The Return Of Private Reserve Ink

Did you know that Private Reserve Ink has returned with a new website and some old favorite colors? It has been ages since I bought any, but Avacado and Shell Pink will be welcome here come Spring. Arabian Rose, Burgundy Mist, Orange Crush or Gray Flannel might follow soon after.

The price is very reasonable including the six sample packs that are especially useful if you have no experience with this brand. The Ebony group would make a good choice for those who favor dark inks while the Winter sample pack is perfect for those who are fond of blue. The other four are mixed groups that will hit just the right notes for many inkophiles.

If you like highly saturated ink and don’t mind giving it a few extra seconds to dry, Private Reserve could be a worthy addition to your ink collection.

Private Reserve Ink Releases Four New Colors

Private Reserve is known for saturated colors and their four new inks look like no exceptions. Claret, Super Violet, Ebony Brown, and Vampire Red sound colorful, don’t they? Art Brown has them if you can’t wait for your local retailer. Claret looks mighty tempting to me.

A Little Ink History For The True Geek

History really does put things in perspective. Look at the years in which some well-known companies began offering ink. To be sure this is only a partial list compared to the number of labels on the market but it is still a good sampling. Whether you like these particular brands or not, the companies are doing something right to endure. Kudos to all of them.

• Aurora – 1919
• De Atramentis – 1988
• Diamine – 1864
• J. Herbin – 1670
• Noodler’s Ink – 2004?
• Parker – 1931
• Pelikan – 1838
• Private Reserve – 1998
• Rohrer & Klingner – 1892
• Sheaffer – 1922
• Waterman – 189?

Favorite Brand Of Fountain Pen Ink – The Poll Results

Remember that Favorite Brand of Ink poll from December? The poll has closed and the results are in. The top ten inks are

1. Noodler’s
2. Diamine
3. J. Herbin
4. Iroshizuku
5. Private Reserve
6. Waterman
7. Sailor
8. Pilot/Namiki
9. Aurora
10. Sheaffer

Noodler’s received a whopping 23% of the vote. That’s huge compared to the next three brands. Diamine at 14%, J. Herbin at 13%, and Iroshizuku at 12% are good numbers but Noodler’s reigns with Inkophile readers. Given the variety of colors offered by the top brand, perhaps the win shouldn’t be a surprise though Diamine runs a well-earned second in that regard.

Also, consider that four brands of ink garnered 62% of the vote while the next two brands received another 10% combined. That means 72% favor six companies and 28% prefer 29 other ink makers. Those top six companies are really doing something right though availability might play into preferences. The majority of you are located in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada where the top three inks are more easily purchased. Hard to love an ink you’ve never tried.

Many of the other ink brands are excellent quality and worth buying. I have lots of Rohrer& Klingner and use Solferino and Magenta regularly. When only a red ink will do, Morinda is my usual choice. Admittedly, I tend to horde my other preferred red, J. Herbin ‘1670’ Rouge Hematite. That’s one ink I do not want to be without.

That brings up another factor: cost. Noodler’s Ink is a veritable bargain compared to many brands especially since it can often be diluted without losing its best attributes. At $12.50 US, a single 3 oz./90 ml bottle can last a very, very long time. That doesn’t sway me when making a purchase but a pricey ink won’t find its way into my shopping cart except on rare occasion.

Many of my favorite individual inks like Caran d’Ache Storm and Montblanc Racing Green are made by companies farther down the list and I only discovered them through trial and error. Do keep looking if you haven’t found that perfect ink. It’s out there.

Starting Out The New Year With A Clean Sweep

What better way to start the year than with a thorough cleaning. Ten pens got the treatment and are drying, nibs down, in a wad of paper towel. That leaves a mere five for general use and two for testing. Does that sound like a lot? I assure you that is lean for me.

• Parker ’51’ Aero F with Noodler’s Zhivago
• Parker ’51’ Aero Special XF with Noodler’s Black (pen test)
• Sailor 1911 F with Noodler’s Red-Black
• Lamy Vista 1.1 with Iroshizuku shin-ryoku
• Levenger Mink True Writer Masuyama CI with Noodler’s Kiowa Pecan
• Montblanc 220 OB with Rohrer & Klingner Magenta
• Pilot Elite Socrates F Pocket Pen with Diamine Presidential Blue (ink test)

When a fountain pen won’t do, there are four more writing instruments at hand.

