I've been buying and using Waterman black and blue and blue-black since the seventies in college. As a 'working' ink, as opposed to something to play with on designer paper, it's superb, serving well on countless different types of paper this guy has encountered over forty years. However, I agree that the renaming of these staple inks is silly, obviously to appeal to the hobby/yuppy crowd.
I struggle with this ink in pens. I have both a MUJI aluminum pen and a Y Studio Portable with a Schmidt nib. On both pens, Waterman IB dries out on me and requires me to either wet the nib a bit (tongue) or twist the converter to get it flowing. Occasionally it even stops mid-writing and I have to re-prime it. This is frustrating when you just want to jot a note in a cafe or something.
Like other Waterman inks, this one is kinda meh, not bad but not particularly good. It is that kind of ink you would have on your desk for the sole reason if somebody else needs a refill (not likely these days, I know). It does the job and that's it. I would personally choose Lamy Black instead, which has nicer, deeper colour and is still no-fuss ink but Waterman Black is fine. I would not throw it out if somebody gave it to me, put it that way. But it shares the same space as Parker Quink Blue of being the lowest common denominator for workhorse ink. Something your job buys, or you buy for your job, rather than something you enjoy. It doesn't mean it's bad (I have a soft spot for Parker Quink Blue), it just is. It exists.
So after smudging would you call this a purpley-black or a blue-black? It’s hard to tell on screen without a blue-black next to it for comparison, and I’m trying to find a bottle replacement for a purple-black which annoyingly only comes in standard cartridges.
gvfc carbon black is very black and very wet...but then there's the price Or platinum carbon black obviously...but I can imagine it being tougher to clean with that almost perfect water resistance, haven't used my bottle yet
GVFC is nice. I don't use is that often so I just get it in cartridge form. You are also right about Platinum. It definitely is a bit harder to clean. I've also found that it feather more than i like (on bad paper).
I've been buying and using Waterman black and blue and blue-black since the seventies in college. As a 'working' ink, as opposed to something to play with on designer paper, it's superb, serving well on countless different types of paper this guy has encountered over forty years. However, I agree that the renaming of these staple inks is silly, obviously to appeal to the hobby/yuppy crowd.
I struggle with this ink in pens. I have both a MUJI aluminum pen and a Y Studio Portable with a Schmidt nib. On both pens, Waterman IB dries out on me and requires me to either wet the nib a bit (tongue) or twist the converter to get it flowing. Occasionally it even stops mid-writing and I have to re-prime it. This is frustrating when you just want to jot a note in a cafe or something.
Like other Waterman inks, this one is kinda meh, not bad but not particularly good. It is that kind of ink you would have on your desk for the sole reason if somebody else needs a refill (not likely these days, I know). It does the job and that's it. I would personally choose Lamy Black instead, which has nicer, deeper colour and is still no-fuss ink but Waterman Black is fine. I would not throw it out if somebody gave it to me, put it that way. But it shares the same space as Parker Quink Blue of being the lowest common denominator for workhorse ink. Something your job buys, or you buy for your job, rather than something you enjoy. It doesn't mean it's bad (I have a soft spot for Parker Quink Blue), it just is. It exists.
So after smudging would you call this a purpley-black or a blue-black? It’s hard to tell on screen without a blue-black next to it for comparison, and I’m trying to find a bottle replacement for a purple-black which annoyingly only comes in standard cartridges.
Definitely blue/black
@@TheInkedWell thanks, much appreciated! Can you suggest any purple-blacks in bottle inks?
Nice review! Have high respect for Waterman inks... But would pass, due to the hard starts
It would have to be a bit blacker for my shelf.
Agreed. It’s a good gray/black…but I’m still hunting for a true black ink.
gvfc carbon black is very black and very wet...but then there's the price
Or platinum carbon black obviously...but I can imagine it being tougher to clean with that almost perfect water resistance, haven't used my bottle yet
GVFC is nice. I don't use is that often so I just get it in cartridge form.
You are also right about Platinum. It definitely is a bit harder to clean. I've also found that it feather more than i like (on bad paper).
@@TheInkedWell My favorite 'true' black is the Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Black.