Ink recommendations for Pilot Kaküno

[Wordler]

Hey everyone!

 

I am looking for inks for Pilot Kaküno. Can you guys recommend as much ink as possible? Things I am looking for - 

Inks with good flow

Dark enough to read

Easy to clean

Should last on paper for at least some time, not washed away in a week or so

Shades I am looking for -

Blue inks

Turquoise inks

Violet inks

Green inks

Teal inks

 

Thanks

[LizEF]

25 minutes ago, me7sx said:

not washed away in a week or so

Are you planning to leave it where it will get wet, or constantly exposed to the sun?

 

Cuz I have yet to have an ink fade inside my closed notebooks (at least, not enough to discern since 2018).

 

If you're using an EF or F nib, you might want to check out my reviews and inks spreadsheet (which links to reviews).  Look for anything with above-average lubrication.  I ran a query for you and here are those with good lubrication:

Color	Brand	Ink	Flow	Lubrication
Blue	Akkerman	#05 Shocking Blue	average	above average
Blue	Colorverse	Extra Dimension	wet	excellent
Blue	De Atramentis	Steel Blue	wet	above average
Blue	Herbin	Bleu des Profondeurs	wet	excellent
Blue	Herbin	Bleu des Profondeurs	wet	excellent
Blue	Herbin	Éclat de Saphir	wet	well above average
Blue	KWZ	Azure #5	average	above average
Blue	Robert Oster	School Blue	wet	well above average
Blue	Rohrer & Klingner	Königsblau	average	a little above average
Green	De Atramentis	Jane Austen	a little wet	a little above average
Green	Graf von Faber-Castell	Olive Green	a little wet	excellent
Green	KWZ	Foggy Green	a little wet	above average
Green	KWZ	Green #3	average	a little above average
Green	Organics Studio	Walt Whitman Leaves of Grass Dark Green	a little wet	above average
Green	Robert Oster	Moss	a little wet	a little above average
Green	Sailor	Kobe #28 Suzuran Green (Lily of the Valley Green)	a little wet	a little above average
Green	Sailor	Kobe INK Story #15 Maiko Green	a little wet	above average
Green	Sailor	Tokiwa-Matsu	wet	above average
Green	Stipula	Musk Green (Verde Muschiato)	a little wet	above average
Purple	Diamine	Bilberry	wet	above average
Purple	Pelikan	4001 Violet	average	a little above average
Purple	Private Reserve	Infinity Violet	wet	above average
Purple	Rohrer & Klingner	Cassia	a little wet	a little above average
Purple	Rohrer & Klingner	Solferino	wet	above average
Purple	Sailor	Nioi-sumire	a little wet	above average
Teal	Sailor	Yama Dori	a little wet	above average

FWIW.

[Wordler]

Thank you

[LizEF]

6 minutes ago, me7sx said:

Thank you

You're welcome!  Check the reviews for the easy-to-clean question - I generally note that (not sure if I always did in the beginning, but I always do now) - but it's not a field in the database, just a comment in the review text somewhere.

[Wordler]

Is there any difference between ink flow and lubrication?

[LizEF]

31 minutes ago, me7sx said:

Is there any difference between ink flow and lubrication?

Ink flow is the rate at which ink flows from the pen. Lubrication is how well the ink cushions between nib and paper (creating a smooth or scratchy experience).  While wetter inks generally offer better lubrication, that's not always the case - a wet ink can have poor lubrication.  And dry inks can lubricate well, despite being dry.  A Kakuno's nib is generally not demanding, so any ink should flow well unless, maybe, you happen to write ridiculously fast for multiple pages.  But the nib is also quite narrow, which tends to give more feedback, so lubrication will help a lot.

 

I talked about them more in this comment:

 

[Penguincollector]

  I personally find that Private Reserve and Pilot/Namiki inks work really well in Pilot pens with that particular nib/feed combination (Kaküno/Prera/Lightive/etc.). These pens feel pretty dry to me and it’s been bad news bears every time I have tried a dry ink in them. I love Pilot Iroshizuku Ku-Jaku, Ama-Iro, Tsuki-Yo, Murasaki-Shikibu, Syro-ro, Shin-Ryoku, Asa-Gao, and Kon-Peki; Pilot cartridges in Purple and Green, and Blue-Black. Private Reserve inks I love in Pilot pens are: Tanzanite, Infinity Turquoise, Daphne Blue, Tropical Blue, and Black Magic Blue (leans purple). 

  Monteverde’s 2019 DC SuperShow Teal is also a beautiful, wet ink. Other inks in their line, especially with ITF, may be of interest. All three ink companies have some really nice pigmented/document/waterproof inks. 

[Wordler]

Penguincollector - Can you recommend some inks from Diamine, J. Herbin and Robert Oster inks that would work with Kaküno?

[LizEF]

18 minutes ago, me7sx said:

Kaküno?

Which nib size is your Kakuno? This makes a big difference, IMO.

[Wordler]

I have medium Kaküno and medium Prefounte.

[LizEF]

1 hour ago, me7sx said:

I have medium Kaküno and medium Prefounte.

