Noodler's La Coleur Royale

There's just nothing like a good bottle of ink...

Some of my fellow pen enthusiasts understand what I mean when I say that even though I didn't need a new ink, I felt like it was about time for me to purchase one. Browsing the Goulet Swab Shop for hours comparing swabs was a lot of fun, but deciding which ink I wanted was difficult. I have a love for dark blue inks and La Coleur Royale, though not blue, fits into that dark category very well. 

Equipped with the usual Noodler's qualities and characteristics of good flow, durability after exposure to water, no showthrough (on good paper) and average drying time, the allure of this ink really comes down to color, and it really is a rich, soothing purple. I don't have other purples to compare this ink to, but I can say for sure that it is my second favorite ink, following Noodler's Red-Black. Though not a drawback for me, this ink doesn't have much in terms of shading, writing a very consistently colored line, even with an italic nib. But the color is so fantastic despite this!

One of my dilemmas when purchasing an ink is whether it will be useful in my life.  In the academic and professional world, a bright orange ink won't cut it, and sometimes there are just inks more suited for different environments and situations. Finding an ink that is professional and interesting at the same time is the reason I use my fountain pens in every academic task, because it brings me out of a rut of dull and boring pens and allows me to take extreme pleasure in every single word I write.

I don't necessarily feel like a king after using La Coleur Royale, but I certainly feel more distinguished.

Eternally Inked,

The Classicist

Noodler's Piston Filler on Rhodia paper...

The Xonex Ru

It's nice to have some color!!

After receiving a Moleskine notebook as a gift a few years ago, I started to learn about the fantastic world of little notebooks.  I began to find little books all over the place and tested them as I found them. The Xonex Ru is intended to be an alternative to the Moleskine and in some areas, it fills that niche well.  I also must mention that I like the name, because the main feature of these notebooks is the pouch in the back. The "kanga-ru" is it's namesake, and I always enjoy creativity like this. And now, on to the notebook itself!

Just a bit bigger, but in the world of small notebooks, it feels like a lot

The paper, which is the most important part of a notebook like this, is much better than that found in Moleskines. With standard fountain pen ink, there is no bleedthrough.  There is some showthrough however, which I realize can be a dealbreaker, depending on your use.  Of other note is the cover, which isn't hard like the Moleskine's.  This cover is made from a latex infused cardboard, which is sturdy, but by no means as sturdy as most other little black notebooks. It does have a pouch in the back, which seems to be much more durable than that found on the Moleskine, and of course has a black elastic band to keep it closed.

At a third of the price of a Moleskine, it has some benefits and some drawbacks.  The most noticeable for me is that it is a little bigger than most black notebooks. As I mentioned before as well, it also isn't as sturdy, which depending on your use can be a problem.  The Ru comes in a few different colors, which I know is a problem some people have with Moleskines, but paper quality seems to be better than Moleskines, but not as good as Rhodia's notebooks. Overall, I think the notebooks are a good alternative to Moleskines, with different strengths and weaknesses.  I think that I'm going to use mine all the way before I make my final decision, but my Ru is definitely a contender on the notebook list.  Hopefully I can provide an extensive review with a full decision in the future, after extended use.

My only other issue with these notebooks is how scarce they seem to be. I found mine at The Container Store (of all places!), and I know that they can be found online at Amazon.com, but if you're anything like me, you don't want to buy a notebook brand until you can physically feel it in person.

I must note that the logo in the bottom right corner irks me somewhat...

Eternally Inked, 

The Classicist

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)

Caran d'Ache Ecridor 55

What evening ensemble wouldn't be enhanced by such a fantastic pen?

The elusive luxury pen.  Elusive for your average college student. I am still an average college student, but I got extremely lucky when filling out a fountain pen survey online and I was one of the selected winners.  Sometimes you just get lucky.  Maybe it's karma, or maybe it's just about time for the world to treat me well for once, but regardless. I won a magnificent Caran d'Ache Ecridor 55.  A luxury pen is within my reach for the first time in my life.  It is quite exciting.  The only pen that I have to compare it to is a Parker 51 (M), which is approximately 45 years old. I'll do my best to review it, but I have to say that luxury pens aren't exactly my specialty.

