What Brand of Inks do you Avoid Using

[R.A. Stewart]

We all have our own ink preferences, what inks do you avoid using in your pens?

Quink - I see the bottle and think school exams...

We didn't use fountain pens at my school, but I was that weird kid that had one, and yes, I used Quink. I don't especially avoid it though, just got onto other brands. I might try it again some time just for nostalgia.

[R.A. Stewart]

I am incredibly boring. I have only tried a handful of inks and am unlikely ever to experiment much.

I used to use Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Black, but finally realized that "dry ink" was a real thing and don't expect I'll go back to it. Noodler and Private Reserve I've heard enough problematic things about that I will probably leave them alone.

Right now, I'm quite happy with Waterman. Might, as I said above, try Quink again just for old times' sake. I'm open to Sailor and other brands, but I'm not prepared to go in for another bottomless pastime these days, so probably will not explore a lot.

[naimitsu]

Interesting. A lot of us avoid Noodlers - but they are huge sellers.

If you spend any time in the FP subreddit, you'll begin to understand why they're huge sellers.
The low price point is very attractive to those who are young (~15-25) or just starting out. I know I fell into that category at fist, but as soon as I expanded to Iroshizuku and Diamine inks, Noodler's fell off for me. However, there are plenty of people who love their inks and their quirks.

This is a very personal hobby, so really there are no "right" answers (except for "should I push really hard on this nib?" and the right answer will always be NO! )

[Woody]

Sometimes it's simply the color matching of some Noodler Inks. My everyday user for the longest time was Noodler's Nightshade. Wonderful dark brown / burgundy. Loved the stuff. Then suddenly the color changed in one bottle. I got some kind of dark walnut stuff. Go figure. I did reach out to the distributor and they offered to replace a bottle - but I didn't order again. I mentioned this to a couple of the FPG faithful and I ended up learning that many of the colors changed with each order. So the QC for the colors in particular was low.
I still use a Noodlers Blue - but I find that many other brands don't have the QC problem. Sailor and Kobe are fine. DA inks are very good. No color shift from bottle to bottle.

[ethernautrix]

It isn't that I try to avoid brands so much as I focus on getting--and using--specific inks, such as Noodler's Black (boosted with Noodler's/FPH Old Manhattan Black for as long as this bottle lasts, which likely will be a couple of years at least) and Pilot Blue and Pilot Blue-Black. I also like some of KWZ's colors, such as Flame Red and Aztec Gold (to name two even though I could come up with a long list, I'm sure). I wouldn't avoid Sailor inks. I still have some blue-black that I haven't used in a couple of years. I like Platinum Blue-Black, but Pilot's bumped it from rotation. And Platinum Carbon Black, but I don't like to use it in pens I can't remove the nib and scrub the feed (cos of residue).

Currently, I'm trying out a small bottle of Koh-I-Noor Document Black that I picked up on a recent road trip through Czechia, and wow! I'm impressed! Afterwards, I found a couple of reviews at fpn; it was reported that the black wasn't VERY black. I think it's certainly black ENOUGH. Also, it dries quickly on this crappy paper (I like this crappy paper) and doesn't feather. It is nearly water-proof. I'm using it in the Danitrio Fellowship with a steel Jowo #6 EF/PO nib (from fpnibs.com).

Side note: The EF/PO nib isn't in the same league as my beloved Pilot PO nib, but I like it VERY much. VERY much. Now, I want to try fpnibs.com's EEF grind.

Back on-topic: Now that I'm thinking about it, I've tried so many inks from so many brands, and I am reluctant to buy Private Reserve and J. Herbin because of mold (as others have mentioned). While I don't TRY to avoid Diamine, I tend not to give them much notice. Don't know why. I'm partial to KWZ, cos 1) local and 2) colors!

[KKay]

You can add phenol to the ones that tend to get mold. (if you really like that ink otherwise)

[MarkInLondon]

and Iroshizuku line, with caveat I wouldn't put Iroshizuku in sac fillers.

Why not?

[mhosea]

and Iroshizuku line, with caveat I wouldn't put Iroshizuku in sac fillers.

Why not?

Some people worry that exposure to certain inks will lead to early sac failure. Some Noodler's, Private Reserve, and Pilot Iroshizuku inks have been implicated by professional repairmen. Something happened. Questions were asked. Conclusions were drawn. That sort of thing.

Interestingly enough, I think the "hoop" squeeze converter that comes Pilot Metropolitans has a latex sac. Pretty sure the CON-20 has a synthetic sac, however.

[Cyril]

When I read this thread I can see everyone have one or two issus with a particuler ink.
So bacically I take it as If I get a problem, I must get it sorted out and use the ink I have.The more you read and the more feedback to confused developments. Choosing your pens and nibs is the same as ink. You end up getting more pens that dosen't do any good to your writing experience and as a rule of thumb I like to use a trial and erreur and see how it goes.

[urushi4u]

Noodlers. The dangerous formulations, the messed-up branding, and most of all the goddamn hype are enough to make sure I will never frequent these stinking foul dirty waters.