Parker Quink Blue Black Ink Review

It's not often I get to use the word portmanteau (unless I'm watching TMZ, of course) but that is exactly what the Quink in Parker Quink is. It is a combination of 'quick', as in quick drying, and 'ink', as in, well, ink. Those two features are what made Parker Quink fountain pen ink so popular in its heyday, but how does it compare to the wide range of inks now available to consumers?

I am a bit of a blue black aficionado so of course I chose Parker's entry into this crowded color field to see how I liked it. The ink is very well behaved, flowing nicely from my TWSBI 1.5 mm stub nib and leaving behind excellent shading characteristics. It dries reasonably quickly as well, although not as quink (see what I did there?) as something like Noodler's Bernanke Blue.

My hold up with falling in love with this ink is the color. With very few exceptions, I like my blue black inks to contain just those two shades. Parker Quink Blue Black has too much green in it for me to use regularly. It is hard to explain, and even hard to see in the pictures, but there is something not as pure about it as say Lamy Blue Black or Pelikan Blue Black, which are two of my favorites.

If the color is to your liking you will love how this ink performs. You will love the price too, and I can see it being many people's workhorse ink. For me, I'll be inking up with something else.

For another take on this classic ink check out the review from Seize the Dave.

(JetPens is an advertiser on The Pen Addict and I received this product at no charge.)

Sailor Bung Box Blue Black Fountain Pen Ink Review

I received an epic batch of not-easy-to-come-by ink samples in January that knocked my socks off (thanks Richard!), and while I have had a chance to play with some of them I'm just now getting the chance to write them up. Sailor Bung Box Blue Black (aka Sailor 4B) is the first, and maybe the best.

My love of blue black inks is well known, and this package contained a wide variety of samples I had never heard of, much less tried. I went with the Sailor 4B first because I was also sent a cool empty box and bottle of this ink to see how Sailor packages these specialty inks for Japanese retailer Bungubox. Yes, it is only available directly through them unfortunately, unless you want to work some eBay magic.

The ink itself is fantastic. It is one of the most shaded blue black inks I have used and it has a nice red sheen that I had a hard time capturing. This ink could use more close-up photos to show off all of its properties. I'll work on that. It nails the color ratios too. There are no hints of stray colors - like green - that often ruin some blue black inks for me.

This is a standout ink, one I would give up a body part or two to acquire more of. Thanks Richard for sending me this sample!

(Note: Bungubox just launched an Amazon Shop. Several inks are available (not this one) but I'm not going to bother linking them because it would cost you almost $60 for one bottle of ink with shipping.)

Sailor Jentle Limited Edition Autumn 2010 Kin Mokusei Orange Ink Review

When I posted my review of the Sailor Limited Edition Oku Yama a few weeks back and explained my current ink fetish, I was actually reviewing the inks I purchased a bit out of order. Seeing writing samples of the Limited Edition Autumn 2010 Kin Mokusei online was the real impetus for my shopping spree.

It is a surprise to no one that I am a fan of orange, and Kin Mokusei is a brilliant orange ink. The shading is beautiful, ranging from yellow to deep orange without any appearance of brown or red. It is very rich looking and well behaved too, with excellent dry times. It flowed equally as well from both my TWSBI Mini 1.5mm stub nib and Pilot Falcon SEF.

My hangup with Kin Mokusei is I already own this ink in the form of Sailor Jentle Apricot. I had this concern when I ordered the ink and it turned out to be valid. Unlike Oku Yama, which I felt was able to stand on its own and seperate itself from other inks, I think Kin Mokusei is not worth the money. It is so similar that the 2-3 times premium price to Apricot is money better spent elsewhere.

How similar? Take a look at this chromatography test

So far, I'm 1-for2 with my Limited Edition Sailor ink purchases. Oku Yama is a keeper and Kin Moskuei is redundant. I have two more to test and review, and early indications show that this next one may be the big winner of the bunch.