• Levenger Starry Night Roller Ball with a black felt tip refill
• Autopoint Mechanical Pencil
• Pentel Pocket Brush Pen with a black cartridge
• OXO Pink Highlighter

Elena sent a couple of Mitsu-Bishi 9800 2B pencils that will get some playtime soon. It’s likely the Levenger Kyoto True Writer Masuyama Stub will get a load of Iroshizuku syo-ro or possibly Private Reserve Ebony Blue in the near future. I love writing with this pen so it never stays clean for long.

That’s my winter rotation. What’s on your desk to start the new year?

The Bounty On My Desk

Sometimes it’s good to appreciate the amazing choices we have. So today I took stock of the bounty on my desk and found plenty to make a pen person smile.

Next to my right hand, coffee mug, and mouse are ten fountain pens, three felt tips, a brush pen, a mechanical pencil, and one highlighter. Does that seem like a lot? You should see the mountain of art supplies that hogs the left side of my workspace. Pens are small, tidy things in comparison. Paper is the biggest space invader but that’s another story.

Inkophile Pen and Ink Samples for August, 2011

The first three pens get daily use and I am content with each. The newest addition is the Namiki Falcon SB which is well-matched to Stipula Verde Mushiato both in flow and shading. The Levenger True Writer Masuyama Cursive Italic is perfect for brown ink but the Namiki Falcon SF gets to change its colors frequently. Its ink will be determined by what is missing when the other pens have been filled.

The three pens not pictured in the sample are due for cleaning and replacement by old favorites like my Sailor 1911 EF. That one works brilliantly with Noodler’s Red-Black and is an easy choice. The Sapporo F might get a fill of something turquoise or possibly one of my 1976 Pilot Elite “Socrates” pocket pens will get Diamine Teal. All three pens are good for long sessions and disinclined to clog even if unused for days at a time.

Sometimes I like to dig deeper in my pen drawer for older pens that deserve some playtime. The navy gray Parker ’51’ Aero F looks like a good mate for Noodler’s Zhivago and the Pelikan M250 Fine Stub has had a thing for Diamine Emerald for years. The dimensions of these two are slightly different from the other pens so that helps reduce hand fatigue on those days that seem to have no end.

Lastly it’s time to go back to black. Either the Limited Edition Sailor Hougado Deep Moss Black or Noodler’s Black but the pen has yet to be determined. The Lamy Safari OB and the Pilot Custom Black Stripe F are good candidates for a rich, dark ink. Again maintaining a variety of dimensions will determine the winner.

So that’s my latest pen and ink rotation.

Putting aside everything on my desk but the fountain pens and the written sample, I looked for a common thread to this rotation. Danged if I can find one save the pleasure in using a fountain pen and the colorful line it produces. That’s pretty simple but it does make me wonder about other fountain pen people. If you are a member of that club, what drives your rotation?

Seeing Green – Ink That Is

Sometimes making a list helps me organize. This time my list revealed that I like a lot of brands but it also revealed a surprising color bias. Out of my eleven top choices, four are green while both blues have more than a hint of green in their formulas. Then there is Waterman BBk that can appear quite green depending on the pen and paper. Who knew I had such a bias in favor of green!

One favorite ink from a variety of major manufacturers…

• Diamine – Mediterranean Blue in a Namiki Falcon
• J. Herbin – Lie de Thé in the mink brown Levenger True Writer F
• Rohrer & Klingner – Solferino in a Pilot Elite Newton F
• Noodler’s – Red-Black in a Sailor 1911 F
• Iroshizuku – Ku-Jaku in a rhodium and black Sailor Sapporo F
• Sailor – Uranari Green in a Lamy Safari 1.1 mm
• Montblanc – Racing Green in the Lamy Safari custom cursive italic
• Private Reserve – Avacado in a Waterman Carene Stub
• Waterman – Blue-Black with any flex nib
• Stipula – Moss Green in a Pilot Elite F
• Parker Penman – Ruby in a Namiki Falcon

Seldom used inks but still my first choice from these manufacturers…

• Pelikan – Blue-Black
• Duke – Blue-Black
• Levenger – Amethyst
• Aurora – Black
• Parker Quink – Blue-Black
• Visconti – Blue
• Sheaffer – Blue-Black
• Platinum – Black
• De Atramentis – Aubergine

When you look at your list of favorites, do you see a strong color influence or are you less slanted in your choices?