MI # 21: In Which Dr. Inkenstein Has The Gall

Dr. I does not know what to make of this Iron Gall ink yet...but loaded a Safari and plunged 'write' in. 

In the vial and the chroma, it's a cerise/fuschia color. But it dries dark. I believe it will flow better once it settles in to the pen.

 

Not very complex flower chroma, but interesting in that it retains the brighter color element:

 

The ink was very unhappy when Dr. Inkenstein wrote to a pen pal using Clairefontaine paper. It writes better on Rhodia Ice. Which hardly even makes sense.

In any case, I love doing Mystery Inks; this one turned out to be Platinum Lavender Black. Thanks, Scooby!

The 19th Mystery: In Which etc. And So Forth

Ahhhh! One of Dr. Inkenstein's favorite color families, judging from the  approximately one million turquoise inks in my possession, and this is timely, because in the summer I always have one turquoise-loaded pen, and it just got cleaned.

MI #19 was tested in a Parker Reflex and on Rhodia grid. I just happened to have a turquoise Pilot Varsity on the desk, and grabbed that for comparison's sake. They look vewy, vewy similar.



I also ran a paper towel chroma on both MI #19 and the Varsity. Even this is quite similar.



So far, no hard starts, no southpaw smearing, but mayyybeeee a touch of sheen? Judging by the amount on the Reflex's feed....

MI #19 started to run dry in its Parker Reflex and needed dipping to start.  Dr. Inkenstein believes this to be a converter problem. After advancing the ink, it seemed to flow again.  And as another bonus, we discovered that the Parker Reflex takes Lamy carts just fine.

Just when it was decided that this is a good ink, MI #19 was revealed as 'Special Edition ink' Lamy Pacific Blue.  Which, it turns out, is the same ink as Lamy Turquoise.  Which Dr. Inkenstein already has.  

Win!  

The 16th Mystery: In Which Dr. Inkenstein Misses the Guess Yet Again

(Can this be true?  Is Dr. Inkenstein the first one to get MI # 16 in the mail this time? Woohoo!)

Here we go, then, live, as it happened.  Over to you!

In any case...I like this ink! It's a slightly green-leaning blue with excellent behavior. NO hard starts at all at first, but when it lay in the pen awhile, alas, yes.

Plus, it looks pretty in that Dollar demonstrator.

Here it is also compared it in color to a couple of similar-looking inks.

The guesses which were wrong: Monteverde Horizon Blue, Iroshizuku Kon-Peki.  Actual Mystery Ink was Colorverse Crystal Blue Persuasion, I mean, Crystal Planet.  No chroma this time.  Dr. Inkenstein pleads forgetfulness....and more Mysteries to come.

Mysteries Continue: In Which Dr. Inkenstein Is Wrong Again

More Mysteries at hand for Dr. Inkenstein in....

...The snow report! This was kind of a rush job...snowstorm (that is, when this was first composed!), power loss (no heat, light, or innerwebz)....got power back today, got ink a couple hours ago.

Loaded directly into a Sheaffer No Nonsense, which doesn't get on very well with the ink, though I thought it would. But I wanted to use a cartridge pen this time, ratherthan the Dollar piston-filler. I might swap the cart into a slightly better Sheaffer.

A light, bright springlike (and we could use some spring!) ink. Lighter than both the MB Irish and the JH Lierre Sauvage. No sheen for me, hardly any shading. I see a turquoise halo in the chroma, which may not show up in this scan. 

You'd think Dr. Inkenstein woukd have guessed correctly this time.  Especially since the MI in question was ALSO one I own, and RIGHT THERE ON THE PAGE AS A COMPARISON.

Hint:  it wasn't MB Irish Green.  Mystery Ink # 15 was JHerbin Lierre Sauvage. Which I own.  And had loaded.   Will I ever get one right?  Tune in next time.  The Ink Mysteries continue.....

MI-10: In Which Dr. Inkenstein Gets Beachy

Just havin' some fun, as the Summer Mystery arrived:

One final addition to the MI-10 Experience: I had neglected to run a chroma, so I did a quickie here.



These two were inks I might never have tried, though 'Carli' is a color right up my alley, and if I were buying an Edelstein it would be this 'n. I didn't notice the dryness many people mentioned in their reciews, but the Rotring Artpen might be a garden hose.

Loved working with 'Lloyd.' It glides in the pens I used, I see lavender and turquoise notes in the chroma. Oddly enough, 'Lloyd' seemed to have an affinity for my fingers like no other ink...ie: every time I opened the vial, some of it leapt onto them. 

So thanks once again to the Undisputed Queen of Ink-stery, for the opportunity to try a range of inks I might not have otherwise sampled.  

Stay tuned for more.