Noodler's Baystate Blue

Noodler's Baystate Blue is without a doubt the most controversial ink to be produced by an ink company.  It is both loved and hated with equal intensity in different circles. The color of this ink is modeled after one from the 1950s.  This is most likely the bluest blue that you will ever find. It's almost as if it's a highlighter type of color, but not in the neon range. It's a normal blue that resides in the range of highlighter intensity.  Amidst a line of plain black text, this blue ink will completely jump off the page.
 

There's just something special about brush pens...

With this amazing color comes some unfortunate side-effects, however.  The ink tends to stain plastics and nibs.  This eyedropper ink bottle comes with two pens. A platinum preppy .03 and a brush pen.  The platinum preppy performs as should be expected, but with a little ammonia, cleans up so that there is virtually no trace of the ink ever having been in it.  Ammonia is powerful stuff though, so care needs to be exercised when cleaning.  There is really no need to clean this pen, but I just tried it to see if i could.  It is now my dedicated Baystate Blue pen and will be until I run out of ink. The ink came with a Kuretake Brush Pen, which performs marvelously and is a lot of fun to write with. I don't plan on ever changing the ink in it either.

This ink's waterproof qualities are pretty good. Not bulletproof, but pretty good, a sacrifice completely worth making in return for the fantastic color.  The flow is good in my Noodler's Piston Filler and doesn't even dry up after a few days of sitting around. The ink behaves for the most part, just as well as Noodler's Polar Black.

This is an ivory paper, not plain white.

One of the most frustrating parts of this ink, due in part to my own foolishness, is that it tends to stick to my fingers despite a decent amount of washing.  The amount of hand-washing necessary to remove other Noodler's inks is not enough to remove Baystate Blue. I only really noticed when rubbing my fingers across papers or when touching plastics, as my fingers left blue smears across the surfaces, but it was annoying nonetheless. I just have to exercise more caution in the future.

Overall, I love this ink.  My own mistakes and the potential "drawbacks" of this ink completely pale in comparison to the sheer intensity of the color and the fun that you can have with it.

(Pen used: Sheaffer Italic F)

Noodler's Polar Blue Part II

I've gotten much use out of Noodler's Polar Blue in the past few months, but the review that I did a while ago was lacking the more rigorous of the ink evaluations that are sometimes needed. Well, I figured I would do this full review of the qualities of the ink for those of you who are looking for a nice blue to use. I'm continually on the search for blue inks and I don't often find myself bored by them, which led me to purchase Noodler's Baystate Blue, which has blown my mind in every way. That's a post for another time though.  I bought the 4.5 ounce bottle online and it came with a free fountain pen (a modified Platinum Preppy .3)

"Noodler's Polar Blue is pretty standard in color, but can seem washed out at times. It almost seems to be chalky, especially when compared to other blues, specifically Baystate Blue.  After months of usage, I have not found this ink to feather, even on cheaper paper.  the included fountain pen has gotten a lot of usage and has performed like a champ.  The 'bulletproof' qualities of this ink are true after a bleach test. I have not tried this ink in any other pens because of the warning that it might stain pens (which others can attest is true).  If I remember correctly, this ink has often been compared to luxury blue in the Noodler's line, but I don't own it and can't make the comparison. I highly recommend this ink." 

I've taken many many pages of notes with this ink.

Noodler's Polar Blue Ink and Polar Black Ink

I'm relatively new to the world of fountain pens, having only started using them on a regular basis two years ago. My interest was started with the Pilot Petit 1 which was enormously convenient and only took up a little bit of space. I was disappointed somewhat with the amount of ink in one of the cartridges, but enjoyed using them for writing letters and other special occasions.  I moved on to the Platinum Preppy with high hopes of longer lasting ink supply and was reasonably satisfied, but learned that it just wasn't possible to get a cheap "disposable/reusable" fountain pen that would write well and fill the writing niche I wanted.

Enter Noodler's Polar Blue and Polar Black inks however, and Platinum Preppy and we're talking about some seriously useful tools here.  The Polar Blue came with a Preppy .3 because the ink can stain the barrels of more expensive pens and unlike other inks tends to stick to the walls of the barrel even after a day of nonuse, but you could always get an adapter if you want, since they're a relatively cheap solution. The Noodler's website is fantastic and has a lot of information about the inks and their uses in fountain pens.

Polar Blue looks fantastic!

The Polar Blue ink itself is possibly my favorite shade in the blue/black range, despite being named simply Polar Blue.  The black is a good quality standard for use in a fountain pen as well. The ink is also listed as being "Bulletproof" which means it is able to withstand the test of the modern forger even including industrial cleaning solvents, and so far as to the extent of my testing, which entails acetone (until I get my hands on some oven cleaner), it most assuredly is bulletproof.  The ink can bleed through on some cheaper papers but performs well on Moleskine paper. A more thorough review here.

I am very happy with the purchase of both inks and look forward to much use out of them now that I have an "endless supply".  I can now use these inks in all circumstances without worrying about using them only under very specific circumstances. Now, every time I write can be the special experience that I enjoyed so much.

'tis quite beautiful

One of the more interesting aspects of using bottled inks in fountain pens specifically is that since cartridges aren't being used, there is a lot of waste saved from landfills. Even further, if you compare the distance that the average disposable pen goes to that of a bottle of ink and one fountain pen, you'll find yourself saving a lot of money (average G-2 = $2) and saving landfill space at the same time. Sounds like a great deal to me.

I'm looking forward to buying Baystate Blue and Empire Red in the (hopefully) near future. I'm going to need some new fountain pens soon too. I just need to keep my eyes peeled for a good deal out there.

(Edited to add pictures taken during a class)