Yazeh Ink Reviews

Pilot Red   Ink Review #  135   Originally posted on FPN:  Jul 17, 2024   Ink:  Red Brand:  Pilot  Country:  Japan Availability:  30 ml bottles. Cartridges.  Pens Used:  Pilot Kakuno EF, Lamy (EF, F, M, B, 1.1), Noodler’s Nib Creaper semi-flex Description This was the fifth and last ink in the blind-testing series. I had already reviewed the fourth ink before the blind test (J. Herbin Vert de Gris). Many thanks to FPGeeks member Lithium. It’s not easy to find. But if you need an eye-searing red, it might be for you. This ink writes a vermilion colour, which changes depending on the paper, making it difficult to describe. It’s very bright, so prepare your sunglasses.  😎 It is very wet, almost too wet. Paradoxically, it has very fast dry times on Rhodia and is well-behaved on copy paper. It’s not a colour that I could write with, but I enjoyed doing some artwork with it. I doubt it’s a suitable ink for wet pens. It didn’t s...

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 Pho...

Pilot — Iroshizuku Yama-guri   Ink Review #  64   Originally posted on FPN:  Jun 21, 2023   Ink:  Yama-guri Series:  Iroshizuku Brand:  Pilot Country:  Japan Availability:  50 ml bottles. Pens Used:  Lamy Safari (EF, F, M, B), Soennecken Schulfüller (semi-flex nib), Jinhao 450 fude. Description I participated in a blind test of three ink samples on the FPGeeks forum. A fun thing about this endeavor is that one is free of the biased associations one can make with the name, the brand, or the country of the ink maker. I guessed this was a Japanese ink, thanks to its complex chromatography. And I was right. It was Yama-guri. The name translates to wild or mountain chestnut. It's a dark brown ink with a purple undertone.  The ink is wet, well-lubricated and very saturated. I could discern shading only with a B nib of a dry Lamy Safari.  Chroma Writing Samples Dry time is decent and the purple is obvious only if you smudge the i...