(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)
While Sailor recently refreshed their main ink lineup, that doesn't mean they haven't been busy experimenting with other ink colors at the same time. The Sailor Manyo ink series is a collection of eight dye-based inks that represent popular flowers that are frequently mentioned in the Japanese Man'yōshū — an ancient collection of poems.
Kuzu is a subtle dusty purple ink that has some hidden depths that only surface in the right conditions. It's a beautiful color that doesn't immediately offer up all of its secrets, and that's the main reason I've enjoyed using it.
To be honest, I wasn't very impressed with this ink when I first started using it. At first glance, it's just a really bland dark purple that doesn't exhibit any exciting properties. But if you use the right nib and expose the ink to the right light, other colors start to pop up.
Underneath the dusty plum exterior, there are shades of brown, red, and green. And, in the right light, there's even a slight golden sheen! These hidden qualities are really what make this ink interesting. It's just unfortunately that you have to use an incredibly wide and wet nib in order to see them. In most nibs, this ink just looks like a dull brown-purple with a slight tendency to feather.
There's a slight amount of shading, but (again) this only comes out with a fairly wide nib. It changes between black-purple to a medium dark-brown, which is a subtle but elegant change.
Dry time with Kuzu is extremely fast! Most of the time, this ink is dry by 15 seconds, if not quicker. Definitely something to consider if you value quick dry times.
Being a dye-based ink, there isn't any water-resistance to speak of. This definitely isn't an archival-quality ink, so look elsewhere for that.
At 50ml, this is a standard-sized ink bottle that will last for quite a while. And at just under $20, it's also a great deal and very competitive.
I wanted to love this ink, but I'm just not enjoying using it in my day-to-day writing. The dark and dull color isn't interesting, and I'm disappointed that the hidden properties of this ink only come out with ultra-wide nibs and swatching. That isn't how most people use fountain pen inks, so just understand that you won't really see the shading, sheen, and hidden greens, browns, and reds unless you're using a brush.
If you're looking for a dark, understated purple-black ink, Sailor Manyo Kuzu is a fantastic choice!
(Goldspot provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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