Ink Review #530: 3 Oysters Navy Blue

Let’s tackle some 3 Oysters inks this week, starting with Navy Blue from the Delicious collection. Thanks to Pen Chalet for sending a sample over for review.

The first thing I did with this ink is put it in a fountain pen, just like I do with every ink I test. However, when I pulled the pen back out of the ink, the ink hung on with a long string, rather like melted cheese. This made me very hesitant to put it in any other pens, so instead of using my Pilot Vanishing Points like I usually do, I used my Lamy Al-Stars since they are easier to replace if broken. The ink is very thick and stringy, which caused some flow issues you will see below. I hope it’s only my sample that is like this, not every bottle of this ink.

The color:

Navy Blue is a medium blue black.

Swabs:

In large swabs the ink has some pretty dark pink sheen. Even after four days, the ink isn’t completely dry yet. You can see from the ink drops that the flow is too thick and stringy.

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 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was feathering in all nib sizes but no bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Similar inks:

Navy Blue is closest to Verdigris and 4B.

Longer writing:

I used a broad Pelikan M805 Ocean Swirl on a Midori MD Notebook. The ink had a dry flow. The ink had skipping, hard starts, and railroading.

Overall, I can’t recommend this ink just based on the flow and performance. It’s too stringy and thick which causes lots of flow problems.

Disclaimer: A sample of this ink was provided by Pen Chalet for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are my own. This page does contain affiliate links, but this post is not sponsored in any way.