Ink Review: Diamine Red Dragon

in
reddragon-header

Diamine Red Dragon
Pen: Lamy Safari EF
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm

Diamine Red Dragon was the second contender in my quest to purchase a bottle of red ink.  I ultimately chose Diamine Oxblood over Red Dragon, however that decision shouldn't deter you from this awesome ink.

Red Dragon is a highly saturated deep, vibrant red ink with minimal shading.  Like a lot of Diamine inks, it behaves well on a lot of different papers.  Even on absorbent copy paper, Red Dragon had minimal feathering in my experience.  I tend to really dislike "pinky" reds that have very low saturation and give a "watery" look on the page; Red Dragon is a really great option if you happen to agree with me on that, because it is quite the opposite of a pinky red.

What is unfortunate about the Diamine inks is that they recent underwent a price increase, and a fairly significant one at that.  The 80ml bottles are now $14.95 as opposed to $12.95, so that may very well be a deal breaker for a lot of you.  To me, it's still a lot more affordable than some of the "designer" inks like Iroshizuku and the Pelikan Edelstein line, so I'm willing to spend the $15.  Diamine has a massive variety of color and the properties are awesome, and the large bottle size will last you quite a while.

Pen Review: Kaweco Skyline Sport

in
kawecoskyline-header

Kaweco Skyline Sport (Grey) EF
Ink: Graf von Faber-Castell Stone Grey
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Pros: Nib, color, weight, portability, design
Cons: Few converter options, almost too light, very small for some, no Kaweco tin :(

The first time I saw the Kaweco Sport pens, I thought they were less than beautiful.  I didn't get the giant octagonal cap especially.  But after hearing so many people rave about their Kawecos, my interest was piqued.  The one thing that was stopping me was the gold-plated nib and trim on the Classic Sports.  I am not a fan at all of gold furniture on anything, especially pens.  When I discovered the Skyline Sport had been released with rhodium-plated trim and in a grey color, I had to get one to try out.

kawecoskyline-main

When I received my Skyline, the first thing I noticed was that it didn't come in the cool Kaweco tins.  I had thought that all of the Kaweco Sports came in one of the tins, but the Goulets let me know that only the AL-Sport comes in it now.  I was lucky to have a Twitter follower offer to send me one of his extras, which speaks to just how amazing the pen community is.

As you may know, the Kaweco pens are very small, and because of that, they do not fit a standard international converter.  There are a few converters out there that will work, including Kaweco's squeeze converter and the Monteverde Mini Converter.  Not many people care for aerometric converters, myself included, and I've read mixed reviews on how well the Monteverde Mini Converter fits in this pen.  Luckily, I stumbled across one of SBREBrown's videos on a Kaweco Sport, and he had been sent the Templar Mini Converter.  I'm intrigued by this little thing, so I may end up picking one up - if I do, I'll be sure to review it!  For now, I chose to pick up some standard international short cartridges to try out.  Being that I love grey ink and this is a grey pen, I chose Graf von Faber-Castell Stone Grey.  Spoiler alert: I LOVE THIS INK.  Review to follow.

Kaweco is a German brand, and have German nibs on their pens - so they run close to what a Lamy nib size would be.  I chose the EF because of this, and I was not disappointed.  I always worry that an EF will write scratchy out of the box, but this one was quite smooth.  The rhodium plating looks very sharp, and I love how the Kaweco logo is stamped into the nib.  I'm not sure why I'm drawn to their logo, but I really love that thing.  They included a sticker in the box with the pen, and it now has a place on the front of my Macbook Pro.

The pen is very lightweight which adds to the portability aspect, though some would say it feels kind of cheap.  Honestly, I just don't get the cheap vibe from this pen.  Looking at pictures online, you would think that it's just a cheap plastic pen, but I'm very impressed with the craftsmanship and the quality.  For the price, it really can't be beat.  I love the grey color, and the finial with the Kaweco logo on it is a nice touch.

