If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
The Mystique of Parker Penman Sapphire
I bought a bottle of Parker Penman Sapphire (PPS) back in the days when
it was still in regular production. That bottle is long gone now, but I remember loving the stuff. I thought it was beautiful, it was striking. It seems now that it's been discontinued for a while, PPS has become something of a notorious ink -- both feared and coveted by fountain pen fanatics. I decided to do a little research to answer a few questions, for my own enlightenment. . . Did PPS have any special magical quality that other inks lack? What's the closest substitute available today, and how close is it? I don't think it's possible to fairly analyze PPS without first looking at the difference in times between then and now. When I bought my bottle the main inks I was already familiar with were the ubiquitous Sheaffer Skrip and Parker Quink. They were old-fashioned inks with drab, faded, watery-looking colors. Private Reserve hadn't come into existence yet, and neither had Noodler's. As far as I'm aware, Parker was first to introduce a premium ink line, which was separate from their regular inks. That explains a lot of its impact at the time. It foretold the rise of premium inks and the highly saturated, vivid colors that would soon come into fashion. Penman ink also came in a lovely bottle, which I still think is among the most convenient and attractive that I've seen. Penman ink had a dark side, as it developed a reputation for staining and clogging pens. It was a problem ink, and that is most likely why it was withdrawn from the market. I've ran a Google search to find out what inks have been suggested as a close match for Sapphire. Several have been mentioned, but Noodler's Blue and Private Reserve DC Supershow Blue (and its virtually identical twin, Private Reserve American Blue) raised the most flags. Anecdotally, DC Supershow Blue was said to be deliberately formulated as a color match for PPS. One person mentioned Levenger Cobalt Blue, which left me scratching my head in puzzlement. I tried Levenger's ink back when it first was introduced, and I thought their blue at the time was ugly and nothing like PPS. Maybe it has been reformulated since then? One person mentioned Noodler's Luxury Blue as being the waterproof ink that most resembles PPS. I took that as a weak recommendation, as there are very few waterproof blue inks to choose from. I was curious to try it anyhow, as a waterproof blue sounded like a good idea. In order to perform my own comparison, I took an old PPS cartridge, drained it using a syringe, and injected the ink into a couple of pens: a Sheaffer Balance II with a broad stub nib, and a Pelikan R200 demonstrator with a fine nib. I then made a large number of writing samples on a couple of dissimilar, but high-quality, papers: Brazilian "whiter-than-white" notebook paper, and Texas Bond. My plan is to approach the subject methodically: to collect several blue inks, load them into the same pens, and write samples on the same paper, side-by-side with the PPS samples. Sapphire truly is an attractive ink, by the way, even by today's standards. I'm just getting started, and I still don't have the PR inks that I most want to compare, but I've already made some observations. . . Noodler's Blue American Eel, which I already had a bottle of, is very close in color to PPS. When scribbling my signature with Blue Eel, my first impression was, "It's the same thing!" I'm not sure whether it's worth trying to get a bottle of the regular, non-lubricating blue for an additional comparison. After closer examination, what I can say is that Blue Eel is just ever-so-slightly lighter, or less saturated, than PPS, but the difference is barely detectable with a wet-writing pen like the Balance II. The drier-writing Pelikan made the difference noticeable -- at least when the samples were side by side. A careful comparison of the different samples on various papers led me to conclude that there is some kind of precipitate or residue (dare I say "pigment?") that accumulates on the paper surface as Penman ink dries. It makes Penman slightly more opaque than other inks, and it creates a greater variation in density. By that I mean, PPS can go from pure "blue jean" blue to deep midnight blue within the span of a single letter. Other inks (including Blue Eel) exhibit density variation, but it is somewhat exaggerated in the Penman inks. This gives the writing a richer and more vibrant appearance. My sample of Parker Penman Ruby -- a truly unnattractive red-brown color that reminds me of dried blood -- exhibited the same residue effect. I have to speculate that this residue, whatever it may be, is also the cause of the many staining and clogging problems that plagued users of Penman inks. (I never experienced those problems myself. My personal nightmare ink was Private Reserve Candy Apple Red.) I think that answers my first question about PPS. Does it have some unique and "magical" quality? Yeah, but it's subtle and surely not worth the hassles that it has caused. I'm certain most people would glance at the PPS and Blue Eel samples and see no readily apparent difference. You have to look close. (Incidentally, I found the "American Eel" lubricating ink lives up to its advertising as being noticeably smoother-writing.) I also got some Noodler's Luxury Blue, but it was a disappointment. It's a somewhat faded color that more resembles the old Sheaffer Skrip. It also feathers badly, even feathering and mottling slightly on my Texas Bond paper. If you want a true blue permanent and waterproof ink, it might be the best available, but that's not saying much. (I'd suggest Noodler's Legal Lapis as a more practical waterproof and tamper-resistant "blue" ink, even though it's blue-black rather than true blue. I find that diluting it with water helps it look more blue than black.) PR American Blue is at the top of my list to get my hands on next. Would anyone care to offer some other suggestions? -- Tony Belding, Hamilton Texas |
Ads |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
The Mystique of Parker Penman Sapphire
Great write-up. We'd sure like to have you re-post over in the ink
reviews threads on www.fountainpennetwork.com If you could post some pictures of your comparisions, that'd be even better! |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
The Mystique of Parker Penman Sapphire
On 2009-11-19 01:17:56 -0600, FPN said:
Great write-up. We'd sure like to have you re-post over in the ink reviews threads on www.fountainpennetwork.com If you could post some pictures of your comparisions, that'd be even better! I may do that after I've gotten more inks to compare. It's not really a complete report without at *least* testing PR American Blue. A bottle is on the way to me. Also interesting. . . I saw on Wikipedia an explanation that Penman was actually withdrawn from the market after new EU regulations forced Parker to reveal that it contained uranium compounds and is slightly radioactive. I'm not sure if that presented a legal problem for Parker, or merely a public relations problem. -- Tony Belding, Hamilton Texas |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
The Mystique of Parker Penman Sapphire
Tony Belding wrote:
Also interesting. . . I saw on Wikipedia an explanation that Penman was actually withdrawn from the market after new EU regulations forced Parker to reveal that it contained uranium compounds and is slightly radioactive. I'm not sure if that presented a legal problem for Parker, or merely a public relations problem. This is the first I've heard of it, and I don't see any source for this claim given in the article. Here's the link to the Material Safety Data Sheet on Quink and Penman inks: http://www.sanford.com/sanford/pdfs/Parker%20Quink%20Penman%20Ink.pdf -- Steve My e-mail address works as is. |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Penman Sapphire origin info | Audra | Pens & Pencils | 9 | June 8th 05 06:52 PM |
Drop-in replacements for Parker Penman Sapphire | Juhapekka Tolvanen | Pens & Pencils | 3 | March 24th 05 05:50 AM |
Penman Ink | don | Pens & Pencils | 1 | December 3rd 04 04:53 PM |
where have the extortionately priced penman auctions gone? | Ada Ma | Pens & Pencils | 9 | December 3rd 04 11:45 AM |
Question mixing Noodlers & Penman Sapphire | Kenneth D. Schillinger | Pens & Pencils | 8 | October 7th 04 08:32 PM |