J. Herbin Gris Nuage

[Fountain Pen Mike]

100_3329 b.jpg

Pen used was a Lamy Safari, medium nib.
Paper- Tomoe River A5 and a generic 20# copy paper.

This is a fairly light grey ink. In my opinion it is about medium wet. Not a lot of saturation, again IMO.
However, dry times varied greatly between the two types of paper I tested with. On the Tomoe River it took 35 seconds for this ink to dry so that it would not smear. This is something to think about, particularly if you are left handed, and like the Tomoe River paper.
On the 20# copy, it dried almost instantaneously. Judging from these results, I believe this ink is going to be really particular of paper choice. MHO.
When I first put pen to paper with this ink, it exhibited a very nice amount of shading. But as the ink dries much of that (not all) disappears and the ink becomes more homogeneous looking(reminds me a bit of water color paint in this regard). It also darkens just a bit(just enough, I would say).
This characteristic "saved" this ink in my estimation.
When I first began writing with it, I thought "Oh, no, way too light". I thought that I would have trouble reading it. After it dried, for me this is not the case.
In fact, it is similar in my mind to what writing with a pencil looks like. If you can read a note written in a fine pencil line, I can't imagine Gris Nuage will give you much trouble. YMMV and all that, though.
There was zero bleed through on either paper used, and indeed, I can't imagine a case where that could be much of a problem, given this ink's color/shade.
Placing a single drop of water on a fresh writing sample, swiping it resulted in the ink vanishing without much of a trace, lol. Doing the same thing on a sample written the previous evening fared a bit better, but if you're looking for something that stands up to wetness, don't look to this one.
All said, this is a good ink, IMO. I like it, but it is not my cup of tea, and won't find it's way into my collection. I prefer much bolder or brighter inks than this one.
That being said, if you like grey or light grey inks, this might suit well. Give it a shot. It is inexpensive, is made by a company with a very long history with fountain pen inks, and it flows well in my pen.
Thanks for reading.
Here is a link to the video review of this ink, on my Youtube pen playlist.

https://youtu.be/KHOk3e8Pfz0

[ravkesef]

Thanks, Mike, for an excellent review, and the accompanying video. (Permit me to correct your French pronunciation a bit: the final s on Gris is silent. Forgive me for that, but as a native French speaker,... oh, you know.) Anyway, I'm extremely fond of this ink, and I've dedicated my Sheaffer Snorkel to it. I especially enjoy writing short notes and cards with it, and I'm delighted at the comments I receive when friends and family get a note written in an ink which truly lives up to its name. While I realize that you're not as fond of this ink as I am, I thought your review was right on target, and it taught me a few things about evaluating inks.

[Fountain Pen Mike]

Thank you.
As for correcting my "French", don't sweat it. I know I don't do well with any other language than English, and I'm sure this won't be he last time someone corrects me. I don't have an issue with that because I would really like to pronounce things properly in the first place.
It is a good, solid ink, and I enjoyed using it as long as the sample lasted.