Pilot — Blue Black — Ink Review #65

Pilot — Blue Black

 

Ink Review # 65

 

Originally posted on FPN: Jun 28, 2023

 

Ink: Blue Black
Brand: Pilot
Country: Japan
Availability: 70 ml, 350 ml bottles, cartridges.
Pens Used: Lamy Safari (EF, F, M, B), Osmiroid Copperplate nib, Jinhao 450 (fude)

Description

I participated in a blind testing of three ink samples on the FPGeeks forum. This is the 2nd sample. 

I was really excited by the complex chroma but ultimately it left me indifferent. Maybe I've become too blasé.

It’s a lovely, wet ink with excellent lubrication, and a distaste for copy paper. Dry times are long on Japanese paper, but that is a given. 

I enjoyed it for drawing. 

Note: in the reviews, you see it mentioned as Mystery ink #52.

Chroma

Writing Samples

Rhodia

Midori

Tomoe River 68 gsm

Note: Tomoe River used here is 68 gsm, not the thinner 52 gsm version commonly referenced in reviews.

Hammermill 20 lb

It doesn't like copy paper.

Back

Photos:

Paper is Mnemosyne

Water Test

Paper is Mnemosyne. On absorbent paper it doesn't budge when sufficiently dry.

Comparison

Artwork

Homage to Mabie Todd, Swan Pens.

Pilot Blue Black, Pilot Iroshizuku Yama-guri, Sailor Kiwa Guro, Organics Studio Oscar’s Copper (red), gold metallic marker.

Ink Characteristics

·      What I liked: The chroma, price; loved it for drawing,
·      What I did not like: Not a blue-black but a washed-out blue color.
·      What some might not like: Same as above.
·      Shading: Yes.
·      Ghosting: Yes, on cheap paper.
·      Bleed through: Yes, on cheap paper.
·      Flow Rate: Excellent.
·      Lubrication: Good.
·      Nib Dry-out: No.
·      Start-up: No.
·      Saturation: No.
·      Shading Potential: Yes.
·      Sheen: A hint.
·      Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: No.
·      Nib Creep / “Crud”: No.
·      Staining (pen): No.
·      Clogging: No.
·      Cleaning: I had to use pen flush for the Osmiroid and the Jinhao feed. I was too lazy to wait for more than a day.
·      Water resistance: The more absorbent the paper, the more water-resistant it is.

 

Feel free to share your experience, feedback, or any other comments. The more the merrier. 😊

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