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Post by ginny on Dec 28, 2020 18:42:16 GMT
When you decide it's time for trying some new ink, how do you usually proceed? Do you collect recommendations, do you rely on brand names, or do you simply look what's available in the colour range that you fancy?
I have only a few basic colours so far (royal blue, black, hot pink, purple, dark green, sepia brown) and the infamous dark red wine ink I mentioned in another posting. The latter was a gift, the others... well, the royal blue one is the Pelikan 4001 (which is a standard brand here in Germany, their HQ is in Hannover - the brands Herlitz and Geha - that you might have heard of (or maybe not?) - also are part of the Pelikan Group), and except for the pink one (that's a Faber Castell ink in a similar price range), I relied on the brand name and got my other colours from Pelikan, too.
I decided it was time for something else now and wasn't quite sure what to get, so I checked a few websites and ended up ordering Poppy Seed by Octopus (German brand, more expensive than Pelikan, but not outrageously so) - it's supposed to be a light green, not overly shiny. I was torn between trying that and going for a more orange-y colour - in the end, green seemed more practical...
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Post by richila on Dec 28, 2020 18:51:20 GMT
I have asked about ink in letters and usually search Goulet pens. They have a writing sample/swab of ink for each one and the color on my phone/monitor is very close to what it looks like for me. They also sell samples, in case I am still not sure.
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Post by radellaf on Dec 29, 2020 0:51:30 GMT
Anderson Pens also has a ink color comparison thing with some inks Goulet doesn't have (& vv), plus larger samples (as does PenChalet and a few other places). Goulet just won't budge on the 2mL.
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Post by ole on Dec 29, 2020 1:27:14 GMT
Jet Pens is a great reference site even if you don't buy from them. They carry more inks than most and the information is detailed with great swatches. I won't buy from them since they charge $64 to ship a bottle of ink to Canada (I emailed them to confirm), but I think they're a good business otherwise.
I generally get wind of an ink that might interest me from forum reviews and various web sites. Subsequently I google like crazy to get that last drop of information on that ink. To me it's not just the color, far from it, but all the other things like company history and philosophy, archival qualities, etc.
Since it generally costs the same to ship one bottle as it does to ship three, I often buy several inks at one time to save paying shipping several times over. That sometimes leads me to look for an online store that has the ones I want in stock. I hate when stores are out of stock because it means another ten bucks for a bottle of ink if they don't have it right now.
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Post by distractedmom on Dec 29, 2020 3:18:45 GMT
I have little to no control when it comes to purchasing ink. Often, I fall in love with an ink when a penpal uses it and then I keep my eye out for it. I have had the pleasure of visiting both Anderson Pens locations. They have two ink binders in the store. One binder has ink swatches arranged by brand; the other has the swatches arranged by color. I love to flip through and see what strikes my fancy.
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Post by stompie on Dec 29, 2020 4:07:10 GMT
Do you collect recommendations, do you rely on brand names, or do you simply look what's available in the colour range that you fancy?
Yes! Yes and Yes!
For peoples reviews, thoughts and recommendations I use FPN a lot.
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Post by purplemaze on Dec 29, 2020 17:08:32 GMT
I used to try samples to know which one I like enough to buy bottles of ink. Lately I have been skipping samples and go straight buying the bottles of ink way too often. I see something I like in someone’s letter, or read reviews and research a little more on the particular ink, check it on Mountain of Inks site, etc.
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Post by michelleg on Dec 29, 2020 17:18:03 GMT
Jet Pens is a great reference site even if you don't buy from them. I can't visit them without buying something - very dangerous! lol
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Post by michelleg on Dec 29, 2020 17:18:16 GMT
I ask for recommendations on here!
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Post by although on Dec 29, 2020 18:32:11 GMT
It's been quite a long time since I decided that I wanted to go shopping for ink, and then had to figure out what I wanted to buy... Ink finds me! I'll be minding my own business and stumble across a youtube ink review, or a penpal sends me a letter with an interesting looking ink, or (on more than one occasion) I buy a pen and it comes with a bottle of ink! I think I'm up to 35 different units of ink now.
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Post by ole on Dec 30, 2020 0:31:50 GMT
I ask for recommendations on here! Well that's hard to do. I have no idea what kind of ink you like.
