Which is best Blue-Black? Noodlers vs Diamine 

Thanks, Rob - yes, a few people have pointed out my schoolboy error!

Always loved the look of the Mark Twain, although never quite able to justify the cost. Legal Blue looks an interesting one. I haven't tested that one (yet!)

Great to hear! Really glad you can see the difference!

I do agree. It's one of my most-used inks - a real favourite.

@@writerlywitterings my fave blue black too

My pleasure! I was expecting that. I've been advised to shake the ink bottle before reusing. I'll give that a try.

I'll have to try that. I also love KWZ's Calm Before the Storm, which has a similar vibe!

i saw it yesterday and will order it !!!!

I haven't tried that yet. I'll have to have a look.

Thanks for watching!

I'm going to have to get a bottle, clearly - you're the fourth to recommend it! Cheers!

I daren't use it except in my cheapest pens! On the other hand, I understand it can be diluted with distilled water to make a safer mix!

@@writerlywitterings I just don’t like the color. I’ve never been a fan of bay state blue but I do very much enjoy Noodlers 54th Massachusetts! That’s a blue-black you could appreciate!

Yes, the problem is that the Noodler's Inks tend to be very sensitive, I'm told. Apparently they have to be really well-shaken before use. You may find the Bay State Blue improves after a shake up - the Blue Black was a really good colour, once I'd shaken the bottle and re-tested it (there was a big apology to Noodlers in the following video!)

Yes, Daniel, I've actually got a new video tomorrow with other Noodlers - and a BIG apology to Noodlers!

Haven't tried that - I may have to take a look!

That's the old version of Plains of Abraham and very desirable. This will be the new formulation since Nathan couldn't get the same ingredients anymore from his suppliers so he had to change the formulation. It's still a gorgeous blue though.

I promise I'll get on to that next time!

I'm looking forward to it!

Thanks for that!

Thanks for that, Mark. I'll have to have a look at Motor Oil. That sounds interesting! And the Air Corps Blue-Black, too.

@@writerlywitterings It sounds like you have quite a backlog of gifted and recommended pen stuff already, but if you haven't checked out Air Corps Blue-Black and you love blue-black ink, it might be worth it to you. Motor Oil from Oster is a very interesting brown, if you like dark browns, and although Oster inks seem a little bit pricey I gladly pay for this one. For my part, I will be trying out some Diamine Blue-Black because I've always found the Diamines you recommend to be top tier stuff.

Thanks for that, Jason. I'll see what I can do with the Pelikan - I do love their inks!

Really odd, this. I had to apologise to Noodler's in my next video. Apparently the Blue Black has to be carefully shaken before filling the pen. The darker elements of the ink precipitate out. Two things strike me: first, I'd not like to fill my pen with a precipitate that could clog the feed; second, why the hell doesn't the manufacturer indicate that this one ink, unlike almost every other (except shimmering types) needs to be shaken before loading?

Thanks - I haven't seen the green side to it but I'll have another look.

I have to admit, I think it's just too strong for almost any paper. It could well be just that paper makers are a lot less careful in the way they make their products - always looking for cheaper options since most of it will go through a printer and not see a fountain pen? Either way, I'm much happier with Dominant Industry, Diamine, or one of the other larger ink makers.

Ah, the next video included an apology - the Noodler's Blue Black needed to be shaken hard before filling the pen. I had no idea! When shaken, it's a good, deep blue black and very pleasing!

@@writerlywitterings Unusual for fountain pen inks. Shaking them is usually not advised. Looking forward to seeing how it looks in the new video.

@@JohnBarrow1961 It is my understanding that the "avoid shaking" advisory is a carryover from the days when iron gall inks were popular. The more you introduced air to those inks, the darker and duller they became. Most modern inks can handle shaking, although it is advised to swirl or rock the ink back and forth rather than shake. Bubbles remain a nuisance and some inks produce crystals as they dry, which can potentially "freeze" the cap to the bottle.

Same here! One of my favourite stand-by inks.

My earlier response seems to have got lost! Anyway, the main thing I said was, you need to see the next video, where I have to apologise to Noodler's. I gave the Blue Black a bit of a shake, and suddenly it was a beautiful dark blue! Apologies for the confusion - I've never had to shake an ink that wasn't shimmering before!

Thanks for that - it was Noodler's Blue Black - but no one had told me beforehand that it's really important to shake the bottle before filling the pen! I had to make that apology in the following video!

