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#1
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higgins inks in fountain pens
Lately I have been experimenting with 3 of higgins brand ink in
fountain pens. The inks a Higgins Eternal Higgins Fountain Pen india Ink Higgins Sepia Calligraphy ink The pens a Wality ED Kaweco Sport and Pilot 78g Cheap Chinese Scheaffer snorkel copy and 78g broad nib Please note that these inks are probably all pigmented and should not be used in pens. I'm coming from the perspective that some analine dye, water, and detergent is all that goes into proper fp ink. All of these inks say they are safe for fountain pens on their boxes. Please note that most of the inks higgins makes will instantly ruin a fountain pen. The higgins eternal and fountain pen india ink are both carbon blacks that are more or less waterproof, but not advertised as such. The sepia is not waterproof, or even water resistant. I've been using the higgins eternal in a wality ED and the pen seems to write a little dryer than before. The nib is a medium size and it is a pretty wet writer. For the first day and a half of use the pen was a little hard to start, but now it starts just fine. There is very little bleed through on mead paper with this combination, just some where one over-writes the same letter. Like on an italic "g". The biggest problem with this combination is constant nib creep, but I feel that is the wality and not the ink. Otherwise, very little bleed-through, even while having a lot of show-through on thin paper, make this ink good with me. The higgins fountain pen india ink seems very similar and performs the same out of a kaweco medium nib. The two exceptions being the ink seems a little less black and there is no nib creep from the kaweco. I needed to dilute the ink slightly by just wetting the nib with on the 78g. There is no nib creep or bleed through with this japanese fine nib. The ink color is dark grey with this combo. The last ink is Higgins Sepia Ink in a a chinese pen and a 78g broad nib. It is similar to the other inks in all qualities except it is thinner and less fussy in the pens. Once it started flowing in the chinese pen it hasn't had a hiccup. I might try and dilute it for the 78g, because it seems to be a little dry for that pen. Both carbon inks smear, but not as much as I have had with noodlers bp black. I did a 30 min soak test, which can be seen online. The carbon inks faired the same and came in second to noodlers in my test. The sepia washed away except for some grey. Here is the link to my internet page: http://matthewk.dyndns.org/doku.php?id=ink_tests There are 4 picture that are less than 300k each. The pictures are only useful for comparing waterproofness. enjoy! matthew |
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#2
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higgins inks in fountain pens
On 2008-07-29, Matthew wrote:
Lately I have been experimenting with 3 of higgins brand ink in fountain pens. http://matthewk.dyndns.org/doku.php?id=ink_tests Forgot to mention, none of these inks seem to feather very much or at all on the cheap papers I use daily. matthew p.s. diamine registrar's ink is posted for comparison. |
#3
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higgins inks in fountain pens
Higgins Fountain Pen India and Pelikan Fount India are actually fine for
fountain pens (unless you let them dry to a crust in the pen). They're both examples of non-waterproof india ink, and only resist water to the extent that the tiny carbon particles can remain trapped in the paper's surface. I _used_ to prefer Pelikan, because it was blacker, but now they seem to be putting a ton of detergent in it and it hoses a big fat line onto the page. In , Matthew wrote: I'm coming from the perspective that some analine dye, water, and detergent is all that goes into proper fp ink. Don't forget humectant and biocide (and of course no one uses aniline dyes, per se, anymore). Have fun! When you're done, try ammonia solution to flush your pens. Brian -- |
#4
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higgins inks in fountain pens
On 2008-07-29, Brian Ketterling wrote:
Higgins Fountain Pen India and Pelikan Fount India are actually fine for fountain pens (unless you let them dry to a crust in the pen). They're both examples of non-waterproof india ink, and only resist water to the extent that the tiny carbon particles can remain trapped in the paper's surface. I _used_ to prefer Pelikan, because it was blacker, but now they seem to be putting a ton of detergent in it and it hoses a big fat line onto the page. In , Matthew wrote: I'm coming from the perspective that some analine dye, water, and detergent is all that goes into proper fp ink. Don't forget humectant and biocide (and of course no one uses aniline dyes, per se, anymore). Have fun! When you're done, try ammonia solution to flush your pens. Brian Thanks for the updates. I just wanted to error on the side of conservatism regarding higgins. Was that pelikan fount india ink or another? matthew p.s. having fun |
#5
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higgins inks in fountain pens
In ,
Matthew wrote: Was that pelikan fount india ink or another? Fount India. Brian -- |
#6
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higgins inks in fountain pens
On Wed, 30 Jul 2008 00:30:01 -0400, "Brian Ketterling"
wrote: In , Matthew wrote: Was that pelikan fount india ink or another? Fount India. After years of using fontindia, it did clog a pen of mine. But that was after years. Since Noodler's BP black is just about as black, I don't use fontindia any more. But I have used Higgins inks and Bombay inks in pens and had no problem so far. |
#7
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higgins inks in fountain pens
One point about those permanent Higgins inks they sell at
misterart.com: when the bottles sit for awhile, unlike the Bombay inks, nothing settles in the bottom of the bottle--there is no sediment. This doesn't mean they won't clog a fountain pen--but it probably does mean they won't instantly clog a fountain pen or even clog a fountain pen in a short period of it. It might take years. It might never happen. I'm thinking I will try them in some cheap pens. One thing about adding detergent as a wetting agent--it seems to make waterproof inks less waterproof. So if I need any wetting agent, I guess I'll use some personal lubricant |
#8
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higgins inks in fountain pens
In ,
The Drunken Lord wrote: This doesn't mean they won't clog a fountain pen--but it probably does mean they won't instantly clog a fountain pen or even clog a fountain pen in a short period of it. It might take years. It might never happen. If you're thinking of waterproof india inks, they'll definitely clog a fountain pen. Technical pens are specifically made to use india ink, and _they_ need to be cleaned regularly -- preferably broken down into all their bits and totally cleaned with every refill. But if Matthew (and you) wants to have fun along the way, what the heck? I would suggest a C/C pen with a nib & feed that can be pulled, after a long soak, for the inevitable clog-scrubbing though. Ammonia solution and dish detergent will soften the shellac build-up, and a soft toothbrush and Q-Tips will be useful. BTW, if you get any technical pens, don't use ammonia on them! Brian -- |
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