Starting to dislike Noodler's Bad Blue Heron

[Deacon Frank]

My favorite ink has been Bad Blue Heron - I love the color and the waterfastness. However, the more I use other brands of ink, the less I like the performance of the Noodler's. For instance, in my Lamy 2000 medium nib, Montblanc Midnight Blue flows beautifully every time and glides over the paper. BBH has flow problems if it sits for a day, and it feels chalky. It seems to congeal a little between the tines, and it takes some "exercise" to work it out and get reliable, wet flow. I only have one pen that works reliably with BBH, a Sheaffer Triumph Imperial, but even that has issues sometimes.

Any suggestions for an ink that has a similar color to BBH, and is highly water resistant, but doesn't have the flow issues or chalky feel? The Montblanc is nice, but I prefer a slightly lighter blue (Midnight Blue dries very dark). Pilot Blue is too bright, although I really like it as an occasional ink.

 

[Suzuki]

While I can't provide any specific colour recommendations, some brands that seem to work well for me are Diamine, J. Herbain and Private Reserve - all of which have a broad selection of colours.

Hope this helps.

 

[SmoovD]

I love the blues from Diamine but they are not water resistant save for their Registrar's Ink. If you don't mind a little blacker you could try Sailor Jentle Blue Black.

 

[Doc4]

You will generally find that ink making is a balancing act between different characteristics. If you want more of this characteristic, you add something that costs you some of that characteristic. The Noodler's "Warden Series" IMHO is trying to push the anti-fraud envelope as far as possible, so that can cost it a bit in terms of other performance/colour issues.

I know that blue is a hard colour to get waterproof, compared to some others.

Be sure to look into ink samples from the Goulets or elsewhere, as nothing lasts longer than a 98%-full bottle of ink that you dislike.

 

[syngent]

Why is water resistance so important ? Just curious

 

[Mr5x5]

Why is water resistance so important ? Just curious

In case you spill water on your cat and it walks across your paper?

 

[Slivovitz]

Why is water resistance so important ? Just curious

It's something that we learn to take for granted with ballpoint inks, at least the blues and blacks that most people use most of the time. You may not always actually need water resistance, but if you don't know in advance how you'll be using your pen, it's nice not to have to think about it when the occasion comes up. And after all, accidents happen. It would be a shame to lose half your meeting notes because somebody loses control of his bottled water.

Regrettably, no real answer for the OP. There are lots of water resistant inks other than Noodlers, and lots of other inks with multiple colors. Noodlers, however, seems to have the widest range of colors with water resistance,

 

[syngent]

I Didn't mean it as a general question, Im sure people have their needs of a water resistant ink, I meant specifically why does Deacon Frank need a water resistant ink. some legal documents require it, some people are prone to spilling coffee, just before making suggestions I wanted to know where on the important factor that requirement was

 

[Doc4]

Sailor Sei-boku (the "nano-pigment blue-black) might fit the bill, although it can get a bit "cloggy" if left for a while in a pen. But the colour can be similar and some good water resistance.

... some people are prone to spilling ...

Yep.

Yep they are.

 

[Deacon Frank]

Why is water resistance so important ? Just curious

The ink is mostly used to take notes, so general "coffee spill" resistance is useful. However, as clergy there are often official documents I am required to fill out/sign and having a water resistant ink is important. That does not require forgery-resistance, just reasonable permanence (legible after soaking). I picked BBH because it met the permanence requirement and I like the color.

I wonder how R&K Salix compares? Or maybe another Noodler's ink *not* in the Warden series, like 54th Mass? I'll have to put together a sampler at Goulet, but there are so many options that I'd like to narrow down the possibilities beforehand with the input of this forum...especially since there are a number of water-resistant inks that are not marketed as such, like Pilot blue, and the only way to know is by word-of-mouth.

 

[syngent]

I have 54th, it feathers a lot for me... I have it on me right now as a matter of fact, in my Conklin... let me hit a few pages for you as Im bored at work and ill get right back to you after some dry, then wetting time

 

[syngent]

okay that was kind of impressive actually, less then 30 seconds on a cheap note pad page as well as a staples eco earth page,... 30 seconds directly under the tap, not even smearing


but it still feathers

 

[Leatherneck]

I have 54th, it feathers a lot for me... I have it on me right now as a matter of fact, in my Conklin... let me hit a few pages for you as Im bored at work and ill get right back to you after some dry, then wetting time

Wow!! who makes 54th?