Fair comment. I'm going to give the bottle a shake and see if that makes a difference. After all, it will have been frozen in transit, I guess. Thanks for the thoughts!

I treat Noodler's inks like shimmer inks. I give them a gentle rocking/swirling for a good 10-30 seconds prior to fills. With some of Noodler's inks you can see the separation of the dyes. This is true regardless of whether or not the ink has frozen. The ink formally known as Noodler's Kiowa Pecan is gorgeous, but requires a bit of mixing even if your filled pen has been sitting around overnight! I roll the barrel of my pen prior to each use when I have that ink loaded. Noodler's products really should come with instructions, but Nathan Tardiff is unapologetic with his creations. Noodler's products-inks or pens-are meant for tinkerers rather than people who expect consistent results straight out of the package. I'm a tinkerer who tries to appreciate what he has while he has it, so I enjoy the "3 inks in one bottle" perspective. So here's a question for you: How do you think Noodler's "sapphire" blue-black top layer compares to other sapphire blues? I seem to recall from other videos that sapphire blue isn't your preferred color, but I would imagine you'd at least have thoughts on various sapphires' behavior on the page.

@@twitch7515I’m there with you. I find a certain charm in using small batch handcrafted inks. Even though there might be some color variations due to availability of pigments or dyes. The tinkering thing is also why I use Noodler’s pens exclusively for my artwork. Nathan (Noodler’s owner) says in one of his videos that Noodler’s pens are said to be the most “hackable” pens in the world. That’s a statement I cannot argue with. You can do all kinds of modifications to the nibs and feeds of Noodler’s pens to make them write however you like. I bought several extra feeds for my Ahab/Konrad pens and a bunch of the untipped nibs to cut and shape for various uses. The nibs are cheap at $1.50 USD and can be quickly and easily shaped with simple tools. A true tinkerers delight.

Thanks - do you usually shake the bottle? I've been advised to try that (although I don't like the idea of particles in suspension). I really do think it must be a faulty batch or something!

@@writerlywitterings Yeah, one of the ink videos suggested that I shake all bottles before I filled from them.

@@santoshjanakiraman8907 Thanks for that. I'll give it a go!

HI, Johnny - no, the two were pretty much identical. The main difference was that the dip nib put down more ink so it looked darker while wet.All your suggestions are fair - but I have to admit, I prefer something like the Diamine which shows what you're getting immediately!

Thanks for the biggest laugh of the evening! I like that, especially (of course) with relation to tea! Thanks, Kaspers

I think you are probably right, but one hint I've been given is that some Noodlers do need to be shaken before used. I'll try that with this one for next week's video. Thanks for the comment!

@@writerlywitterings Yes, shaking might help. Blue-Black seemed to me to have a black component that was permanent and could separate a from the non-permanent fraction of the ink though I only noticed this when cleaning pens where it had been sitting for too long.

Thanks, Javier - I will do that. Both have been highly recommended!

I'd suggest looking at Rohrer und Klingner's Eisen Gallus Tinte "Salix", which is a lovely blue-black tending towards the black (to my eye). Works really well for me in all pens.

@@writerlywitterings Oh yes, it's one of the inks I'd like to try at some point. And your advice will speed things up!

@@caterinarollo Thanks, Caterina - hope you like it!

@@writerlywitterings I think I will! Thank you, Mike!

Sorry, I can't help you. It was a gift from a Canadian viewer, and I don't have the shop's details. However, apparently if you buy from most Canadian outlets they do this to stop the ink bottles exploding at high altitude and in the cold.

Aloha - or, as my family tend to say - Wotcha! One other you might like to look at is Rohrer und Klingner's Eisen Gallus Tinte "Salix", which is a lighter colour at first, but dries to a deep, dark blue like a dark blue-black. I love it.

@@writerlywitterings Mahalo Michael for the suggestion. I actually have a bottle of that ink, so I have tried it, but haven't used it recently or even looked at how the ink has darkened over time. Will need to check on that today and may even use it later today as my "ink of the day!" Thanks again for the reminder ....

@@kauaiphotography No problem, my friend. Have a great weekend!

Sorry, these are the only four Noodler's inks I have tried. I might try to get some Black Swan to test, though. They sound interesting.