I like dark and readable with a subtle tone of color. Iron gall inks are my favorite although I won't use those in all my pens. My favorite IG is Rohrer und Klingner Scabiosa. It's a dusty purplish black. Very old fashioned.
I think R&K is a good choice for many reasons, but perhaps one of the best is that they're quite inexpensive. In a non-IG ink (dye based) you might want to try R&K Cassia. That's a fairly bright purple, but still dark and reasonably saturated - depending of course on how much you use. It will be a bright purple with a fine tip pen, and somewhat darker with a wetter pen.
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Post by vertolive on Dec 30, 2020 1:20:02 GMT
I’ve been on the hunt for a brown ink suitable for my new Sailor Black Velvet. I use the “shotgun” approach. I asked for recommendations on the FPG forum and then googled “brown inks” and chose some samples from what I could see on my monitor. Then a pen pal sent me four samples I never would have selected. I’m now working through the first seven inks that have arrived.
I never buy a bottle first and when I’m done with the samples I don’t want they get sent to a schoolteacher pen pal who rewards his students with fountain pens and ink.
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Post by jamberrychoux on Dec 30, 2020 2:22:40 GMT
ole - In a non-IG ink (dye based) you might want to try R&K Cassia. I took advantage of Pen Chalet's end of year sale to buy some inexpensive fountain pens and 3 bottles of ink. While shopping, I suddenly started seeing descriptions of dye-based vs. pigment-based inks. I learned something new as I did not even realize that these differences existed! I don't know if the differences show up in paper or not though.
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Post by ole on Dec 30, 2020 3:18:28 GMT
ole - In a non-IG ink (dye based) you might want to try R&K Cassia. I took advantage of Pen Chalet's end of year sale to buy some inexpensive fountain pens and 3 bottles of ink. While shopping, I suddenly started seeing descriptions of dye-based vs. pigment-based inks. I learned something new as I did not even realize that these differences existed! I don't know if the differences show up in paper or not though. The differences to most people are mostly in how the ink behaves in a fountain pen. Most inks are dye based, and as such are easy to clean out. The pigment based inks are for archival purposes and are supposedly the best in that regard, but they tend to clog fountain pens. This is why one should never use india ink in a fountain pen. The iron gall inks are another whole kettle of fish. The old ones have a reputation of corroding metal parts and non precious metal nibs. However, the modern IG inks are quite mild, and modern steel is superior, so if you clean your pen once in a while, they're fine - despite their lingering old reputation. I've never tried sparkle inks, but from what I hear, they can clog pens too.
Having said that, the other difference is in archival qualities which some people (like me) get all bent out of shape about. Most, but not all, dye based inks are short lived. They can't take light, oxygen (and other gasses) for a long time, and they wash away with water. Those problems are mostly solved with pigment inks, which have qualities like fine artist's paints. These are often sold as registrars ink. The iron gall inks react with oxygen and in (sometimes short) time precipitate black iron into the paper, which is quite permanent. This is the kind of ink that's been generally used for at least the last thousand years, until dyes came along. The changes occurring when iron gall hits the paper are often quite wonderful, but with time their color dye fades and you are left with black, which then turns brown over the decades.
Don't get scared about the archival quality. That is mostly about a timeline longer than most people care about. Most dye based inks will be quite readable, though perhaps a little faded, in 50 to 100 years. Archival inks should be readable in some hundreds or much more. But just to put a thought in your mind about that, if you think that what you write is not important, think about this: how valuable would you consider a piece of paper with a lowly grocery shopping list if it was written a thousand years ago?
You probably didn't want to know all that, but it's the world's shortest dissertation on ink. I've left out quit a lot. And then there's the (ahem, rather large) part that I don't know. lol
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Post by eefa on Dec 30, 2020 16:58:07 GMT
I have bought lots of samples from Pure Pens in the past as you can buy them by brand. It seems that I really like Organic Studios colours but that is not an easy brand to buy in Europe. I prefer to buy from mainland Europe rather than UK shops the last while (and post Brexit) as shipping is normally better value and at least I am paying in euros. Other than that I just try to go by colour on the website or via recommendations. I never buy ink from US shops as the shipping and the customs and handling charges are not worth it.
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