Ink Review #1958: Robert Oster Hickory Aflame

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Robert Oster Hickory Aflame is a Vanness Pens exclusive. This ink is available in 50ml bottles and 4ml samples.

The color:

Hickory Aflame is a medium red brown with copper shimmer.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has lots of shimmer.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 40 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: medium shading, no sheen, and copper shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Hickory Aflame is close to PenBBS Mandarin Female. Click here to see the brown inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Schon Design Ultem with a broad nib on an Odyssey notebook. The ink had an average flow.

Overall, this is a lovely ink-great color and well behaved.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

PenBBS Season 13

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Let’s take a look at 4 inks from PenBBS Season 13: 183 Platycodon Grandiflorus, 184 Cane Yellow, 233 Nanjing and 235 Mandarin Duck Female. I got these inks from Vanness Pens, but they no longer sell them so I’m not sure where you can pick some up.

Swabs:

Left to right: 183 Platycodon Grandiflorus, 184 Cane Yellow, 233 Nanjing and 235 Mandarin Duck Female

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

Dry Time: 30-70 seconds

Water Resistance: Low-Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: All 4 inks had medium shading and Mandarin Female had green shimmer.

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was lots of feathering in every nib size as well as some bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

183 is similar to Montblanc Tolstoy.

Cane Yellow is close to Ferris Wheel Press Buttered Popcorn.

Nanjing is close to Monteverde Turtle.

Mandarin Female is close to Diamine Brandy Dazzle.

All the inks had an average flow except Mandarin Female which had a dry flow.

Overall, I think 183 is my favorite out of the four, but none of them are must-haves for me.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links, and is not sponsored in any way.

Ink Review #1953: Colorverse 46 JFK's Dog Pushinka

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Colorverse 46 JFK’s Dog Pushinka is from Season 4 Trailblazer in Space. This ink comes in a set with 45 Strelka. You can find this ink for sale at Vanness Pens.

The color:

Pushinka is a deep walnut brown.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink looks almost grey.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: Low

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: low shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Pushinka is lighter than IWI Autumnal Equinox. Click here to see the brown inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Pelikan M800 Renaissance Brown with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a wet, sticky flow.

Overall, I enjoyed this color, but this ink does feather a bit on cheaper papers so I would stick to the nicer stuff.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #1952: Van Dieman's Oakwood Brown

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Van Dieman’s Oakwood Brown is from the Colours of Tasmania collection. You can find this ink for sale at Vanness Pens (and it’s on sale right now too!).

The color:

Oakwood Brown is a medium walnut brown.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink looks almost purple.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 10 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: Medium

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Low

Other properties: low shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Oakwood Brown is lighter than Diamine Deep Dark Brown. Click here to see the brown inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Franklin-Christoph 46 in Autumn Oak with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had an average flow.

Overall, it’s a nice brown, but there is too much feathering and bleeding for me.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #1951: Conklin Antique Turquoise

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Let’s take a look at Conklin Antique Turquoise. Thanks to YAFA for sending a bottle over for review!

The color:

Antique Turquoise is a bright medium turquoise.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has pretty consistent color and lots of feathering.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 15 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: Medium

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Low

Other properties: no shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Antique Turquoise is close to Kobe 26 Wadamisaki Blue. Click here to see the blue inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Kaweco Al-sport Iguana Blue with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a slightly wet flow.

Overall, this is a lovely color, but it has way too much feathering for me. There are a lot of similar blues that are better behaved.

Disclaimer: This product was provided by YAFA for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #1950: Conklin Vintage Purple

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Today let’s take a look at Conklin Vintage Purple. Thanks to YAFA for sending a bottle over for review!

The color:

Vintage Purple is a vibrant medium purple.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has pretty consistent color and lots of feathering.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 5 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: Medium

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Low

Other properties: no shading, no sheen, and no shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Vintage Purple is similar to Lamy Violet. Click here to see the purple inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Kaweco Al-sport Violet with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a slightly wet flow.

Overall, this ink is a nice color and it dries quickly but there’s way too much feathering. If an ink feathers on Tomoe River paper like this one does, then it’s not an ink for me.

Disclaimer: This product was provided by YAFA for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #1949: Kobe Kitano Antique Sepia

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Our final Kobe ink for this week is Kobe Kitano Antique Sepia. You can find this ink for sale at Vanness Pens.

The color:

Sepia is a deep walnut brown.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink looks more purple than brown.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: low shading, medium green sheen, and no shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering but no bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Sepia is similar to Diplomat Sepia Black. Click here to see the brown inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Lamy Al-star Bronze with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a wet flow.

Overall, this is a nice wet brown ink with some shading and sheen.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #1948: Kobe Bauhaus Orange

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We are continuing on with another Kobe ink this week with Kobe Bauhaus Orange. This ink was made for the Bauhaus 100th anniversary. My ink sample came from Vanness Pens but it is currently out of stock.

The color:

Bauhaus Orange is a bright red-orange.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink looks more red than orange.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 50 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: low shading, low gold sheen, and no shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering but no bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Bauhaus Orange is close to Kobe East Park Torch Orange. Click here to see the orange inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Kaweco Sport Orange with a double broad nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a wet flow.

Overall, this is a lovely wet orange ink but if you can’t get your hands on it try Kobe East Park Torch Orange instead.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.

Ink Review #1947: Kobe 65 Shinko Jet Black

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Kobe 65 Shinko Jet Black, also known as Shinjuku Jet Black is from Kobe’s standard collection. You can find this ink for sale at Vanness Pens.

The color:

Shinko is a deep black.

*For my swab cards I use a Col-o-ring by Skylab Letterpress, a medium Pilot Ishime and a Mabie Todd Swan.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has quite a bit of black sheen.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

*For my writing samples I use:

Dry time: 20 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: no shading, high black sheen, and no shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering but not much bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Shinko is similar to Platinum Carbon Black. Click here to see the black inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Franklin-Christoph 46 Blue Diamondcast with a broad nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink had a wet flow.

Overall, this is a good basic black with some sheen.

Disclaimer: All photos and opinions are my own. This page does not contain affiliate links and this post is not sponsored.