Ink Spots!

Well, not really ink spots!  But I'm always on the search for The Perfect Ink for my purposes.

I'm still looking.

What I want most often is an ink that dries waterproof (or at least water-resistent) in a relatively short time, so I can use watercolor over it...and that's tricky, in most fountain pens.  I've tested dozens and usually go back to Noodler's Lexington Grey, which seems to perform best for me, given my usual "requirements."

Often, we blame our fountain pens for not feeding well, but it may be the ink instead.  (And of course some pens write wetter and some dryer...meaning some make a finer more delicate line, and some really flow readily.   My original Namiki Falcon is like that, somewhat juicy.)

I'd love a dependable brown that doesn't clog my pens, but so far except in RARE cases, that's been tough to find.  (My Carbon Desk Pens, the TWSBIs, and my inexpensive Preppies seem most amenable to brown ink, and the brown that works best for me seems to be Noodler's Brown #41.)  But for the most part, Lexy Grey is my go-to ink.

GouletPen.com has a lovely sampler set of browns to try out!  (And come to think of it, there ARE some "ink spots," someone leaked!)

I used Noodler's Brown #41 in my Materia Medica, in a Carbon Desk Pen you can read about in this post.

I was really excited when I heard about DeAtramentis Document Inks, and some people are finding them PERFECT for their needs, not a bit of trouble; my dear friend Liz Steel loves them!  (The inks seem to work perfectly in many of the Lamy pens, which, unfortunately, I don't care for.)

And I just paid a professional to clean my vintage Sheaffer--I couldn't get it to work even with Goulet's pen cleaner, which is normally magic!  She recommended that I either change to water-soluble ink or flush it about once a week!

(My favorite Noodler's Creaper pen that I only write with is always filled with a water-soluble ink that hasn't failed me once in almost 3 years...it's De Atramentis, a dark green-black, and I love it!)

NOTE: There's a big difference in dye inks and pigmented inks.  The latter is much more likely to be water-resistant, but also more likely to clog since pigment particles do tend to clump.  That's why some cartridges, like the Pilot Namiki, some with a tiny ball-bearing inside that keeps the particles more evenly distributed.  Some of my converters have that option too... 

I recently bought another Noodler's Konrad pen, which holds more ink than the Creaper, and was amazed when it quit working after a few weeks.  I'm not, any more.  That's its feed and nib, on the left, in the first picture below.  The other is my normally dependable, foolproof Hero M-86 nib.

Yeah, that's the new Konrad's feed...almost totally clogged.

This is the Hero nib, likewise--but it had been in the pen considerably longer, so not as surprised.  BOTH took a nice bath in pen cleaner and got a good scrubbing with an old toothbrush, though...

Just for the heck of it I put the Hero under a magnivying glass...yuck.  I'd be reluctant to work too if I were clogged like that...

So will I continue to use my De Atramentis Document inks?  Of course.  But I'll be much more mindful of cleaning and flushing my pens and nibs, and use them in my juicier, more dependable pens, at least the inexpensive ones like the Preppy and Metropolitan, definitely not the vintage pens!  And they're great with dip pens.

Obviously this is not an issue only with the De Atramentis Document inks, either...many pigmented inks can be challenging to use.  I'm careful with Platinum Carbon Black and other similar inks as well.

And of course you do NOT want to use India Ink or one of the acrylics in a good fountain pen.  They dry hard!

It is more than possible to draw with water-soluble ink, and wet the lines for halftones...it's a lovely and often luminous effect, just not one I go for often!  I may have to branch out a bit...

Soooo...what works for you, in which pens?  Water soluble, water resistant?

The Current Sketch Kit!

So...attempting once again to organize and simplify!  I have just gotten 3 new/old vintage pens from Pier Gustafson (more on those soon!) and wanted something better to protect them than the old plastic pocket protector that I've been using for years--you know, the ones with the open top.  Things kept falling out, and it really wasn't quite big enough--not with the delicious new pens to play with.

Unfortunately, all the closed pen cases I found were too small, only holding 2 or at most 3 pens...and of course when I saw this small Smart Fit case from Jetpens, I decided to give it a try.  It's about 4" x 7", and zips shut for much more security.

The problem, of course, is that it really holds TOO much--and not quite enough at the same time!  Consolidating all my travel kit in one place is lovely, but...it's gotten kind of fat and heavy as I keep thinking "okay, I need that...and might use that...and I always wish I had one of those...and oh, look, that fits right there...and want to try that out..."

As it turned out, the pens work best on the right side, and I knew I wanted to keep one technical pen and one mechanical pencil, in addition to two of my vintage pens, and a dependable TWSBI Eco, and my old Frankenpen I discussed in this post, and this post and OOOPS, out of room on that side!  

So here's what made the cut for now...plus the tiny kids' watercolor kit from Wet Paint I filled with my own choice of artist colors and a wee telescoping brush from an old Winsor & Newton kit in that small front pocket...that's the new/old blue Waterman from Pier Gustafson and my old red Eversharp from the 1950s.

