My 10 Favorite Black Inks

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We’ve been slowly tackling my top ten inks in each color category and today it’s time to have a go at black inks! You can find my top ten by color posts in the favorites tab at the top of the blog. So let’s take a look!

Pilot Iroshizuku Take-sumi is a fabulous dark ink with a nice wet flow.

Sailor Jentle Black is my go-to black ink. I’m so close to finishing the bottle, which doesn’t happen to me often. I keep it in a TWSBI Mini Rose Gold, and I usually refill it once a week.

Sailor Kiwa-guro is one I reach for when I want a water-resistant ink, but it does have a pretty long dry time.

Aurora Black is a good everyday black. I love using it for taking quick notes in a Pilot Vanishing Point.

I love Platinum Carbon Black. I use it often-it has high water resistance and has a nice wet flow.

Monteverde Documental Black isn’t the darkest black ink on this list, but it’s dries fast and is water-resistant.

Cross Black is a nice well-behaved classic black ink.

Platinum Chou Kuro is wet and smooth and a dark black color.

Nagasawa Kobe 05 Tor Black has a nice wet flow and a little bit of shading and sheen.

Pelikan Edelstein Onyx is on the drier side and tends to tame some of my wetter nibs.

What ink would you add to my favorite black inks? Let me know in the comments below!

My 10 Favorite Blue Black Inks

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We’ve been slowly tackling my top ten inks in each color category and today it’s time to have a go at blue black inks! You can find my top ten by color posts in the favorites tab at the top of the blog. So let’s take a look!

Sailor Sei-boku has a lot of depth to the color, and has high water resistance.

Bungubox 4B is an interesting color, dries fast, and has some nice sheen.

Robert Oster Thunderstorm-I love this ink. I love the color. The shading is great and has an average dry time.

Rohrer and Klingner Verdigris leans toward teal on some papers, but is a nice color and affordable too!

Pilot Iroshizuku Shin-Kai is one of my absolute favorite blue black inks. I love the color, I love the smooth flow, and I love the quick dry time.

Sailor Souboku is an amazing ink. I love the smooth flow and high water resistance.

Nagasawa Kobe 07 Kaikyou Blue is a nice dark color and has some shading, sheen and a nice wet flow

Cross Blue Black is a classic in the fountain pen community. It’s a great everyday office appropriate blue black ink.

Nagasawa Kobe 51 Kanocho Midnight-I love this ink. It’s so pretty and I love the wet flow and green and silver sheen.

Diamine 1864 Blue Black is a good classic blue black. I love the smooth flow. I use it primarily on Tomoe River paper since it’s not great on cheaper paper.

What ink would you add to my favorite blue black inks? Let me know in the comments below!

Ink Review #2606: Wearingeul A Doll's House

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Wearingeul A Doll’s House is from the World Literature collection. You can find this ink for sale at most retailers including Vanness Pens.

The color:

A Doll’s House is a deep blue black, it almost leans to purple 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 some 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: 40 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering in all nib sizes and some bleeding in the flex nib.

Comparison Swabs:

A Doll’s House isn’t super close to any of these other blue black inks, but it’s probably closest to Monteverde Blue Black. Click here to see the blue black inks together.

Longer Writing:

I can’t find the photo of the longer writing sample for the life of me. I know I did it but I can’t find the photo or the original page either. I would write out another one but I’m out of ink. Sorry! The ink has an average flow.

Overall, I’m firmly in the middle on this ink-it’s good but not amazing. It’s a good option if you are looking for a blue black that leans toward purple.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

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

Color Traveler Blues and Blue Blacks

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Today it’s time to look at three Color Traveler inks: Red Lighthouse Night Black, Seto Inland Sea Blue Black and Sardine Blue Gray. You can finds these inks for sale at Vanness Pens.

Swabs:

Left to right: Red Lighthouse Night Black, Seto Inland Sea Blue Black and Sardine Blue Gray.

Writing samples:

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

Dry Time: 30-40 seconds

Water Resistance: Low-Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: All have low shading, Nightblack has medium red sheen. Sardine has silver shimmer.

On Walmart Pen + Gear copy paper there was some feathering in every nib size and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Night Black is closest to 3 Oysters Hangangmul.

Blue Black is closest to Diamine Presidential Blue.

Sardine Blue Gray is a little more purple than these other blue inks.

Longer Writing:

I used a Taroko Enigma notebook. All three had average flows.

Overall, these are lovely. They’re well behaved and have average flows.

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

Graf von Faber-Castell Part 1

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Let’s take a look at four Graf von Faber-Castell inks: Midnight Blue, Cobalt Blue, Royal Blue and Gulf Blue. You can finds these inks for sale at Atlas Stationers.

