Waterman Havana Brown

[cfclark]

I had Havana loaded up in my Waterman Expert (my pen-that-will-handle-anything) and started running low over the weekend...the Havana bottle was at work, so I topped off from a vintage (my guess is late '40s, from the bottle and box design) bottle of Quink Washable Brown. This had some interesting effects--the Quink seems to have a little less red undertone than the Havana, and seemed to soften it a little.

[cpsantillan]

Nice review!! it is a lovey color,is now in my order list,hope to get it soon...

[lizncats]

Another ink to put on the "I want" list ... funny, I keep buying ink, but the list never gets any shorter

[RoyalBlue]

I was surprised to find that this old favourite ink has only one review on the FPN, and that has unfortunately lost its picture. Time, I thought, to post my own - especially now I have access to a flatbed scanner!

 

Waterman's Havana Brown is a great ink. The colour is a lovely reddish brown, reminiscent of cigars and rosewood. It's readily available - almost as common as bottles of Quink - and comes in distinctively chiselled 30ml bottles at a fair price. Here, I've given comparisons of PR's Copper Burst and diamine's Sepia and Monaco Red.

 

The pen is The Shendish Pen (a wonderful old BHR Flexi) and the paper is Oxford's Optik 90gsm, which I think is an excellent staple.

 

This is my first review - I'm about to post six - and I'd appreciate feedback and questions.

 

 

<img src="http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a375/Vermiculus/reviews/scan0006.jpg" border="0" class="linked-image" />

 

Great review and the colour looks spot on on my monitor! I had the same problem as some ohters about other people's views, but for the first few paragraphs the ink was dark enough to pass for black anyway on the paper I was using! I love this ink but find it works in some pens (eg wet Pelikan tortoise) but not in others (modern Duofold - tends to dry away in the course of writing).

 

Thanks again,

Tom

Edited November 1, 2009 by RoyalBlue

[Halden]

I love this colour. Just bought a bottle and I think it may be my go to colour for a bit.

[The Classicist]

This ink and Noodler's Red-Black look exactly the same, with maybe a slight bit of purple in Waterman. Both have fantastic shading and are colors that you won't find coming from a ballpoint. From my experience, the black in Noodler's is waterproof, where the red will wash away. I don't know how the Waterman's holds up, but I honestly am very happy with the Noodler's and it is a few dollars cheaper too!

[inkspot]

Lovely review! I love the flow and look of Waterman inks, but for some reason I never tried Havana Brown - definitely adding it to my must-have list.

[Titanic9990]

i saw a bottle for $11 on amazon but, i just wondered if anyone knows of any cheaper or is that a low price (not thats it too much i thought it was cheap but idk lol) -Great review btw! :clap1:

[Scriptorium Pens]

i saw a bottle for $11 on amazon but, i just wondered if anyone knows of any cheaper or is that a low price (not thats it too much i thought it was cheap but idk lol) -Great review btw! :clap1:

 

Swisher's has it for $10: Swisher Pens

[galileo1225]

i saw a bottle for $11 on amazon but, i just wondered if anyone knows of any cheaper or is that a low price (not thats it too much i thought it was cheap but idk lol) -Great review btw! :clap1:

 

http://www.jetpens.com/index.php/cPath/55_1094

 

$8.64 @ Jetpens. But you have to buy $25 to get free shipping.

[Scriptorium Pens]

i saw a bottle for $11 on amazon but, i just wondered if anyone knows of any cheaper or is that a low price (not thats it too much i thought it was cheap but idk lol) -Great review btw! :clap1:

 

http://www.jetpens.c...p/cPath/55_1094

 

$8.64 @ Jetpens. But you have to buy $25 to get free shipping.

 

Ha! I never noticed Jetpens carried Waterman inks. That's great to know!

[bangandwhat]

That color is amazing - I think I will pick some up. Thanks for the review!

[Parker Quink Turquoise]

Have never tried Havana Brown.Must give it a go sometime.

[bayport714]

I am currently using Waterman Havana Brown ink in a Sterling Waterman Edson pen - a match made in heaven. An almost perfect pen and an almost perfect ink.

[Ipno Tizer]

I've got a bottle of this too although I've not got pen inked with it at the moment. The best bit about this ink for me is the way that at it's lightest, it shades to a colour similar to red oxide primer. Whilst oxide red on it's own must be the most disgusting colour imaginable, in this case it complements the darker red-brown of havanna so well that it really makes this ink.

 

When I can afford it, I'm after a Waterman Carrene with the 0.8mm cursive italic nib. I'll use it in that.

 

Chris B.

[kp288908]

this is a great review! i never would have given this ink a second thought. Now, this ink is definitely on my "list".

[Zombify]

I have this ink, with the new name "Absolute Brown". I like it, but I just feel that it's not as saturated as the other Waterman inks that I have such as the Purple, or the South Sea Blue. I use it, but get tired of the faded look that it has. I'm not sure why this is the only ink that does this. Maybe it's a watered down batch?

[gordonhooker]

I have a bottle of this ink and I use when writing personal correspondence with fellow Franciscans around the world. I always use a cream coloured paper so the combination of the cream and brown to me, looks quite elegant. It is a pity that it is not waterproof, if it was I would use it on envelopes as well.

 

Great review and lovely penmanship....

[Kev]

is it fluid in f nibs? or feels scratch/dry?

[Manalto]

I love Waterman Havana but I must admit that I don't use as often as I would like...I am a bit worried about what will people think at the office if they see me writing with this color. For most of them, I am already "original" enough by using these fountain pens!

But now that I have received a 2-pen case I am seriously thinking of taking to work one pen filled with Havana and other with Waterman Blue or Quink black, so I have both options.

Anything written with Havana looks to me so classy...

 

'Havana' is such a sedate, elegant color, it shouldn't blemish your reputation at work. This depends, of course, on other aspects of your office behavior. If you don't talk to yourself, wear loud colors and bring in fish for lunch, you're probably fine.

 

 

Indeed, Havana brown is an excellent ink for daily use. Love it!

Thanks for bringing this ink back into the limelight.

 

Agreed. And what a magnificent cat!

 

Good review and very nice handwriting. Would love to see a comparison with Noodler's Walnut. I really like a dark brown ink with not too much red. Also curious on a flow comparison between the two. Walnut has a really smooth flow and did wonders to my troublesome MB. Wondering if Havana Brown is even better. Knowing what they say about Florida Blue being a wonder ink.

 

Have you considered Herbin's 'Lie de The'?

Edited December 6, 2015 by Manalto