate it takes at least 4 days to get a somewhat fair estimation of the overall performance, and a week is better...  The back of my brain will continue to ponder...

[yazeh]

25 minutes ago, LizEF said:

 I have been trying to figure out if I can do reviews faster without multiplying my work load, but haven't figured it out yet.  I could probably gather the data faster, but recording and processing the video and images is another story.  Also, I estimate it takes at least 4 days to get a somewhat fair estimation of the overall performance, and a week is better...  The back of my brain will continue to ponder...

Well the only way to simplify a review is returning to the basics, and simplifying the process. But then would you enjoy the process? That means removing the story line and some other fun stuff. 

I have also thought of it too. Removing one notebook, removing Japanese Ef nib, or even flex. But when reviewing becomes. chore and not an exploration, it'll be modern times.  

[LizEF]

45 minutes ago, yazeh said:

Well the only way to simplify a review is returning to the basics, and simplifying the process. But then would you enjoy the process? That means removing the story line and some other fun stuff. 

I have also thought of it too. Removing one notebook, removing Japanese Ef nib, or even flex. But when reviewing becomes. chore and not an exploration, it'll be modern times.  

 That's the conclusion I've come to thus far, but who knows, my brain may have a flash of inspiration!