Gray-ish Blue-Black Ink Recs, please!

[Sailor Kenshin]

I had been using Chesterfield Sodalite (which is, I THINK, some sort of Diamine ink) as my gray-leaning blue-black.


However, I just filled a hooded Jinhao 599 and the ink looks gray. Just gray. And it seems very dry. Perhaps it's IG? In any case, it doesn't seem to be the same ink color I started out with.

So what I'm after is something WET and lubricated, a blue-black that tends toward gray but still has identifiable blue components.

Not greenish. I love that, but have plenty of those!

Thanks for your suggestions.

[klpeabody]

sent you a PM.

[migo984]

Iroshizuku Shin Kai

[Sailor Kenshin]

sent you a PM.


Thanks!

[Laura N]

Sailor, my grayest blue blacks are dry: Pelikan Blue Black, Montblanc Midnight Blue (the previous version) and Lamy Blue Black (the previous version).

The closest that I have, albeit less gray and more blue, would be R&K Salix, an iron gall but wetter. I'm not sure it's WET enough, but it could be worth trying. :)

Another possibility would be Pilot Blue Black, which I find more blue and less gray, but not yet a straight dark blue.

Finally, maybe the current Lamy Blue Black, which I've never used, but I've heard gets close to the old color while being wetter.

[Neo]

The Chesterfield ink you're using is Diamine Midnight Black, have you tried Diamine Twilight?

[TerraNoir]

Have you tried Kaweco Blue-Black...that hints towards a gray? Along with Monteverde's Blue Black, I would have to say I enjoy Monteverde's more. They have changed their formula recently.

[minaa]

Iroshizuku Shin Kai


I second this, even though it's a little pricy. :)

[Chrissy]

I quite like the Diamine 150th anniversary Blue-Black

[bleunuitguy]

The new Montblanc Midnight Blue tends towards grey/blue. Pelikan Edelstein Tanzanite also is a greyish blue black, but wetter and more lubricated than the MBMB plus it has some sheen!

[mtnbiker62]

Another vote for Shin-kai here...but you already know of my unnatural attraction to that ink. :)

[naimitsu]

I'll add my vote to Shin-Kai. It goes down this nice navy color, and then fades to Greyish-Blue. I think it's neat ;)

[Sailor Kenshin]

The Chesterfield ink you're using is Diamine Midnight Black, have you tried Diamine Twilight?

I think I have a small bottle. Thanks for the reminder!

[reprieve]

Have you tried Diamine Prussian Blue? There are also some grey inks that look bluish like De Atramentis Fog Grey.

[Newjelan]

What about Sheaffer Skrip Blue-Black? It's a greyish blue-black, affordable and a pleasant surprise.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Thanks, one and all, for the great suggestions! I do have some of these inks, and looks like I'll be exploring new ones as well....I just found a sample of O. S. Manganese that seems to fit my tricky requirements, too.

It's currently in....The Snoopy Pen.

[migo984]

It's currently in....The Snoopy Pen.

I covet your Snoopy pen! :)

[Sailor Kenshin]

Aren't they still available?

[The Good Captain]

What about Sheaffer Skrip Blue-Black? It's a greyish blue-black, affordable and a pleasant surprise.

I agree; it is a pleasant surprise.

[migo984]

Aren't they still available?

I've no idea, I haven't looked :)

[elaineb]

I second Diamine Prussian, too. I really like the slate grey/blue quality of the color.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Has anyone used Noodler's Henry Hudson Blue? The description and tests I saw seems perfect.

[reprieve]

Has anyone used Noodler's Henry Hudson Blue? The description and tests I saw seems perfect.

Henry Hudson Blue is one of those inks that I'm really mixed about. It's a beautiful shade of navy blue. Really stunning, especially in a wider nib. But it's one of those paint-like Noodler's inks. It's thick and it smells (to my nose, it stinks) like a permanent marker. It's difficult to flush out of pens. For me, it's usually too finicky and I end up not using it. Still, it's so so pretty that I can't get rid of my bottle.

That said, it's not exactly grey-ish. It does have a cold tone to it, but I'd call it a navy blue. It's similar in tone to Diamine Midnight.

If you want a sample, PM me and I'll drop a vial of it in the mail for you.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Has anyone used Noodler's Henry Hudson Blue? The description and tests I saw seems perfect.

Henry Hudson Blue is one of those inks that I'm really mixed about. It's a beautiful shade of navy blue. Really stunning, especially in a wider nib. But it's one of those paint-like Noodler's inks. It's thick and it smells (to my nose, it stinks) like a permanent marker. It's difficult to flush out of pens. For me, it's usually too finicky and I end up not using it. Still, it's so so pretty that I can't get rid of my bottle.

That said, it's not exactly grey-ish. It does have a cold tone to it, but I'd call it a navy blue. It's similar in tone to Diamine Midnight.

If you want a sample, PM me and I'll drop a vial of it in the mail for you.


Thanks. I was wondering about its properties!

[SteveE]

Sailor K and Terra Noir - If either of you really likes the Monteverde blue-black, I have a couple of full bottles that are "available for trades."

PM me if interested.

[Sailor Kenshin]

So I dip- tested as many inks as I could on a small piece of Rhodia. I used inks sent by KLP and Reprieve (sincere thanks to you both for your generosity!), plus the few I had on hand that were suggested.

Only the Diamine Denim was actually loaded.


https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5330/17395636319_34d12ed375_c.jpg


The color in this scan isn't fully accurate, but you can see Diamine Twilight was too green, and JH Bleu Nuit too blue for this Quest, though both are lovely and useful colors. The Hudson looks almost as blue in the scan as Bleu Nuit but isn't.

Of my own inks, visually, the OS Manganese and Hero come close. Of the Ink Gifts, I loved the Tanzanite, Chopin, and HH. Next: Loading a few pens and taking them for a short test-drive. Stay tuned. ;)

[Laura N]

Montblanc pretty much killed Midnight Blue for me when they changed the formulation like that.

Luckily I have enough of the former version.

[RonLyke]

This is a sample posted by "Tas". It looks pretty Gray-Blue to me. I'm waiting for it to arrive from Japan. It's Called 'Museum Grey". (This was from another forum.)
18911

[Sailor Kenshin]

I now have three pens loaded for testing. Results coming soon.

Due to the ink tests, I decided that Diamine Twilight will be the next ink in my five-dollar Tachikawa manga pen, which may approximate the mix of original black ink and the Noodler's Navaho Turquoise I kept throwing into there.

Still soaking and flushing that needlenib pen that had been filled and never cleaned for ten years....water in cup still blue. Ten years. It's been five days, lol. I suppose it will take its own sweet time.

The first batch of blue-black testing, on Rhodia Uni:

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8685/17066564354_ecb419e669_c.jpg



The Diamine Prussian Blue looks greener than it is...the Tanzanite and Chopin look all to similar in this scan. I believe the Chopin is a little 'softer.' Thanks to KLP for both those samples!

Ooo...maybe I'll do a trio of chromas...

Which turned into a quartet. Diamine Prussian Blue shows turquoise in its corona. Edelstein Tanzanite washes into a royal blue, while Chopin plays it slate. The Skrip BB is from the conical Slovenia bottle and has a really interesting forest-green center.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7792/17589416969_30059e7dbf_c.jpg