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carlos.q
February 23rd, 2014, 10:28 AM
Ok so there is not such ink as MB Twilight Blue... until now.

I was very saddened with the disappearance of the IG MB Midnight Blue so I set out to use a suitable substitute. Nice inks in the blue black category are Pilot Blue-Black, Pelikan 4001 BB and R&K Salix. However, never wanting an easy out, I set out to mix some MB Royal Blue with the new MB Permanent Black with in a 10:1 ratio. And these are the results:
10130

The mix produces a very nice dark blue that is amazingly water resistant:
10131

The bottom half was barely dry when I ran it under tap water for more than a minute. I've had the mix for more than a week with no clogging or other ill effects on my Pilot 78G with a B nib. So now you have it: "MB Twilight Blue"

What do you think?

Jeph
February 23rd, 2014, 11:59 AM
How is the MB Permanent Black by itself? And foes it have an iron gall component like the MB Midnight Blue permanent used to have before it became non-permanent MB Midnight Blue?

carlos.q
February 23rd, 2014, 12:54 PM
The MB Permanent Black is IMHO a much better ink than the Mystery Black it replaces. It is very black, not glossy but matte and it has a kind of luxurious lubricated quality that makes it a joy to write with. It does not have an iron gall component and I believe it is a cellulose reactive ink (like Noodler's). It is ISO 14145-2 certified as document ink. It's a pity the ink is so expensive.

Jeph
February 23rd, 2014, 01:25 PM
Thanks. It looks like I can only get it direct from MB for 22 euro + 5 euro shipping for 60 ml. That's $38 a bottle. Ouch!
I think I will keep a lookout for a reseller to finally carry it and then try some.

Thanks, and good luck with your mixing!

Jeph
March 8th, 2014, 12:49 PM
Well, I found some permanent black for only 4 euro shipping instead of 5 so I convinced myself that was a bargain and ordered some. I have some official documents to sign next week and I really wanted to use a fountain pen. Noodler’s Bad Black Moccasin is my current permanent ink. It is OK, but it is a little dry and dries as more of a grey than a black.

I wondered how much I could have saved if the bottle had not been shipped with air pillows bearing the Montblanc logo. Sure it was a nice touch, but… I do like that the ink box itself has formed Styrofoam blocks that secure the bottle for shipping. And of course the shape of the bottle is very practical. I filled my M250 with M nib and put the ink through its paces.

I have to agree with carlos on everything that he said. The ink writes wonderfully on Rhodia and feels even better than my staple Diamine inks. That might be wishful thinking but it definitely is not worse. It goes down a nice brilliant black and dries a basic flat black. Not iridescent shock your socks off while it sucks the light from the rest of the room black, just an honest black. The only bad part is that it takes a solid 30 seconds to dry on Rhodia.

On cheap 20# office copy paper, however, it dried instantly. And although it did not feather, the line from my M nib was a consistent full B. Instead of black, the ink dried a very, very dark grey. I actually like that color a great deal. The ink shows through almost completely but only bleeds through if I put down a heavy pile of ink. There was also a surprising amount of feedback that I don’t normally feel on that paper but the normal smoothness of the nib was unchanged.

I tried a check, since Parker Quink black tended to spread, feather and bleed through heavily on a check. Surprisingly, the line stayed M and did not feather. There was a little show through but not much. And the color was the same black as I get on Rhodia except with the instant drying. So this would make an excellent check ink. If there is anyone left that still writes checks. This check was the security carbon copy version from Identity. Other check papers may be different.

I also tried it on a post-it note. As is common, the ink did not like that at all. It skipped great deal on the adhesive residue. The lines did not widen but there was some slight feathering and some show-through. The color was black instead of the very dark grey on the copy paper.

I subjected all of the papers to water. That was a complete waste of time and water. This ink taunts water and on the post-it note it might even have gotten darker after washing.

In short, I do love this ink other than the price. Around $36 for 60 ml or $0.60 per ml is ridiculously expensive. That is more for a bottle of ink than I spend on most of my pens.

It is the best permanent ink that I have tried but I am not convinced that the price difference from the various flavors of Noodler’s inks is worth it.

Edit: Some more paper updates

Steno Book (Skillcraft) No issues, other the same dry times as Rhodia. Strange
Different Post-I note: Line width more than BB, heavy feathering, bleed through
Legal Pad, Skillcraft Yellow: 5 second dry time, B line, some show through
2 different 20# copy papers, same as before
One 20# copy paper (unknown) perfectly behaved with only light show-through

Jeph
March 20th, 2014, 04:38 AM
I am starting to have some issues starting. Most of them I can attribute to leaving it uncapped on my desk, but now every day when I uncap it I have to coax the ink out. I am pretty sure that a simple rinse of the nib will probably take care of it (I have done no cleaning since I filled the pen) but I am now starting to see what some other people have mentioned. It did take a little over 10 days before it started though. Before that it started tigh up every time (other than laying uncapped for 30+ minutes) and still writes wonderfully.

Jeph
March 25th, 2014, 05:42 AM
I finally broke down and did a 5 second nib rinse under the faucet and *pow* everything is perfect again. It took almost 2 weeks for the issues to start, and really you should be rinsing the nibs of the pens in use at least weekly. So with a proper weekly rinse I say the ink is wonderful, if still overpriced.

bleunuitguy
April 21st, 2014, 06:06 AM
Carlos and Jeph, thanks for sharing your experiences. Is that 10 parts Royal Blue to 1 part Perm. Black?

carlos.q
April 21st, 2014, 10:03 AM
Carlos and Jeph, thanks for sharing your experiences. Is that 10 parts Royal Blue to 1 part Perm. Black?

That is correct. If you like your mix a little bluer you can always add a little more MB Royal blue.

snedwos
June 17th, 2014, 10:28 PM
So this would make an excellent check ink. If there is anyone left that still writes checks.

Baystate Blue bitches!