Both roses have a black component that are semi-permanent and provide some nice shading. English Roses is a red that leans pink, especially if you don't mix the bottle prior to filling. Australian Roses is more of a raspberry/wine color. I'd argue that both are more into the rose pink spectrum than red, especially when compared to Noodler's Red-Black. English roses is rosy red if the pen is wet enough. Poor mixing and finer/drier nibs will bring out the pink. It is either a pinkish red or a reddish pink, saturated or pastel, depending on how you use it. (As an aside: I consider Noodler's Red-Black to be a nice water resistant alternative to Diamine's Oxblood and it has the most utility of the three Noodler's inks mentioned here.) English is the more professional of the two Roses. It could pass in the business world if you bring out the red in it. Both are saturated enough and provide enough contrast to use as a daily note-taking ink or correspondence ink without being garish or inducing headaches. Both inks handle dip pens just fine but expect feathering and showthrough on cheaper papers. English Roses has that "wooly" texture which appears in calligraphy/automatic pens. I don't have a sample of Australian Roses in a wide nib, sadly, and I don't recall if it has a wooly texture. Both inks are fun and are wonderful options for springtime, love letters, or a touch of warmth to doodles. Both provide a lovely respite from your favorite inks but I'd suggest acquiring samples from a friend. Unless you love the colors I'd consider both inks to be "special occasion" inks. 3oz/88mL of each is enough to last me two or more lifetimes! I have a preference for Australian Roses because it pops off the page a bit more and because the English variety sometimes appears dangerously close to one of my least favorite colors: mauve. However, I reach for reds more than pinks, so I've used more English Roses than Australian.

It is a TWSBI Go. They're very common now. I always have used Cult Pens, because they are just up the road from me, and always have been entirely reliable with their postage, but you can find them from loads of suppliers around the world.

I had to apologise in the follow-up video - the Noodler's needed a shake. Once I did that, the colour was correct. Never had to shake a bottle before, apart from the odd shimmering ink!

I have nothing against Noodlers (my comments on Baystate Blue were for fun, although with a serious side since I've found it really hard on all papers), but this one did surprise me. I'm going to give it some more tests to see if I did something wrong, but the colour as shown here certainly wasn't a blue-black in my view!

I wonder too. It's far too light for a BB I think. I wasn't sure, but others have said the same after the video, so I reckon something went wrong. It's not darkened since the video, I have to say!

@@writerlywitterings Wonder why it shows up differently (more like blue-black) with the dip pen.

It wasn't a mislabeled bottle. Noodler's Blue-Black would be better labeled as Noodler's Blue & Black. It's a bright, highly-saturated medium-dark blue that quickly and smoothly shades to navy/almost black when properly mixed. Its brightness and touch of green prevents it from appearing as navy-colored as Diamine's Oxford Blue but it is more of a navy blue than Noodler's Navy, IMO. It is a gorgeous color but not the semi-saturated greyish dark blue that I think of when I think of "classic" blue-black.

It is a great label, certainly!

Thanks, Gristle, and yes, I think it may be mis-labelled. It's a small company, so it's not surprising, really, but I'm pretty sure that cannot be the right colour for a blue-black! Have a great weekend!

@@writerlywitterings Yes, Sir, definitely the wrong ink. Marilyn Darling just did a review of Diamine Deep Dark Blue today, at the end of the video, he compared it to several blues, in the blue black cards, the Noodler's blue black was was quite darker. So yes, definitely the wrong ink in that bottle they sent you. Still, it is a lovely blue! You have a great day as well!

I'm going to have to try it - so many people here have recommended it! Thanks for the comment, Lucy!

Air Corp is much greener. A green-heavy teal-black. I bought a sample of it when I was searching for a BB. I assumed I wouldn't like it but it is quite nice. It might be too green for some business environments so I'm not in any hurry to buy a full bottle... yet. Definitely a good suggestion though. A must try.

Hi, Valerie, and no, I confess I didn't. But I don't expect to have to generally. I've never had an ink that required a shake before use. I'll give that a try and see what happens. Mind you, I'm not happy about an ink that could sediment out! Blocked nib and feed seems a high price to pay for a pretty colour!

Sadly it is! It's Blue black from Noodlers. I discovered something about the ink last week - it'll be in tonight's video!

Shockingly, it's only because I didn't shake the bottle! If you see the next video, after several people had shouted at me, it turned into a glorious blue black!

Absolutely - that's the nearer colour to my eye!

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