Newbie Ink review Noodler's Polar Brown

Noodler's Polar Brown.
This is another ink from the sample PIF Lady Onogaro was kind enough to PIF me a while back.
Pen used is a Sheaffer VFM, medium nib.
Paper used was Tomoe River, 24# Georgia Pacific Laser Jet and Copy paper, and standard composition notebook.

This is one of seveeral inks Noodler's terms "Bullet Proof" inks.
IMO, a very nice, brown color. In this medium nib this ink exhibits a lovely amount of shading.
On Tomoe River paper, from this pen, this ink was still wet even after 30 seconds had passed. On 24 pound copy, it dried in less than 10 seconds, and on composition paper, it dried instantaneously.
The ink flows wonderfully well in this pen, and indeed, Noodler's' website says that it is "lubricated". With what I could not say, but it is lovely to write with. Velvety smooth.
Although a permanent ink, it is not an iron gall ink. Noodler's states that it is freeze resistant, resistant to bleach and chemicals used in forgery as well a being PH neutral.
There is no bleed through on the Tomoe River, nor did I expect any. However, on the 24# copy bleed was definitely present, and atrociously so on the composition paper, to the point of staining the facing page underneath.
I quite like this ink, both for how it flows from the pen, as well as the color. However, though not an iron gall based ink, I would be hesitant to leave it in a pen unused for any length of time, and it would never see use in anything I could not clean very thoroughly.
If brown is your thing, I think you'd like it. And if you have need of a bullet proof ink other than black, this would serve you well.
Once dry, I ran a writing sample of Polar Brown under the tap. Yes, you read that correctly.
It is indeed "Bullet Proof", in spades.
Noodler's Polar Brown is available for $12.50 per 3 oz. from Goulet, and probably others also.
Well worth it, IMO.
Thanks for reading.
Attachment 29550

Thanks for your review!

I love brown inks especially deep dark ones. Though this isn't my go to color, it's still nice. I experienced the exact behavior you mentioned on different papers.

Though not my favorite, it's a solid bulletproof brown with the added bonus of being winterized :)

For those willing to mix inks, adding a bit of Noodler's Black to Polar Brown seemed to tame some of the feathering and bleedthrough on 'standard' paper (darkened the color too, which I liked).

For those who don't need the Polar, freeze resistant, capabilities but still want a bulletproof brown, Noodler's #41 Brown is your best bet - awesome ink.

Another option if you want a really dark brown is Noodler's Walnut - a tad less water resistant than the other two but a gorgeous color and very well behaving. All three serve their purpose and have a place in my rotation.

Thanks again for your review!

Thanks for the review.
I just wanted to add that I've kept it in my TWSBI Go for several months with no problem.
It's also very easy flush out :-)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Yazeh

Thanks for the review.
I just wanted to add that I've kept it in my TWSBI Go for several months with no problem.
It's also very easy flush out :-)

---

Awesome! Thank you for that.