Parker Super Chrome blue-black vintage ink review

[Sard]

Superchrome contains isopropyl alcohol -- it will damage any pen with celluoid exposed to the ink, and any other pen material that is damaged by alcohol.

 

It's also corrosive -- I've gotten several Parker 21s with nibs corroded through.

 

Short term use will not be a problem if you rinse the pen well after using, I suspect, but don't leave it to dry up in anything!

 

Lovely color, too.

 

Peter

 

Hi Peter,

 

My experience seems to back you up. I've started using Super Chrome ink in a very beat-up Parker 51, largely held together with acetone. When I restored the pen I was picking out crystallized ink from between the fins on the collector with a razor. The result, I am assuming, of the previous owner letting it dry out.

 

So far no problems, but I do use it every day and rinse very well between fillings.

 

The ink is almost as nice as the iron gall ink's I use in my Pelikan M200 (no issues in over a year, but following the same methods above).

 

Kris

 

[Penariffic]

Geez! I have the exact same bottle of Super Chrome. I almost thought about putting it in an Estie! Thank God I read this thread first! What should I do with the bottle? I have tested it with my Dip Pens and it writes beautifully. It appears more of a dark purple than a blue-black.

[Bill Smith]

What a pity cos the colour is what I've been looking for in blue black!! Any other blue black that looks close to this one?

 

 

Looked at Private Reserve Midnight Blues, it's not a bad approximation.

 

How about a challenge to PR and Noodlers, come up with colours that look like Superchrome Ink line (especially the blue black and other blues) with a neutral PH level making it safe for all pens?

[johnboz]

Superchrome has great color, but as mentioned before, it's pretty bad for pens.

 

I'm currently doing a "torture test" with Superchrome. I'm going to keep a pen filled with it and write with it every day just to see what happens. I'm using an Esterbrook that's beat up so if it damages the pen it's not a big loss and I can always just switch out the nib if it gets ruined. So far it's been 2 weeks and it's still going strong. The Superchrome Turquoise is a very nice color to write with.

[Tweel]

A good pen for a torture test might be a c/c one with a pull-out nib & feed. When I've encountered ink-corroded nibs, it wasn't visible on the outside. The underside, against the feed, was pitted, and especially the nib's tail was eaten away inside the section until it finally snapped.

 

-- Brian

 

[kubalai]

Is there a current ink that comes close to this ink ?

[Bill Smith]

Is there a current ink that comes close to this ink ?

 

 

I have found De Atramentis Dark Blue to be a pretty good approximation to Superchrome Blue Black from recent experiences.

Edited June 9, 2009 by Bill Smith

[Gran]

That is a beautiful color. Thanks for the visit down memory lane.

[jbb]

I like the bottle and at least it can be used for dip pens.

Edited September 5, 2010 by jbb

[breaker]

nice review

[arikol]

That is EXACTLY the colour I've been looking for. Absolutely beautiful.

 

Pity about pen-eating properties :/ I won't be putting this into my current pens. Maybe when I have a few spares...

[rockydoggy]

I ended up with a bottle of Superchrome turquoise a couple of years ago and found the color stunning. I'd heard about its destructive properties and so warily gave it a shot in an old Scripto c/c student pen. It wrote wonderfully for a couple of months, at which point I noticed some corroding of the nib slit and I called off the experiment, resigning myself to using the ink in a Platinum Preppy highlighter, where it's done fine (no metal parts). Late last year, I was refilling a Pilot Preppy 0.5 fp (adapted to take international-size cartridges), and I decided to try the Superchrome turquoise in it to see what would happen (yes, I was being stubborn). It's now been over 5 months and there's thus far no sign of damage. I wonder if the black coating on the Preppy nib may prevent it from being corroded by the ink. In any case, I'm glad I've found a way to use this great-looking ink, which I will continue to keep a safe distance from any pen worth more than $5.00.

[seanruss]

perhaps you could use this ink with a glass dip pen??

[CaptainGroovy]

I don't think the coating on the Preppy has as much to do with it as the type of stainless steel in the pen. I have a couple of preppies that the paint or coating has flaked of the nib.

[rudyhou]

thank for sharing. you rarely get to see vintage inks anymore at the shops. glad to know you got yourself a good batch.