 

[SmoovD]

You might want to check this link: http://www.registrarsink.co.uk/registrars_ink.html

It is an excellent ink, IMHO.

 

[strop]

The Salix is very well behaved, but much more of a blue-black, to my eye, than the BBH, which I also have and like a lot. When BBh goes in a pen, it pretty much gets used up without giving it time to misbehave much. Rarely does it sit more than 12 to 14 hours between use.

 

[Doc4]

The ink is mostly used to take notes, so general "coffee spill" resistance is useful. However, as clergy there are often official documents I am required to fill out/sign and having a water resistant ink is important. That does not require forgery-resistance, just reasonable permanence (legible after soaking).

I'll have to put together a sampler at Goulet, but there are so many options that I'd like to narrow down the possibilities beforehand with the input of this forum...

Be sure to include a sample of Diamine Registrar's ink ... "required ink" in England for marriage registries, &c. ... the sort of thing the clergy would use for the sort of things you mention. The R&K Salix is similar in composition, both being modern "iron gall" inks.

Wow!! who makes 54th?

Noodler's Ink, only at Goulet.

 

[Deacon Frank]

okay that was kind of impressive actually, less then 30 seconds on a cheap note pad page as well as a staples eco earth page,... 30 seconds directly under the tap, not even smearing but it still feathers

Thanks for posting the pics, Syngent! Yeah, that kind of permanence is one of the things I really like about BBH and makes me consider just putting up with its other, negative traits. I've read that some have feathering issues with it as well, but I haven't so far unless I'm taking notes on cheap notebook paper, but even then it's not too bad. Lots of bleed-through on cheap paper, though.

So far, the Goulet sampler is going to be: R&K Salix, Diamine Registrar's, Noodler's 54th Mass (and I may try the Air Corps blue-black as well, since it's partially water resistant), and Skrip Blue-Black. Any others I should consider?

If none of those works out, I'll order a bottle of ESSRI as that seems highly regarded, even if fairly uninteresting like most iron gall inks.

By the way, I noticed last night that my bottle of Montblanc Midnight Blue says, "Made in Austria" and "Bleu Nuit" on the bottom. I wonder who makes the ink?

 

[SmoovD]

DF,

Sounds like a solid plan. FYI RE: ESSRI -- the ink is not as uniteresting as it may appear. The ink is almost mercurial in respect to the color/shading on the page. It, more than any other ink I have ever used, is very much dependent on the combination of pen and paper. Throw-in the rapid color change due to oxidation and the ESSRI is a blast to use.

Salix is a lovely ink. More blue than blue-black, it is another modern i-g that performs well in fountain pens.
Diamine Registrar's is a very solid blue-black i-g. Hard to go wrong with this ink.
I have not used 54th but the Air Corp, even though listed as a blue-black is more of a green-black. Teal might be as close to blue as the ink gets, IME. Not a bad ink but it is not a traditional blue-black.

 

[andrew98]

I think Diamine Registrar's would be a great permanent ink option. Pelikan Blue-black (order it online from a UK seller, maybe) is very water resistant. It's totally legible after a rinse under the tap, then a soak in the sink.

-Andy

 

[rider4life]

Thanks for posting the pics, Syngent! Yeah, that kind of permanence is one of the things I really like about BBH and makes me consider just putting up with its other, negative traits. I've read that some have feathering issues with it as well, but I haven't so far unless I'm taking notes on cheap notebook paper, but even then it's not too bad. Lots of bleed-through on cheap paper, though.

So far, the Goulet sampler is going to be: R&K Salix, Diamine Registrar's, Noodler's 54th Mass (and I may try the Air Corps blue-black as well, since it's partially water resistant), and Skrip Blue-Black. Any others I should consider?

If none of those works out, I'll order a bottle of ESSRI as that seems highly regarded, even if fairly uninteresting like most iron gall inks.

By the way, I noticed last night that my bottle of Montblanc Midnight Blue says, "Made in Austria" and "Bleu Nuit" on the bottom. I wonder who makes the ink?

Hey Deacon, I think James actually tested 54th, not BBH... Reading his posts that seems to be what he was doing although maybe I misread them. James is great at penmanship...not so much with the grammar

Cheers,

M.