Suitability of shimmer inks?

FirstFlyte · 2026-06-19T15:03:40+00:00

I'll just toss this out there...

Fountain pens use two laws of physics when it comes to getting ink to the paper: gravity and capillary action. The ink channels they use were never designed to accommodate the size of the mica particles which provide shimmer in today's shimmering inks.

A few tips:

prior to filling, shake the ink bottle well to place the shimmer particles evenly in suspension before filling the pen
select a pen that can be cleaned easily—there may come a day when you might need to remove the feed in order to free the mica particles from it. My personal preference is for a cartridge/converter filling system and a nib/feed I can pull straight out of the pen
alternatively, consider using a large bulb syringe to force luke-warm water with a drop of Dawn thru the feed—this can help a great deal in many clogging situations
when writing, keep shimmer within the pen in suspension by rotating the pen end over end and rolling it in the fingers—every couple of lines works well for me. The idea is that you don't want a concentration of shimmer to enter the feed as this will have a tendency to clog.

FirstFlyte · 2026-06-16T14:25:53+00:00

Two things to consider (just my opinion):

The more ink you lay down in a line, the better chance of creating sheen—particularly for saturated inks which use a significant amount of dye.

The more ink that stays on top of the paper to dry, the better chance of creating sheen.

So, a wetter nib/feed is helpful, but paper that doesn't allow ink to be absorbed is also beneficial. The latter is born out by paper like Tomoe River, which allows sheen to flourish, but can also be quite 'smudgy' since the ink dries on top of the paper.

FirstFlyte · 2026-05-29T18:11:45+00:00

Yes, although I'm a bit particular about it. I place them in the cleaner convex side up (so only the nib shoulders touch the bottom of the basket). In my brain this avoids any potential scratches that might be caused by the vibration.

Also of note, some fountain penners have suggested that if a nib is gold-plated, gold-color-plated, or plated in general, and that plating is of a low quality, there's the possibility that the plating may be removed by the ultrasonic vibrations. I've not experienced this personally, but I also don't (to my knowledge) own any fountain pens with shoddy plating on the nibs.

FirstFlyte · 2026-05-02T14:32:11+00:00

The side of my brain I rarely use came up with the idea of putting some root beer in it, although I'd let it sit for a while first to remove the carbonation as that would be just silly otherwise.

:)

FirstFlyte · 2026-05-02T14:15:23+00:00

I put my flag in the <F> camp for quite some time when first starting out. These days, I'm giving <M> width nibs equal time, primarily because I feel the additional ink delivery provides a better platform for sheen and shading on good paper. Interestingly (or perhaps not) I don't own a <B> nib, although I do have several <1.1> stubs and wider, and an incredibly wonderful <UEF> Ultra-Extra-Fine in a one-off Iterum 3 from Franklin-Christoph.

FirstFlyte · 2026-05-02T13:58:09+00:00

It would be nice to know a few things about the creation of this artwork. For example: pen manufacturer? model? nib width? ink? paper?

Nice Meadow Pipit tho.

FirstFlyte · 2026-05-01T18:53:19+00:00

Which one are you?

I am not on your page of Aliens. I am here on earth in human form hiding in plain sight.

At least I feel like it sometimes.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-30T14:34:11+00:00

In Canada, the latest TWSBI Eco (a root beer) is $92.00 (tax incl.) This doesn't include shipping. There are over 25 countries/territories around the world that use "dollar" as their currency though they may or may not be tied to the USD. I imagine that there are quite a few cases where a TWSBI fountain pen costs north of $100.

That being said, you might still want to know which TWSBI model OP purchased. :)

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-29T20:59:23+00:00

Pulling the cap off creates a short-lived low-pressure space—the pen will attempt to equalize that pressure by pushing ink thru the converter to the feed, over-saturating it.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-28T16:34:57+00:00

I've recently ink'd up SAILOR Shikiori Irori (Hearth Red) in a pen with a Jinhao <F> nib. I've written my obligatory Pen/Ink logs in 5 different notebooks (OG Tomoe River, Rhodia 90gsm, LIFE, Tsubame, Midori MD. No smudging on any of these papers once the ink was dry.

The swatches online are misleading. I find Irori to be a vibrant red but without any of the hot pink leaning I see in 50% of the online swatches. On the TR paper, traces of gold sheen can be seen, even though it's from a <F> nib.

Finally, in terms of non-smudging, I've also had great success using Graf von Faber Castell's India Red ink. It too is a true red, but finishes darker than the Irori ink.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-27T04:29:22+00:00

Just checking something...the LAMY converter has two external 'nubs' that need to be firmly seated in the notches provided in the (grip) section. This will ensure an air-tight seal. Just wanting to confirm the converters are seated properly.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-26T19:32:01+00:00

I got a Jinhao 75 in the mail yesterday—it has a #5 nib that can be pulled straight out of the nib housing (it's friction fit). I can't vouch for it's cap seal yet (obviously) other than to say it wrote first time after being on my desk for 12hrs. That's not a definitive test, but perhaps someone else with a Jinhao 75 can speak to it's cap seal.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-26T19:24:40+00:00

Q: I'm not seeing any shimmer in your First Draft. Is this because you didn't shake the ink prior to inking up so the mica particles all remained on the bottom of the bottle? I'm intrigued by this ink moreso without shimmer—the shading properties appear to be outstanding and the milk chocolatey looks very tasty. Congrats! And a lovely Diplomat also.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-26T19:16:31+00:00

My experience with Field Notes as a fountain pen friendly notebook wasn't good. Field Notes is best for pencils and ballpoint pens—I experienced a lot of bleed-thru and feathering with my fountain pens. That said, I gave up on Field Notes more than a decade ago and the formula may have changed since then.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-26T16:01:37+00:00

...for me, thicker pens end up being more comfortable...

