I provide the information on inks by manufacturer. A common question is is about using different brands of ink in different pens. Most people use various brands. Do not be limited to only the brand of ink that aligns to the brand of your pen.
Manufacturers do establish their own specifications for their inks, and they establish the characteristics of their ink often with the characteristics of the pen's ink feed mechanisms. So when I asked a manufacturer that question, I am told that the ink they brand is made to maximize the writing experience of their brand of pens.
Again, do not let that stop you from trying different brands. Only a few of the pen companies actually manufacturer their ink. Buy a bottle. Give it a try. I have found some brands of ink don't perform very well in certain brands of pens. I am sure you will have the same experience.
The writing experience with an individual pen is a combination of:
Abraxas makes a range of types of inks, many of which are not suitable for fountain pens. If selecting one of their inks, make sure you are selecting one of the lines produced for fountain pens.
The Classic Line, Calligraphy & Drawing Ink, is not suitable for fountain pens. As well, any of their metallic lines are also not suitable for fountain pens. They also sell an Oak Gall Ink, again, not for fountain pens. Phenomena is another line of writing-drawing inks, but don't be fooled with the term writing ink - it it not suitable for fountain pens.
As I went through the list of inks some were marked as useable with fountain pens.
P.W. Akkerman, founded in 1910 produces interesting colours of ink and available in their classic ink bottle. The bottle has a holding section in the top. Ink flows from the large bottom section into a small upper section. A small "marble" rests to divide the two sections. This method was first developed by Jif-Waterman, the French subsidiary of Waterman at the time.
There are thirty colours to choose, each one named for a location in The Hague.
I was fortunate to be given a bottle of Akkerman ink as a gift, and now that I have used it for a day or so, I am say, I am generally impressed with the flow and the writing properties of the ink and very impressed with the colour.
The colour is a deep, rich, dark blue. I think the camera nicely caught the colour tone in the image to the right.
The sample below is written with a Pelikan M800 Broad Italic nib. So if an ink is uncontrollable, this ink is so large that the ink will just flow out onto the paper. Not so with this ink. Writing was a pleasure.
Voorhout Violet, tested with Parker Vacumatic, Medium Nib.
The test above is with a Pelikan M200, medium nib.
Thanks to Peter Notenbomer from the Netherlands for testing Voorhout Violet and providing photos of the ink tests and the remarkable ink bottle. He tried the ink in a number of different pens, and found the performance to vary. This ink seemed to just flow out of his Visconti Rembrandt, too much ink in the ink section and this ink flows. He worked fine in some of his other pens. It was not a pen issue, as other inks are working just fine in that pen.
Positive Aspects:
Negative Aspects:
The comment about the time it takes to dry is consistent with the comments that I have received from others. In general the Akkerman ink is very wet and takes time to dry.
Aurora's regular line of ink comes in three colours: blue, black and blue-black. To celebrate their anniversary a special line of inks, in a 60 ml bottle was released. The colours included: red, turquoise, blue, sepia, green, white, purple, gray and black.
For a good number of people, this is considered one of the best black inks available for fountain pens. The ink has a deep dark rich tone. The ink has good flow characteristics including a reasonable dry time. I like to pop of bottle of this with my travel journal as the bottle is neeper than it is wide (good for filling pens with large nibs) and it does not take up much room. It is one of my Ink of Choice.
The blue is an ink you will not tire of. It has enough tone so that it is not boaring. There is a hint ofpurple of the ink. There have been times when I have through too much of a purple undertone, but I find I keep coming back to this ink. A good performing ink, working well in just about any pen I own. Again a great bottle in terms of design (deeper than wide). One of my Ink of Choice.
I was pleased when this came on the market. Sometimes I want something leaning towards the blue. There is enough depth of colour that it looks good on full pages of writring. Same good writing characteristics as blue and black inks in the line.
The ink is made by Private Reserve and it is availalbe in a range of colours. It is the same ink as Private Reserve.
In 2012 I have had limited opportunity to try Caran d'Ache ink when I was in Rome. One of the previous members of the Vancouver Pen Club was a big fan of the colour Amazon which was a interesting green. I , and I must admit, that is a very appealing green. But, the ink is at a high price point, and the bottle at that, while extremely attractive, only held 30 ml of ink and was too small for the large pen and nibs that I use. But, never say never as they came out will a very different ink bottle and now it seems I have been adding more an more to my collection.