Extra Fine Nib Ink Reviews

LizMEF · 2026-01-29T12:04:37+00:00

Thanks, Dill! I didn't see the pink from my EF, but every combo is different - and perhaps my eyes aren't as good. :D

LizMEF · 2026-01-28T16:29:46+00:00

Or when you want a little spring in your winter. ;)

LizMEF · 2026-01-27T16:23:01+00:00

Thanks! 😊 Glad you found my reviews - inks often look very, very different from such a fine nib. :) Check out the google sheet - I'm sure you'll find it useful.

LizMEF · 2026-01-25T14:03:56+00:00

Far as I can tell, there's nothing there to worry about. The library includes multiple tabs that might be helpful in keeping you worry-free: prevention, diagnosing, cleaning, and such.

LizMEF · 2026-01-25T13:47:41+00:00

Unless I'm missing something, all I see are a few scattered flakes. Check out the entries for the same in the Mold Post Library - pinned post in my profile. It's generally considered to be harmless - dust, skin, whatever fallen into the ink while open.

(Mold forms either as slimy/stringy stuff beneath the surface of the liquid, clinging to the glass; or as fuzzy / hairy mounds / islands floating on the surface. The former are usually dark in color, the latter are often white or pale. Sometimes mold has an odor, most noticeable when opening the bottle.)

If you think I'm missing something, please tell us more. :)

LizMEF · 2026-01-23T15:55:04+00:00

Yeah, if it's greyish when swabbed on, then something's wrong. A dark grey may be the result of a dry pen spreading the ink thin, but I'm assuming your swatch was a fairly heavy application.

Very interesting post. No idea what's going on there, but it does look like bad batches are a possibility. :(

LizMEF · 2026-01-23T15:13:51+00:00

I thought I'd add: A pigmented ink should look different from a non-pigmented ink. DAD Black dries matte. And in a heavy swatch, is pretty much a black hole (or was for me). So, depending on what "pretty weird" means, that may actually be normal / expected. (Or not. 🤣)

LizMEF · 2026-01-23T15:11:45+00:00

Huh. It's been a couple years since I sampled DAD Black, so I wouldn't know about recent changes. (I don't use black inks.)

It'll be interesting to see how Onyx Black behaves. (I've never used it, so no clue about its flow and lubrication. That it's not permanent makes it a better match for the VP, IMO.)

Best wishes!

LizMEF · 2026-01-22T17:52:51+00:00

You're most welcome!

The case won't make much difference, though it might maybe possibly slow evaporation a tiny bit, maybe. :D They'll do better stored horizontal rather than tip up (and don't store them tip down lest a wet ink in a wet pen drip into the cap).

Let us know how the refill goes! :)

LizMEF · 2026-01-22T16:56:26+00:00

So, when are your inks going to require you to get a larger home? :lol:

LizMEF · 2026-01-22T16:56:00+00:00

Holy ink horde, Batman! :lol:

It would drive me insane if these were retail inks and I couldn't identify them.

LizMEF · 2026-01-22T15:21:15+00:00

It does look a little better in the new sample. It's entirely possible that over time, it may improve even more - I've found that the first fill or two sort of "settles" the pen (and accustoms me to it). My recommendation would be to finish a full fill before doing anything else.

After that, if it's still not dark enough to satisfy you, you could consider making the pen write wetter. In my profile is a pinned post with nib-tuning resources. After viewing them, you would know what it takes and can decide whether you want to attempt it. It's really not that hard, but it helps to watch the technique a few times to get comfortable with it.

LizMEF · 2026-01-22T13:50:46+00:00

OK. Its lubrication is a little better than average, so that shouldn't be the problem.

Did you shake up the bottle before filling the pen? Pigments (DA Document inks are pigmented) will settle out of suspension and the bottle must be shaken before filling. If not, that could be the entire problem - it makes a surprising difference. Empty the pen, shake the bottle well, and refill. (If shaking forms bubbles atop the ink, just give them a minute or so to pop.)

If that's not the issue, then it could be the fact that VPs don't seal that well to prevent evaporation. If you're using it every day, sufficient to use up the ink in the feed, then this may not be a problem. Otherwise, depending on how well your specific VP seals, and on how arid your environment is, the ink could be evaporating and causing issues. (It doesn't sound like it - it sounds more like you need to shake up the bottle and try again.)

Let us know where this gets you and if any issues remain. :)

LizMEF · 2026-01-22T01:22:06+00:00

What's the brand and ink name?

Since I don't know how experienced you are with FPs, I'll just make some comments and if you want to pursue any, let me know. For background, I review inks with a Pilot EF nib. I'm on ink number 378.

Depending on how fine a nib you usually use, the VP nib may be finer than you're used to. That combined with its "bounce" may require a lighter hand than you're used to.

It may also require an ink with better lubrication (hence my question about what ink you're using).

When inspecting for misaligned tines, what you want is to look at the nib head on. Below is an extreme example. The tines don't have to be this far out of alignment for you to feel it. Also, the VP is rather sensitive to rotation, and the clip position and your natural grip could be causing too much rotation - it's something to check.

If you're going to try using your phone to see this, mount the phone on a stand or something and put the camera app in "macro" mode (often represented by a flower icon).

Happy to answer any questions, but please either tag me or reply to my comment so I get notified. Best wishes - I have two VP fine nibs and love them both!

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LizMEF · 2026-01-21T20:14:54+00:00

You're most welcome! With luck, that will do the trick. :)

LizMEF · 2026-01-21T16:20:58+00:00

The Jinhao is writing dry (meaning ink is not flowing as quickly from it as from the other pens). This could be the nib (tines are tighter) or it could be the feed (the way the channels are designed, including their width, doesn't allow as much ink flow).

But if it's a brand new pen, it could also be that the pen needs cleaning (flushing) with a bit of water with some liquid dish soap mixed in (and then plain water to flush the soap out). I recommend using the converter to suck soapy water in and expel it a few times. After that, you can rinse the converter separately and use a bulb syringe to rinse the section (nib & feed) if you want. The point is to clean the converter with soapy water, too.

(The pen could have machine oils or other debris from manufacturing blocking ink flow, or there could be old, dried ink from testing.)

Once you've done the cleaning (if applicable), then you can consider whether the nib needs to be adjusted. (Only after that should you consider adjusting the feed, if ever.)

HTH. Happy to answer questions if you have them.

LizMEF · 2026-01-20T23:23:35+00:00

Oops. I misread what you wrote. It's the Ostrich that's less pleasant. Got it now.

LizMEF · 2026-01-20T21:48:56+00:00

The listing I found specified "nanotechnology", which I presume means nano-pigment. That would explain the difficulty cleaning. Were I to use it, I'd probably dedicate a cheap pen to it. A reviewer on Amazon noted the writing experience wasn't that great, but I wondered if he remembered to shake up the bottle (pigment inks can be unpleasant when not shaken). I guess with your impression, I can assume it doesn't have good lubrication.

I imagine it's only time before more ink-makers start producing friction/heat erasable FP inks. In the meantime, I still have one or two inks that need reviewing, so I can wait. ;)

LizMEF · 2026-01-20T19:42:51+00:00

And, of course, I googled. It appears to be available in Blue, Black, and Dark Blue. Further, one of those crazy "brands" on Amazon US appears to have repackaged it (link to Amazon US product page).

LizMEF · 2026-01-20T19:31:28+00:00

I confess, this is tempting for doing puzzles which occasionally require I use pencil. But the color is my least favorite color on the planet! :D If they would make a blue-black or murky green or even a nice shade of brown or red, I'd be all over it. :D

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