The mesh side has room for a sharpener and a small magnifying glass, plus two waterbrushes, two "real" brushes of a nice size, cut off to travel, and one wee tiny one for the occasional serious detail (cat whiskers anyone?), 3 colored pencils (2 black or grey and one white), an antique folding pen given to me by a friend (that's the aqua dealie), and yes, another pen, the ever-dependable fine-nib Carbon Desk Pen I cut off so the cap would post.  You can read about that process here.

This is how they come from Wet Paint and others, still with the kid colors in it at that point...and a totally useless brush!

Oh, yeah, that tiny watercolor kit?  That's what I used for all the sketches but ONE to fill this journal when we went to Charleston, SC!  (If you're not on Facebook, my account is public so you may be able to see anyway...) I CAN travel light...it's just not easy.

So at 7.7 ounces this setup is not exactly super light, and full, it's about 1-1/2" deep, so not really skinny, either...but oh well!  Like a Boy Scout, I'm prepared!

Sketching with Bent Nib Calligraphy Pens

As noted the other day in my pen conversion posts--this is FUN, with a huge range of line widths possible!

Sketching our friends in the Copper Creek Band, with a bit of gray wash added...

Molly Hammer and Joe Cartwright at Chaz on the Plaza...

See all the line widths that are possible with just one pen?

I added a wee bit of color today...this is my new softcover Stillman & Birn Beta sketchbook, LOVE it.

Quick sketches of details...

Showing this again to show how the nib can be held to get different effects.

"Urban Removal" works...

Fun for nature subjects too...

I've got several Hero and Sailor calligraphy pens, almost like drawing with a brush.  The pens are generally quite inexpensive...give them a try!

Kate's "Frankenpen," Part TWO

My converted Noodler's to a bent nib is FUN...

Here's the pen and  nibs together...

 I used to feed from the original Noodler's Creaper pen...you just gently work it out of the pen.  (While I was at it I deepened the feed groove slightly to make it feed better.)

The nib is from an M-86 Hero pen, a perfect fit.  (The feed did not, though, so voila, Frankenpen!)

A good cleaning with Goulet's pen flush put everything in the mood to work well...

Here, you can see the lines of the feed, and the approximate position...you hold the nib and feed firmly in one hand and push it into the pen.  Don't force it, but seat it well.


You can see the position and the bent nib well below...

And the pen in action!

Hero pens are available online (though the M-86 is hard to find, perhaps on eBay last time I checked); it looks as if an 8-Horses Hero might fit too, but I have yet to try one.  (And ya know, they work just fine in the pen body they come in, they're just a bit heavy for me!)

A review of the M-86 is here--you can see photos here too.  It's a bit awkward to use and the cap doesn't fit well when posted--it unbalances the pen but it has a LOVELY nib, hence my conversion!

I usually pick up my Noodler's Creapers from Gouletpens.com--they've got a huge selection of colors, too!  (No, I don't work for Goulet or get a cut from them--they're just terrific people to work with, so I like to spread the word!)

Alas, I don't know about converting any of the other pens out there--I'm so happy with this one!

Again, these two posts are in answer to correspondent Liz Steel's question about my pen hack in her wonderful series on Fountain Pens for Sketching--don't miss it!

Kate's "Frankenpen!" Part ONE

Our dear friend and book contributor Liz Steel has been doing a wonderfully helpful series on her blog on Fountain Pens for Sketching, on Tuesdays and Thursdays--don't miss it! 

She asked me about my Noodler's Creaper conversion to a bent-nib calligraphy pen, and though I've mentioned it in passing, here, I really didn't say much about it...so here's Part One, how I did it, and why!  I love that pen...lightweight, versatile, handy and fun!

The bent-nib pens are great fun , once you learn how to hold them...this is from my YouTube video that shows a number of ways to use them.

Actually, it's Chinese, in this case, but oh well...

Our community center after a fire, with my Hero pen...

NICE variation for the trees...

And oops, sorry, Blogger's being weird, so I'm having to do this in two parts...

Noodler's Flex Pens

These were done with a Noodler's Creaper flex pen, the smallest one they make; I love the varied lines, and the fact that you can tweak the pens--literally take them apart to clean and service them yourself if you wish.  (LOTS of good videos on that at http://gouletpens.com!)

I own 6 Creapers now, for use with different inks (and two I've played with replacing the factory nib with different nibs--one a Hero M-86 bent nib for calligraphy and one an antique gold Waterman--they just fit the small pen.)

At $14, I find these a fantastic bargain for a flexible-nib fountain pen!

I also own 2 Konrads and a big old Ahab--it's lovely but a bit large for my small hands.  Holds a LOT of ink, though.

Here's my review on that pen: http://artistsjournalworkshop.blogspot.com/2011/12/noodlers-new-ahab-pen.html


These are nice writing pens, too--I use them almost exclusively to write letters and to work in my written journal/daybook, though I do own other pens.  The nibs on mine are exceptionally smooth for a steel nib pen.