The pen when capped can very easily fit into the palm of your hand.  For some, writing with it unposted is impossible, but posted, the pen's weight is very balanced.  I hardly ever post my pen, but this one doesn't change in balance at all and is actually more comfortable for longer writing sessions.  

Finial

I am very happy with this pen.  If you've been debating getting one, trust me, you need to do it.  It writes like a dream, never skips or hard starts and is a great pocket pen.  The Skyline Sport is available in 3 colors, Black, Grey & Mint.  The Mint and Grey are both new colors to the Sport line and the pen community are going crazy for both of them.  You can pick them up at Goulet or a similar retailer for $25-$27 (for some reason JetPens has the EF listed at $27 and the others at $25).

Ink Review: Rohrer & Klingner Salix

in
salix-header

Rohrer & Klingner Salix (Iron Gall)
Pen: Lamy Safari EF
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm

Salix is another amazing iron gall ink from the German based ink company Rohrer & Klingner.  It is part 2 of 2 in the "Scabix" mixture that I reviewed recently.  Salix is a muted grey-blue ink after it has hit the air and began to oxidize like all iron gall inks do.  Though, when it first comes out of the pen, it is a more traditional royal blue color.  I am typically not a huge fan of blue inks, however I am a big fan of Salix after it has dried. I love inks that almost look as if they're faded out a bit - this one definitely fits that bill.

Like the other R&K iron gall ink, Scabiosa, Salix is a pretty well behaved ink.  I got a tiny bit more feathering with Salix on cheaper papers than I did with Scabiosa, however on a Rhodia pad there is none.  Dry time is about a second longer than Scabiosa, though the difference is subtle enough to call it the same.  Shading is fairly moderate which was a plus.  

If you're a fan of blue inks and want something permanent with lots of character, go try out Rohrer & Klingner Salix.  You'll thank me later!  You can pick up a bottle from Goulet or a similar retailer for $12.00.

Ink Review: Rohrer & Klingner Scabiosa

in
scabiosa-header

Rohrer & Klingner Scabiosa (Iron Gall)
Pen: Lamy Safari EF
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm

Scabiosa is an amazing purple iron gall ink from the German company Rohrer & Klinger Leipzig Co.  It is part 1 of 2 in the Scabix mixture that I reviewed recently.  Rohrer & Klingner was established in 1892 when lithographer Johann Adolf Rohrer began creating "special graphic supplements" in the city of Leipzig.  His son, Adolf Jr., continued the manufacturing of these products with his partner Felix Arthur Klingner in 1907, under the company name that still remains today.  The Rohrer & Klingner inks continue to be some of my favorite inks out there.  Their brand continues to flourish in the fountain pen community, so they certainly are doing something right.

Scabiosa is my favorite of the two iron gall inks that Rohrer & Klingner carries.  It is a muted purple with a greyish undertone that I absolutely love.  As with all iron gall inks, the ink begins to oxidize once it hits the air, so after a few hours to a day, you'll see a subtle change in the inks coloring - mainly a slight darkening.  Aside from the permanence that iron gall is best known for, this characteristic makes it stand out from other inks.  One thing you'll notice about iron gall inks is they have a fairly unique smell to them.  I liken it to the smell of coins, or wet metal.  It's not evident in writing, but you can definitely smell it when you open up a bottle.

As with most of the Rohrer & Klingner inks, Scabiosa is extremely well behaved.  I see no feathering on most papers, and the dry time is around 8 seconds with a fairly wet Lamy EF nib.  It gives fairly moderate shading, though not a ton.  Scabiosa definitely stands out from the traditional purple fountain pen inks that you typically see with its unique color and the permanence of iron gall.  Don't be deterred by the fact that it is iron gall - all of the R&K inks are very easy to clean out of a pen.  So long as you practice regular pen maintenance, you should have no issue with any modern iron gall ink.

I highly recommend that you try this ink out - it is certainly in my top 2 favorites at the moment.  You can pick up a bottle from Goulet or a similar retailer for $12.00.