What paper for ink reviews?

[fncll]

I'm going to start being more consistent in my ink journal. For that I am trying to decide on a consistent 'base' paper that will be the same for every ink to make true comparison easier. I will then add other pages with different paper as I feel like it.

But what paper? I was thinking Clairefontaine Triomph, but then perhaps a good, but not so good, paper would reveal more about an jnk's feathering and bleeding. So perhaps a solid HP printer paper?

I want loose sheets, that I know. So a Leuchtterm master or the like won't work. I thought of a Japanese binder but all of that paper appears to be ivory-ish and bright white ( (or at least white) seems a must.

What do you think?

[Jeph]

I am not expert, but I use my pens on printer paper every day. Even good quality paper just does not do a fountain pen justice. So I do not suggest that on that basis.

On the other hand, becasue I use my pens on "normal" paper almost exclusively, I have desperately searched for someone that did ink/pen reviews using some and found nothing. I doubt that I am alone. You could pioneer reviews for us little people.

I don't know enought about good paper to make a useful suggestion, but maybe whatever good paper you choose AND some printer paper? It would be a pain, but at least the printer paper is relatively inexpensive.

Good luck, and thank you for the effort.

[AndyT]

I'd be inclined to go for Rhodia 80gsm, Chris. It's a boring choice and everybody else seems to use it, but there's a lot to be said in its favour: consistency between batches, ready availability in variety of formats and a reasonably economic price. Also, it does show off shading nicely, and whilst printer paper will be more revealing of feathering and bleeding, it'll kill any colour variation stone dead.

[carlos.q]

On the other hand, becasue I use my pens on "normal" paper almost exclusively, I have desperately searched for someone that did ink/pen reviews using some and found nothing. I doubt that I am alone. You could pioneer reviews for us little people.

I don't know enought about good paper to make a useful suggestion, but maybe whatever good paper you choose AND some printer paper? It would be a pain, but at least the printer paper is relatively inexpensive.

I will second this idea for reviews. Although I carry a Rhodia notebook for my notes I often have to use my FPs on cheap paper and there is a great difference! I guess it's a battle between the "ideal world" and the "real world".

[fncll]

What kind of paper do you mean by "normal" paper? I might be able to work that in since I will be doing more than one review of each ink (eventually)...I just want something that show the quality of the ink in the most generally useful way! My worry about paper like the HP 32# bright white, which I use often, is that it-- like Clairefontaine Triomphe, but obviously not so intensely-- is so smooth and resistant to feathering and show-through that it might be misleading.

Ideally, of course, one would do a half-dozen reviews for each ink, but I'm not up to *that*!

Rhodia 80g does seem like a near ideal "middle" ...

[KrazyIvan]

I would try using two papers. This is my initial thought and part of the reason I have mostly stayed away from reviewing inks. I would use the Rhodia and something more absorbent like Fabriano to see how the different papers affect the ink.

[Jeph]

I consider "normal" to be a 20# 85ish whiteness copy/printer paper.
Some brands of this are nearly useless, as I have some that acts like a sponge.

I agree that Rhodia 80# would be a pretty solid baseline, and is what I consider "good" paper.