Review: Liberty's Elysium

[Jimmy James]

Pen: Bexley Corona


Paper: Clairfontaine A4 90gsm (page 1), Rhodia No. 16 80 gsm (page 2), Norcom (USA) single subject notebook (page 3), Hammermill Tidal MP 20 pound (ink form)


Wow.This ink is as billed! I thought Brian Goulet’s photos looked just slightly green on my computer, but there is no green or purple here. This appears to be the killer bulletproof ink. I even seem to be getting hints of shading. I also see some subtle shading on my invoice.


As you can tell, I am using a broad nib with average flow. The dry time is pretty decent. It definitely is not instant, but it isn’t bad. I am seeing no show through and no bleed through on Clairefontaine and Rhodia. I am also getting no feathering on this paper. Lubrication is ample, and flow is average.


Based on a quick scan of my blue pens, I think long term this ink will go in my blue TWSBI 530. I may buy a 1.1 italic to help it really shine. My Lamy Al-Star Ocean Blue is too purplish as is my Edison Pearl LEA.


I predicted this would be Goulet cling wrap blue and it really is.



Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr


Brian and Rachel Goulet have done a lot to surprise and delight us, but the way they handled this ink is at the top of my list! I remember the excitement and subsequent disappointment due to Pelikan Edelstein and Everflo True Blue. Here, Brian and Rachel undersold the product. Rachel casually mentioned a new ink in the Goulet Communique, and she waited for me to start the thread about it on FPN. She reeled us in hook, line, and sinker. Anticipation grew and was at fever pitch for the release! What a release!


The properties of this ink are surprisingly consistent between higher end paper like the Clairefontaine and Rhodia and lower end paper like the Norcom. On Norcom, I see slight show through but no bleed through or feathering. Not surprisingly the dry time is faster on the Norcom.


I am stunned by Nathan Tardif’s work on this ink. I have to wonder what discovery led him to this ink because I have to imagine if this were easily made we would have had it far sooner. I am glad the passion of the Goulets for this product inspired Nathan to the point he figured out the formula for this ink.


I just completed the ink form and tested most of my blue inks against this ink. I have nothing quite like this ink. The closest is probably Everflo True Blue ink. Its properties are worse than this ink, and it does not resist water.


This could very well become my favorite ink. Time will tell.


Unwrapping video:

Water test in progress photos:

Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr



Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr


Handwritten review:

Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr



Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr



Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr


Review form:

Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr


As an addendum, this ink looks to me nothing like Baystate Blue. Baystate Blue is way more vibrant but is also way purpler. This is a true blue.

 

[oc_in_fw]

Thanks Jimmy James. I need some 1.1mm nibs for my Lamys, so I think I will add some of this to the order.

 

[garyg]

Looks real nice, thanks for the review Jimmy J .. hopefully my bottle will make it here to the hinterlands tomorrow

 

[Dave258]

Thanks for the review! When I went to order a bottle it was already sold out! I will try to get it next time.

 

[BigAlum]

Thanks for the review! When I went to order a bottle it was already sold out! I will try to get it next time.

Wow, sold out already! So much for my procrastination...oh, yes, many thanks to Jimmy J for the review.

 

[TheGravedigger]

Got a bottle inbound at this time. Glad I moved fast!

 

[Jimmy James]

If you missed out, Rachel Goulet has indicated they'll have additional stocks as soon as next week. It sounds like they anticipated the demand pretty well.

 

[DunEdinRanger]

I may have to acquire this...

 

[oc_in_fw]

If you missed out, Rachel Goulet has indicated they'll have additional stocks as soon as next week. It sounds like they anticipated the demand pretty well.

The Goulets are evil, evil people... Of course, they have oompah loompas working for them. I must order more

 

[Isaac]

Im shocked you received it so fast. I hope my bottle will be waiting for me when I awake.

 

[Altair]

Thanks for the review.

 

[djh]

Great review- thanks for sharing it. I'm not normally a big blue ink user, but that certainly does look interesting.

 

[Jimmy James]

Im shocked you received it so fast. I hope my bottle will be waiting for me when I awake.

I have to pay sales tax, but there are definite advantages to living around two hours away from the Goulets. I was actually slightly surprised I didn't get the order until Friday because the Goulets got it to the post office on Wednesday (within 2 hours of my order!).

ETA: I have a few additions to make to the review I'll gather and post later today.

 

[ChefJohnBoy-ardee]

If I didn't have a near full bottle of Noodler's Blue...

Nice review sir!

 

[SmoovD]

It looks close to Blue Eel...and I love that so I should probably get an order put together. Thanks for the review, Jimmy. Very nice to have you around B&B.

 

[strop]

If I didn't have a near full bottle of Noodler's Blue...

Nice review sir!

This looks like a much more vibrant blue than that, which to me is more blue black.

I'm about due for an order anyway!

 

[Doc4]

If I didn't have a near full bottle of Noodler's Blue...

This looks like a much more vibrant blue than that, which to me is more blue black.

I"ve had Noodler's Midway Blue for the longest time ... loved the colour, but it's let down by being far too feathery as well as totally non-waterproof. Maybe L-E is going to be similar in hue, but much better behaved!

 

[bassopotamus]

That looks great. I've been looking for a waterproof blue for a while, and haven't found a winner yet. This looks like a contender.

 

[Jimmy James]

I"ve had Noodler's Midway Blue for the longest time ... loved the colour, but it's let down by being far too feathery as well as totally non-waterproof. Maybe L-E is going to be similar in hue, but much better behaved!

Midway Blue is greener, but I still love it in spite of its properties. This ink really is pretty close other than not being as green and having better properties.

As I'll be documenting when I get a chance by gathering stuff I've done over at FPN in response to the review, it is pretty clear this is not a completely waterproof ink. It seems like it is semi-bulletproof. You'll see soon.

 

[Jimmy James]

Additions to the review:

Rhodia page after a 10 minute soak test:

Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr

Norcom page soak test in progress:

IMG_0378 by Erechtheus, on Flickr


Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr

Norcom page after a 10 minute soak test:

Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr

The blue tinge on the bottom is actually the ink from the ruling on the paper, not from the LE. The paper didn't fit all the way in the container I was using for the soak.

Splash/coffee cup test on Clairefontaine:

Liberty's Elysium by Erechtheus, on Flickr

The good news here is that when I soaked this page after drying, most of the mess disappeared. I'll update again with a scan of that when the page is dry again.

I conclude based on these findings that this is in fact a semi-bulletproof ink. That is, it is composed of a vibrant blue ink that is completely washable and a pastel blue ink that is bulletproof. It also means that this ink is useful for situations where your notes might get splashed with water because you can soak the page and remove the mess from the vibrant blue color. It isn't as useful for mailing something because the letter might just get splashed with ink and make it difficult to deliver. I think the ink is still excellent and love it, but I don't think it is accurate to call it completely bulletproof.