Posts filed under Robert Oster

Robert Oster Polar Vortex Fountain Pen Ink Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

There are many Robert Oster inks that pay homage to a city or location, but Atlas Stationers have an exclusive ink that is named after a cold weather event in early 2019 that set a lot of temperature records in the area. The cold wave, which originated from the polar vortex further north, caused temperatures in the Chicago area to dip to −23 °F (−31 °C), with a windchill of −52 °F (−47 °C). There's nothing like crazy weather that bands together a community!

Dubbed Polar Vortex, this gray ink with blue and purple tones is offered exclusively by Atlas Stationers and made by Robert Oster. As Atlas describe on the product page, the ink color matches the winter sky. I'm just glad I'm enjoying it from the comfort of my heated home instead of the frigid conditions that it borrows its name from.

Polar Vortex is definitely a gray ink, but there's a delightful amount of purple and blue hues that come through in different light and depending on the amount of ink on the page. Heavy/thick strokes are undeniably dark gray, but there's plenty of medium-gray and gray-purple in the shaded areas. One of the things I enjoy most about Robert Oster inks is the amount of shading, and this one is no slouch. The cold gray tone is definitely a perfect fit for these short winter months.

Despite being a dark ink, there isn't any significant show-through on the back side of Rhodia paper with a wet medium cursive italic nib. On thinner paper, this might be a bit of an issue, but (for my tastes at least) still totally possible to use both sides of the page. The ink also lays down a crisp, sharp line. I haven't noticed any feathering or bleeding. In terms of performance, it behaves just as I expect a Robert Oster ink to behave (meaning, it behaves very well).

Dry time leaves a little to be desired, but it's not terrible. The ink dries in as little as 20 seconds and up to 45 seconds depending on the speed of the stroke and how wide or wet the nib is. I wouldn't recommend this ink for any left-handed writers.

At $18 for a 50ml bottle, the price is similar to what you'll find for any bottle of Robert Oster ink. It's great ink, and the price fits the quality. It's a beautiful gray ink with subtle purple and blue tones, and also a reminder of a rare weather event for the upper mid-west! If it looks interesting to you, you won't be disappointed in how this ink works in your pen or in how it looks on the page.

(Brad bought this ink at a discount from Atlas Stationers during the 2023 Fountain Pen Day event.)


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Posted on February 14, 2024 and filed under Robert Oster, Ink Reviews.

Robert Oster NYC Pen Show 2022 Ink Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

Combining three things that you love into one thing is quite a challenge, but that's what I have in the Robert Oster NYC Pen Show ink from 2022. This special edition ink from Robert Oster hits three positive notes for me out of the gate: Robert Oster inks, pen shows, and NYC. Even though I've never attended a pen show in New York, this ink caught my attention.

Robert Oster NYC Pen Show 2022 is a sky blue ink that leans toward the darker side of this particular hue. In a word, it's gorgeous. It's a lovely color with the shading goodness I've come to expect from Oster inks. And of course it's also well-behaved and easy to use and clean. The one thing I can find wrong with this ink is the simple fact that I already have so many similar inks in my collection. Sky blue or turquoise is something I'm drawn to by forces I can't explain, but despite that self-admitted problem, this ink still stands out as a unique shade of this lovely blue color. It's darker than some of my favorites — like Lamy Turquoise or Iroshizuku kon-peki — but still has enough brightness to scratch the itch I have for this color zone.

For me, an ink that only presents a single color on the page is kind of boring. Sometimes that's exactly what you want out of an ink, but I tend to lean toward inks that have noticeable shading effects. This ink shades nicely between a medium and light sky blue even with smaller nibs. It's just enough variation in color to attract the eye and drop plenty of hints about the type of pen being used to make the marks. It's elegant and happy, and that's why I like using it.

In terms of performance, it's top-notch. No feathering or bleeding, and minimal show-through on the back of the page when writing with a wet 1.1mm stub nib. This is exactly what I've come to expect from this ink brand and why I never hesitate to try out new colors that look interesting. I know they'll at least perform well even if I don't love the color!