Extremely smooth medium nib, and it looks pretty too!

The Ecridor 55 is a pen that upon first glance is extremely stylish.  A fountain pen isn't a fashion accessory, but if you're paying enough money for it, it might as well be.  This pen truly fits that label.  Crafted from silver and rhodium, with a stainless steel nib, the Ecridor 55 has a beautiful "S" pattern that is meant to mimic the air intake "gills" of the 1967 Ford Mustang. I honestly can't attest to any similarities that I know of, but it is beautiful indeed.  I can really imagine this pen peeking out from a suit's front pocket.  I don't believe that a pen can define a person, but I do respect someone with a fountain pen... as long as it is being used.

Now, on to the writing experience, because a fountain pen is completely worthless if it doesn't write well.  I found overall that the Caran d'Ache Ecridor 55 was a fantastic writing experience, on par with the Parker 51 (but then again, I don't have tremendous experience with the world of luxury pens).  The balance of the pen is quite possibly the best that I have experienced in any fountain pen (cap posted or unposted), even better than my Parker 51. The nib is the critical part of the pen and this medium nib does not disappoint.  The nib is as smooth as the Parker 51 and the flow is a little bit slower, but not too much slower, so unless you're an artist or have an extremely quick hand, it's nothing to worry about.  The included adapter holds a lot of ink.  I've been running tests on this pen for about 3 weeks and have used almost 2 full legal pads and I've only refilled it 7 times. I have been using Noodler's Polar Black, my standard ink. I'm sure that in time I will find an ink that works best with this specific pen, but even with Noodler's Polar Black, this pen writes fantastically.

I would love to review more high end fountain pens, but unless they fall in my lap, that won't be happening any time soon. Regardless, I enjoyed the experience tremendously and look forward to possibly reviewing more in the future.

Eternally Inked,

The Classicist 

Waterman Black

It's not too often that I get an ink that isn't made by Noodler's. It isn't that I don't like other inks, it's just that I like Noodler's more.  The durability of the ink on paper is one of the most important properties of the ink in my eyes. For this reason, I almost always choose Noodler's. Though there can be some drawbacks to Noodler's inks, such as feathering and nib creep, the durability and flow in almost all inks are so dependable that they are still my primary ink choice, and that doesn't even factor in how many different colors there are to choose from.

Pretty good lookin' bottle, huh?

I figured that my first step away from Noodler's would need to be conservative so that I wouldn't be disappointed eventually, so I bought Waterman Black.  It's about the most standard black that exists in my opinion.  It's not Noodler's Heart of Darkness Black, but it gets the job done.  For me at least, that's pretty much where this ink falls. It's not super saturated, doesn't flow unreasonably well or resist water very well, but this ink gets the job done. It's an average, run of the mill "Bic Stic" type of ink.  The ink is thus extremely well behaved with no shading, bleeding, showthrough, bleedthrough or nib creep.  I actually would highly recommend this ink for someone just getting into fountain pens because this ink washes off very easily, behaves so well, and is relatively cheap.

One of the more interesting qualities of this ink, however is that after being exposed to water, the black ink sitting on top of the page washes off, leaving a blue layer on the page. This prompted me to look at the bottle in direct sunlight and I realized then that the ink looks like a nice blue-black in the bottle, but believe me, this ink doesn't exhibit a single trace of blue. Being a fan of blue-black inks, I probably would have appreciated that a little more, but sometimes there's nothing wrong with an ink that's just plain and ordinary. It's the things that are plain and ordinary in our lives that help us appreciate the things that are truly great, so I will get some great usage out of this black ink.

Aeterne Atramentus,

The Classicist

Staedtler Triplus Fineliner

My apologies for the brief hiatus in posts! Without further ado, here we go!