OK! You don't need to worry nearly as much about lubrication with the Kakuno, and not at all with the Prefounte.

 

I would say anything other than "awful", "well below average" and "below average" would be just fine for the Kakuno and even the "awful" might be fine for the Prefounte.  The Prefounte will benefit from a wet ink, though.  Here are some inks to check out:

 

Blue / Turquoise

• Herbin Bleu des Profondeurs (a dark blue) will make either pen glide
• Robert Oster Bass Straight is interesting - better for the Prefounte, might be OK in the Kakuno
• Robert Oster Blue Denim will likely make either pen happy
• Robert Oster School Blue is an interesting variation on ordinary blue and would work well for either

Teal

• Robert Oster Great Southern Ocean
• Diamine Eau de Nil should work well, too

Green

• Diamine Classic Green, Meadow, and Salamander are good options
• Diamine Safari would be OK for the Prefounte (because of its cap seal), but might form nib crud if not used enough in the Kakuno (nib crud can be wiped or rinsed off and is harmless unless you leave it so long you have to clean the pen)
• Robert Oster Ever Green should work well for a bright green
• Robert Oster Green Lime is a slightly yellower and happier alternative
• R.O Forest Green would work well, as would Moss.

Purple

• Diamine Amazing Amethyst and Bilberry should both work well.
• Herbin Violette Pensée should be good in the Prefounte, maybe the Kakuno

Some from brands not in your list, but which should be easy to get if you're in Europe:

Turquoise

• De Atramentis Adular Blue
• Waterman Inspired Blue (this is my favorite turquoise)

Teal/Blue

• De Atramentis Steel Blue
• Rohrer & Klingner Verdigris is one of my favorite colors and inks

Blue

• Rohrer & Klingner Königsblau is the best royal blue I've encountered
• Waterman Serenity Blue is basically an industry standard

Green

• Graf von Faber-Castell Olive Green would work well in either pen

Purple

• Rohrer & Klingner Alt-Bordeaux and Solferino are nice
• Likely anything by De Atramentis would be happy in either pen.

If you're in Japan, Pilot pens love Pilot inks, and the Iroshizuku like would likely work well in the Platinum as well.  And it's hard to go wrong with Sailor inks.

FWIW.

[Wordler]

Thank you so much LizEF

I will check them out and see which ones do I like.

I like Pilot inks but they don’t disclose if they are vegan friendly or not. Not sure about sailor. I stick with brands that say clearly that they are vegan friendly.

 

[AmandaW]

Iroshizuku inks are vegan. It's on their Australian FAQ here...

 

[Wordler]

On Pilot nordic site, they have a different statement. See included screenshot. That’s why there is still a doubt with Pilot inks being vegan or not. I think they are not vegan.

[LizEF]

4 hours ago, me7sx said:

Thank you so much LizEF

You're most welcome!

[yazeh]

Pilot Kakuno M nib is a very nice one compared to EF. My pilot Kakuno normally dry up after a week. They don't have the best deal in the world.

I believe most inks would be fine.

If you can get samples that's the best way to go. 

J Herbin. Most of these inks are new. You can get them in 10 ml bottles. These inks are well lubricated ( make your nib sing) and are wet. 

Turquoise: Bleu Calanque 

Green: Jacques Herbin Vert Métropolitaine 

Dark blue; Bleu des profondeurs 

Royal blue: rue de la Verrerie 

Violet: Iris Sagesse

 

Hope it helps. Enjoy the journey. 😊

 

[Penguincollector]

22 hours ago, me7sx said:

Penguincollector - Can you recommend some inks from Diamine, J. Herbin and Robert Oster inks that would work with Kaküno?

  I haven’t tried any inks from these makers with a Pilot in a long time. I will try some out in the colors you requested up thread and see what happens.

[Penguincollector]

  I tried a few of my Herbin inks so far, and they seem to work well in my Pilot steel medium nib. The colors Yazeh recommends are beautiful. If vegan inks are important to you, I would suggest sticking with Herbin, Faber-Castell/GvFC (I love Violet Blue), Diamine, and Kaweco (those are the inks that I have read are truly vegan) and learning about how to make inks wetter or dryer as needed with dish soap and distilled water. Also, check out Colorverse- I saw something that said they were, but it was in passing and I didn’t persue it. I’m deep into Colorverse right now and love their inks. 

[Wordler]

Do Colorverse ink work well with Pilots? By the way, Colorverse inks are quite expensive.

[LizEF]

6 hours ago, Wordler said:

Do Colorverse ink work well with Pilots?

I imagine the vast majority do.  That spreadsheet I've mentioned a few times are reviews done with a Pilot Prera with a Pilot Penmanship EF nib swapped in.  If it works well with that nib, I can't imagine it not working well with a Pilot Kakuno M nib - the exception being the ridiculously dry inks - those may not flow well from the M nib, which demands more ink than the EF nib. But there aren't many of those and of the Colorverse inks I've reviewed, only Vortex Motion approaches that end of the "Flow" scale.