Dry time isn't phenomenal, but it's respectable. It dries for me in under 15 or 20 seconds in most cases, and even faster with a finer nib (I used a 1.1mm stub in the photo writing sample). Still, this won't be a good option for writers that drag their hand across the left side of the page while writing.

I'm sure that you can find another ink (probably several) that match this ink in terms of hue and shading properties. There really are so many ink options in this spectrum (bordering on too many), and you'll likely know immediately if it's too similar to something you already have. For me, it looked a little darker than anything else I had in my collection, and I was lucky enough to have guessed right in this case.

Robert Oster NYC Pen Show 2022 is a special edition ink that I'm glad to have in my collection. It's a beautiful medium sky blue with lovely shading properties. If you can't snag this limited edition, I'm sure we can find something very similar or identical to this one. And I bet I'll have an inexplicable urge to buy that ink too! At $21 for 50ml, this ink is priced a few bucks higher than the standard inks, and I imagine this has something to do with the limited nature and smaller scale. The price and quantity is still reasonable for the beautiful color and excellent performance, so don't hesitate if you love the color and need another sky blue ink in your life.

(Goldspot provided this product at a discount to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)


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Posted on May 17, 2023 and filed under Robert Oster, Ink Reviews.

Robert Oster Cities of America: Chicago Ink Review

Robert Oster Cities of America: Chicago Ink Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

I've long been a fan of Robert Oster’s inks that take so much inspiration from Australia, so I was intrigued to learn about his Cities of America series. The first variant of the collection I've scored is the Chicago ink, which is a lovely denim blue color with hints of green and gray interspersed.

When confronted with the question of what color a certain city makes you think or feel, I'm not sure there's ever a correct answer. More than likely, you'll get as many unique answers responses. For me, Chicago is vibrant yet cold and hard. A steely gray with some character comes to mind. But, there's also color. Lake Michigan, the Cubs, the bustling downtown, all the rich history that makes Chicago what it is today. For Robert Oster, Chicago is a dusty denim with tones of green and gray. I like the color he chose for this city, but (more importantly) it's just a great color for an ink.

Robert Oster Chicago

The shading that this ink exhibits makes it every more difficult for me to determine the exact colors. It has layers, and that's exactly what I've come to expect from Robert Oster inks. It's not simply one color. It has depth, and it can even shift between light and nibs.

So whether it's a dusty blue or a slightly green-gray blue, this ink will continue to surprise you — similar to how a big city will continue to surprise you over time.

Writing with this ink is fantastic. If you've used a Robert Oster ink before in the past, you'll know what to expect. The delivery is smooth and predictable, and it works nicely on virtually all combinations of nibs and paper types.

Robert Oster Chicago

Dry time is fairly good as well. In most cases, the ink was smudge-proof by 10 or 15 seconds if I was writing lightly. When writing slower and really letting the ink flow well and pool up in certain areas, the ink takes more like 20 to 25 seconds to fully dry. For most normal writing, it's a pretty quick dryer.

Feathering and bleeding are non-existant with this ink, as least in my testing on nice paper. You can expect some feathering on thinner paper or copy paper, but it's not bad considering.

At $18 for a 50ml bottle, it's a great deal. The bottle is a great shape and has a good opening for accommodating most pen section sizes. It might struggle a bit with large nibs, but there's always eyedroppers and aftermarket glass ink bottles for those situations.

Chicago belongs to the first series of the Cities of America collection, and there's been promise of a second series coming sometime this year.

Chicago is a lovely ink color that really finds a nice spot in between blue, gray, and green in a way that only Robert Oster can manage. The extra character found in the shading and other behaviors just make it more special.

If you haven't tried any of Robert Oster's inks, definitely give one a try soon!

(Pen Chalet provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)


Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!

Robert Oster Chicago
Posted on May 25, 2022 and filed under Robert Oster, Ink Reviews.