While I enjoy the Pilot G-2 and other ballpoint and gel pens, I have found that none of them suffice when I want the feel of a fountain pen.  The ability to write with a light touch and create flourishes is almost exclusive to fountain pens, with the exception of fine point markers.  The Sharpie Pens are one of the best examples of fine point markers that can fill a similar niche as fountain pens. They are not anywhere near as prone to leaks as fountain pens and are suitable for tossing into a bag and forgetting about until you need them.  While there are a lot of markers out there that are advertised as pens, it is not always the items shoved in your face that are on display at the store that work best. Enter the Staedtler Triplus Fineliner!

I love the color and precision of marker pens.

I was searching for writing utensils around Chicago and the suburbs and stumbled into the marker section and tested some pens, pencils and markers.  I purchased three of these pens while at a Dick Blick art store in Chicago after a brief writing test. The blue, being my favorite ink color, has been entirely used up and as such is no longer with us. Green and Black, however are still going strong. These are art markers. They are not marketed as pens, but serve exceptionally well as pens. My standard for comparison in this area is the Sharpie Pen, seeing as they are very popular and there are many reviews for them online, so here comes the review:

You can really see how long and skinny this pen is when compared to a Pilot V Razor Point

This pen is longer and skinnier than most pens which I come across and is obviously skinnier and longer than the Sharpie Pen.  The pen can really feel uncomfortable in my hand at times, but I can't be sure if it's because of the unique triangular shape of the barrel or because of its width. The tip is the perfect hardness in my opinion, being just a bit softer than that of the Sharpie. It has not disintegrated after months of use and has retained its shape, allowing me to continue to write with a fine point. The most important point for comparison here is color, seeing as the Sharpie Pen's "green" is a disgustingly light and turquoise that was a huge let down for me.  The Staedtler has a color of green that is pretty much spot on what I imagine standard, average, real green to be. The black is on par with the Sharpie Pen in terms of color. The ink doesn't bleed through on Moleskine paper and doesn't show through at all. The ink also dries really quickly as well, so you don't have to worry about smearing, you lefties out there.  There is no odor, making this a very useful art marker and in this case, a fantastic pen.

When you can't carry a fountain pen with you for fear that it would leak or break, carrying a marker pen with a fine point can act as a fantastic substitute.  With the exception of potential barrel comfort issues, this pen can become a daily workhorse or eternal backup in your bag.

PennedHouse Double Feature: My Ink Blend and Pilot Petit1 Conversion

The Pilot Petit1 is a fantastic fountain pen that is similar in size to the Stipula Passaporto, and is extremely small with the pen cap on, but with the cap posted is a comfortable fit in my hand.  The nib is very smooth for a fine point pen, especially one that is as cheap as this pen is.  My big problem with the Petit1 as a daily writer is the size of the ink cartridge. While refillable, the ink cartridge barely holds enough ink for the amount of writing I encounter during the day. I was thinking that there must be a solution!

From the desire to increase the ink supply of the Pilot Petit1 came the following experiment.  My goal was to convert the Petit1 into an eyedropper pen, but along the way I got curious and started creating my own ink which, for which the recipe will be posted next week. Back to the Petit1 though, it wasn't really a whole lot of work doing the conversion.  The biggest problem I encountered was figuring out how much silicon grease I needed to prevent ink from leaking all over my fingers.  It took a few days to figure it out, but once I did, there were no problems whatsoever.

The fruit of my labor!

The ink color I ended up creating is a dark teal, which is similar to one of my most desired inks. Noodler's Coral Sea Blue is exclusive only to Australia and as such would cost a LOT of money to ship to America, not to mention that a bottle before shipping costs $39.95 in Australian dollars! I knew I would never be able to get my hands on a bottle unless by some miracle, so I combined different amounts of blue, black and green inks to get the ink in the pictures, which matches up almost perfectly with Coral Sea Blue.

This is probably my favorite color of ink now.

The results of both experiments were successful and should keep me occupied for a while, which is both a good and bad thing.