Pilot namiki blue black ink review

Namiki Blue is an understated ink that not a lot of people are familiar with, but it is a great option! A nice, dark, pure blue, and very water resistant. My review here is probably showing a lighter color than what this will show in an non-stub nib. It has a red sheen when used with a more wet writing pen in conditions like Diamine Majestic Blue and PR Electric DC Blue.

If you're not a big fan of the extended dry times of wet inks this may just fit your bill. It has a tendency to coat the feed of your fountain pen due to the heavy red sheen. No harm, really, just more work to clean. Namiki Blue a nice looking and working ink I can easily recommend. Check that out here.

This is the first of the "Pilot Ink for fountain pen" branded inks that I've tried. It was on my wish list, and Elaine over at JetPens was nice enough to send me a bottle to try out.

They come in a really nice 70ml bottle, that isn't as fancy as the Iroshizuku line and isn't as shallow as the Namiki line. I have looked around online for these inks on non-Jetpens sites, and I can't find them. So, as far as I know, there are only 3 colors of this ink. The Blue Black that Jetpens was nice enough to send me, a Black, and a Blue.

All of these bottles are deep and they all contain a small ink well. I've seen these in some Levenger bottles and a couple of others, but they're not super-common. It's a nice feature, and it makes it must easier to fill up pens that have big nibs or use pistons, levers and other interesting filling systems that don't play well with a syringe.

It's got pretty solid performance, as well. It is a little on the dry-side, so I've been using it in a fairly wet nib. It's a real blue black without the green shades that you find in lots of other blue blacks. You do see a fair amount of shading in this ink. The wet nib I'm using makes it prone to bleed a little bit, but I'm not sure that a slightly drier nib wouldn't control that little bit of bleed and keep the ink flowing. I know that I tried this ink in a finer nib and it wasn't very impressive. Your mileage may vary, I guess.

As you can see, I've got a lot of blues inked up right now. It's one of my favorite hues, but this is the only blue black that I've got going on right now. You can see the telltale streaks of a rather dry ink in the scribble above-right. You can also see just a hint of a sheen in the smear above-left.

I know that this ink is going to be a little too boring for some people. Lots of ink-o-philes want something that is really going to stand out, and this ink isn't doing that. This is more of a business-casual ink. It's not just a blue or a black, so it'll give your writing just a little extra without really calling any attention to itself. That's going to be ideal for lots of people who use their fountain pens in a more formal setting than I do.

For me, this ink is a little on the expensive side, but at 70ml you're getting quite a bit of ink and a neat bottle without getting into Iroshizuku territory.

If you're looking for an ink that is competent without being flashy and blue-black without being green, then head over to Jetpens.com and check out Pilot's inks.

Water Test and Review Video

Here's the video for Blue Black. It's a little longer than usual, but it was super late, and I may have rambled a little. Anyway, I was surprised by the ink's water-resistance. Enjoy!

**This ink was received as a media sample. The opinions expressed here are all my own. No money has changed hands, and no promises were made.**

When I purchased my Pilot Custom 823 Smoke with a broad nib, there was a bottle of Pilot Blue ink included in the box. I’m 100% in love with my 823 by the way-it’s amazing and my only regret is that I didn’t buy a second one with a medium nib at the same time (in a different color of course!). So let’s take a look at Pilot Blue! I purchased my 823 with the included ink from Pen Chalet, but you can buy Pilot Blue on its own from Vanness Pens.

The Bottle:

The bottle is a heavy glass 70ml.

The color:

Pilot Blue is a standard classroom and work appropriate blue.

Swabs:

In large swabs on Tomoe River paper the ink has some coppery sheen.

Writing samples:

Let's take a look at how the ink behaves on fountain pen friendly papers: Rhodia, Tomoe River, and Leuchtturm.

Dry time: 30 seconds

Water resistance: Low

Feathering: None

Show through: Medium

On Staples 24 lb copy paper there was some feathering and a few spots of bleeding.

Comparison Swabs:

Pilot Blue is less vibrant than Pilot Iroshizuku Tsuyu-kusa. Click here to see the Pilot inks together, and click here to see the blue inks together.

Longer writing:

I used a Montegrappa Copper Mule with a fine nib on a Yoseka A5 notebook. The ink had a slightly wet flow.

Overall, it’s a good basic blue. I found it to be just a little bit better behaved than Pilot Black or Blue Black. It is a large 70ml bottle so it will take me a long time to go through that much ink.

Disclaimer: I purchased this ink myself, and all photos and opinions are my own. This page does contain affiliate links but this post is not sponsored in any way.

Is Pilot blue black wet?

The ink had a slightly wet flow. Overall, just like the Pilot Black I reviewed yesterday, I enjoyed this ink, but it does have a bit more feathering and bleeding than I like on some papers. While it's a good basic blue black, there are better blue black inks out there.

Is Namiki ink wet or dry?

Pilot Black is made in Japan and is a classic black with low shading and medium black sheen. It dries in 20 seconds in a medium nib on Rhodia and has a slightly wet flow.

Is Pilot ink good?

ink quality is good, makes ur nib glide smoothly on paper and it is water resistant. I found pilot is much smoother than other inks.

Is Pilot a good fountain pen brand?

If you asked a few fountain pen enthusiasts to give you their favorite brands, then you might expect a few of them to mention Pilot. Pilot fountain pens are some of the best on the market today. A combination of precision, modernity, and traditional values of writing by hand are embodied by these fountain pens.