Swabs:

Left to right: Midnight Blue, Cobalt Blue, Royal Blue and Gulf Blue

Writing samples:

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

Dry Time: 30-40 seconds

Water Resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: All have low-medium shading.

On Walmart Pen + Gear copy paper there was some feathering in every nib size and a few dots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Midnight Blue is lighter than Aurora Blue Black.

Cobalt Blue is darker than Akkerman 06 Binnenhof Blues.

Royal Blue is closest to Thornton’s Blue and Parker Blue.

Gulf Blue is similar to Montblanc Miles Davis.

Longer Writing:

I used a Taroko Enigma notebook. All four had dry flows.

Overall, these are nice inks, but they are dry, so I’m not in love with them.

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

Ink Review #2473: Wearingeul Hamlet

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Today let’s take a look at Wearingeul Hamlet from the World Literature collection. You can find this ink for sale at most retailers including Vanness Pens.

The color:

Hamlet is a medium blue 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 some multi-colored 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: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: low shading, no sheen, and multi-colored shimmer.

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and bleeding in the larger nib sizes.

Comparison Swabs:

Hamlet is closest to Dominant Industry Winter Night. Click here to see the blue black inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pilot Vanishing Point Wish with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a very dry flow, I really struggled to write a full page-I had to prime the feed twice.

Overall, I really like the color and the multi-colored shimmer, but the flow was way too dry for me.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

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

Ink Review #2451: Pelikan 4001 Blue Black

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Today let’s take a look at Pelikan 4001 Blue Black. You can find this ink for sale at most retailers including Atlas Stationers.

The color:

Blue Black is a medium blue 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 some shading.

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: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering in the larger nib sizes.

Comparison Swabs:

Blue Black is a little lighter than Lamy Blue Black. Click here to see the blue black inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pelikan M205 Blue Marbled with a medium nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a dry flow.

Overall, I really like this ink. Yes, the flow is dry but it works really well in wet Pelikan nibs.

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

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

Ink Review #2450: Pelikan Edelstein Tanzanite

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Today let’s take a look at Pelikan Edelstein Tanzanite. You can find this ink for sale at most retailers including Vanness Pens.

The color:

Tanzanite is a medium blue 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 some red 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: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

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

On 20 lb copy paper the ink had some feathering and bleeding in the larger nib sizes.

Comparison Swabs:

Tanzanite is closest to Akkerman Party. Click here to see the blue black inks together.

Longer Writing:

I used a Pelikan M805 Ocean Swirl with a broad nib on a Taroko Enigma notebook. The ink has a dry flow.

Overall, I really enjoyed this ink. Yes, the flow is dry but it works really well in wet Pelikan nibs. This ink is worth a try!

Thanks to all my Patrons! I couldn’t do these reviews without you! You can find my Patreon page here.

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

Conklin Cool-toned Inks

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Let’s take a look at five Conklin inks. You can find these inks for sale at Vanness Pens.

Swabs:

Left to right: Classic Black, Denim Blue, Kelly Green, Deep Blue and Israel 75.

Writing samples:

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

Dry Time: 20-40 seconds

Water Resistance: Medium

Feathering: Low

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: Low

Other properties: All had medium shading. Israel 75 and Deep Blue had medium red sheen.

On Walmart Pen + Gear copy paper there was some feathering in every nib size and some bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Classic Black is a little darker than Callifolio Noir.

Denim Blue is a little darker than Taccia Ainezu.

Kelly Green is similar to Diamine Spruce.

Israel 75 is a bit darker than Deep Blue.

Longer Writing:

All of the inks had average flows except Denim Blue, which had a dry flow. I used a Taroko Enigma notebook.

Overall, there’s a bit too much feathering and bleeding for me. They’re not bad inks, but not the inks for me.

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

Caran d'Ache Chromatics

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Let’s take a look at three Caran d’Ache inks from the Chromatics collection. You can find these inks for sale at Vanness Pens.

Swabs:

Left to right: Vibrant Green, Magnetic Blue and Hypnotic Turquoise.

Writing samples:

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

Dry Time: 30-60 seconds

Water Resistance: Low-Medium

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

Bleeding: None

Other properties: All had medium shading.

On Walmart Pen + Gear copy paper there was some feathering in every nib size and some bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Vibrant Green is brighter than Robert Oster Evergreen.

Magnetic Blue is more blue than these other blue blacks.

There are lots of other similar inks to Hypnotic Turquoise.

Longer Writing:

All of the inks had average flows. I used a Taroko Enigma notebook.

Overall, all three are lovely and well-behaved. Magnetic Blue is my favorite out of the three just because I like the color.

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