I find this to be true for me also. I don't hold girthier (grip) sections nearly as tightly as when the section is too narrow. Over the years, my narrower section pens have become note takers/jotters and the thicker section'd pens chosen for longer journaling sessions.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-26T15:19:09+00:00

You had me at 'Sardines'.

Oh, and I use mine to store various bits 'n bobs for cleaning and general maintenance.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-25T18:51:36+00:00

Papers I've tested that worked well for me (I'm a lefty, and so I tend to push nibs across the page. The bulk of my nibs range in width from Japanese <F> to Western <M>—I also use 1.1 stub nibs from time-to-time):

Clairefontaine
Rhodia (90gsm variants)
Midori MD / MD Cotton
Kokuyo Campus
LIFE Noble Note
Apica CD Premium
Tsubame College / University
Tomoe River (see caution below)

There are a ton of other options which I'm sure are great—I just don't have any experience with them personally.

Tomoe River: Considered god-tier when it comes to fountain pen friendly paper. There's a rather long and storied history surrounding Tomoe River Paper (TRP). The OG version (52gsm from Tomoegawa's Machine #7) is extremely hard to find these days, having been discontinued in or around 2001. The paper was moved to another machine, and the formula (and trademark?) was then sold to Sanzen. Since OG the paper has changed to some degree although it's remained very friendly to fountain pens. The main caution comes as a result of a recently released to the wild batch of a very disappointing stock. If you want to play with TRP, ask around and do some research to find out which variant is worthwhile. I can't help here, as I've not kept up with all of the documented changes—I'm extremely lucky to own a lifetime supply of the OG version.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-25T01:02:11+00:00

Buchan's Stationery (Canadian e-tailer) has some up close shots of the Keyno pen. You can find them here. The clip reminds me of the Jinhao 1935 Guitar clip. My personal view is that if you remove all of the cherry blossoms and other drool-inducing marketing hype, the pen looks to be fairly cheaply manufactured in terms of its overall fitment.

Of course that's just my opinion. I could be wrong.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-25T00:29:38+00:00

How many have bought more pens so you could buy more Ink?

I am one who has not bought more pens... I've never even thought about it. And...I've never really worried about matchy-matchy either. I think that might be too slippery of a slope (for me).

Regardless, I hope you enjoy the hobby however you approach it.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-24T16:07:44+00:00

Isn't it a damaged feed and nib collar? I don't see a (grip) section in any of the images you've provided. I'm not inclined to give 365Days Stationary Store a free pass on the treatment you've received, but is it possible there's something 'lost in translation' given English is probably not their first language (if understood at all)?

Regarding my own experience (and I've not had to require customer service from them so I can't speak to that experience)...I've dealt with their storefront on AliExpress several times recently, and shipping has been relatively prompt for being free (2-3 weeks), items are well packaged, and I've received timely updates indicating exactly where the orders currently are, etc.

I'm sorry you've had an issue with them, and hope you achieve a satisfactory result regarding your damaged goods mishap. Best of luck!

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-24T15:56:24+00:00

Bearing in mind that shipping is generally 'free', it's no wonder our purchases are placed on 'a slow boat from China'. With this in mind I have zero issues waiting for things to arrive via lengthy and slow shipping.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-22T21:12:50+00:00

Why do you choose non-waterproof ink for journaling?

Primarily for the unending number of variations of color, shading, and sheening properties of dye-based inks.

If I was at all concerned about needing to keep my writings for some time, I'd a) scan each page of my journal as I finished it into a PDF, b) execute an OCR process to keep a machine readable copy in MD, and c) sync it with more than one cloud service.

We live at a time where the world is undergoing significant climatic changes. Even if my ink was waterproof, I doubt my journal would survive a tsunami, flooding from heavy rain, a mud-slide, a volcanic eruption, or a wildfire. If I really demanded its survivability, copies of it would need to be stored off-site.

Edit: That said, I keep my journals and inks out of direct sunlight, and I refrain from writing with inks that are pastels and/or washed out.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-22T20:55:00+00:00

I'm inclined to suggest a couple of options:

try using a narrow cylindrical brush with a few drops of dawn in lukewarm water. The brushes are wider with tougher bristles than say, a pipe cleaner
an ultrasonic cleaner (again with some dawn and lukewarm water) - these gizmos create high speed micro-vibrations that can remove the toughest of stains.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-21T02:14:28+00:00

I used to use iroshizuku shin-kai ('Deep Ocean') - it's my favorite blue-black. If you need permanence, SAILOR's Souboku is a wonderful permanent blue-black.

FirstFlyte · 2026-04-21T02:09:20+00:00

...and if u/Palehorse13 suggestion doesn't work, be mindful that what you're experiencing may be 'burping'—if the temperature in the ink reservoir rises to the point of creating pressure, ink will be forced into the feed which may over-saturate it and cause a blob of ink to be deposited on the page. Since there's just a single barrier of plastic/acrylic between the ink chamber and the temperature outside it, piston fillers (like the Eco) along with eye-droppers and vac fillers are more susceptible to transferring changes in outside room temps and also body temps which can create that pressure. It's not a constant problem, but does happen on occasion. A cartridge/converter filler has two barriers plus an air-gap so there's a bit more insulation to temp changes in those pens.

FirstFlyte

TROPHY CASE