On the minus side, for some unknown reason ink DOES evaporate in the pens--something to do with the type of plastic-like material they're made from.  Sometimes they need a kickstart, either spraying the nib with water or giving it a quick dip. Sometimes I need to tap them on the paper to get them started.  And sometimes I just need to adjust the nib.

Of course any pen is sensitive to both the type of ink you're using and the paper you're working on. Some are a better "fit" than others.

What's been your experience?

My Everyday Journaling Supplies

It's always interesting to see what other artists consider necessary for their everyday journal work, so I thought I'd share mine...this is what survived after a recent trip to Nevada, and granted, I didn't jettison MUCH!  

This is what goes in my purse...which really ISN'T much of a purse, it's my field bag/traveling studio!  My usual retrofitted Prang box at the bottom, an old pencil case with a few tools, a sprayer that doubles as my water supply and the little collapsing bucket above it if I need more (I've never been able to find another one this small!)  Then in upper center the new Sharpie EF white, a couple of Micron Pigmas that don't mind changes in air pressure, a couple of colored pencils for sketching, and two waterbrushes.  (The flat one didn't actually go on the trip but I wished it had...)  A small vial of ink in the tiny bag and a pocket protector full of pens and one mechanical pencil...it all weighs in less than 2 lbs.

My old retrofitted Prang box makes me feel like a kid!  I've replaced the round brush with a better one from Black Gold, and that's a bamboo skewer for drawing with, like a pen.  These are my usual colors, except I've taken out the green: https://www.flickr.com/photos/cathy-johnson/8126242177/in/set-72157604173444404

Here's what goes in the pencil box, from the top...a 1" flat with the end sharpened, a #8 travel brush, a small bristle brush (also sharpened) I use for painting, spatter, or lifting; a toothpick and another skewer, a piece of credit card for scraping and the lightest possible pencil sharpener for those colored pencils, a piece of sharpened dowel rod and a small dip pen we found on eBay.  It's an antique!  (Sometimes a little piece of white vinyl eraser, too...)

Pocket protectors work great to corral my pens and a pencil!

A lovely array of pens and points...from left, my ancient Sheaffer, a Noodler's Creaper, a Creaper body with a Hero bent nib in it, another old Sheaffer for smoooooth writing (ok, I could leave it home), my Platinum Carbon Desk Pen cut short so it will cap, and my favorite Pentel Forte mechanical pencil.  (Here's the post in which I tell how I cut the Carbon Desk Pen: http://artistsjournalworkshop.blogspot.com/2011/06/yet-another-new-pen.html)

Yum.  Even if they DID leak in the plane...

It all fits in here...

And the front zipper pocket is all that actually acts as a purse!  Drivers' license and credit cards (and our wedding picture!), pills, salt and pepper, cell phone, mirror, comb, nail clipper...and when I'm not flying, a TINY Swiss Army knife...

Could I do with less?  Of course.  Am I likely to?  Um...not till the arthritis gets worse!  I might leave out that one pen...

I'll share some of my sketches in another post!

Lamy Pen hack...more tweaking!

Several people have mentioned that the Lamy pens hurt their hands, as they do mine after a time (what were they THINKING with those sharp edges right where your finger and thumb rest??), so I thought I'd share my solution...

Here's one of the edges that cause a problem...if you could turn the calligraphy nib (this one's a Lamy Joy, their calligraphy pen I like sketching with) that might help, but I couldn't seem to do that. 

So I just took my two-sided nail file and filed that softly rounded...rough side first, then the smoother one.

It looks a little rough here, but I polished it with a rough cloth and it's fine now...AND a lot more comfortable when I'm sketching or writing for a while! (And yes, that IS Pepi fur in the background--he keeps me company!)

This was an easy fix, so I did it to another of my Lamys...before you give up on something that's otherwise satisfactory, see if you can't make it work better for you.

Fountain pen tweaks and maintenance...

I thought I'd cover this subject since so many of us are experimenting with fountain pens, now!  Some maintenance IS necessary (especially if you're using pigment inks, which can clog), and it's best to take it easy and take it slow...

Tweaks CAN work...but they can mess up a good pen, too.  Go gently...

I've been very enthusiastic about my Noodler's Ahab pen, while recognizing that not all Ahabs are created equal.  Some work great, some apparently don't have their nibs set quite right.  Since it is SO easy to tweak the Noodler's small Creaper pen to get the nib set just as you, personally, prefer it, and since I noticed my two Ahabs were slightly different and one worked better than the other, I decided to fix that.

Great fix, as you can see above.

Apparently, unlike the Creaper, there is only one way the Ahab nib will seat properly.  (They tell me it goes on the side that is slightly out of round...which is hard to discern, and isn't mentioned in their flier.)  Since I didn't set it that way, it wouldn't go in as far and I bent the nib when I tightened the cap...siiigh...

So...I tried a replacement nib, and since I was messing with it anyway, I decided to try converting it to eyedropper fill, which holds a lot more ink than the piston-pump the Ahab comes with.  The whole body of the pen can be full of ink!  OK, I got a little starry-eyed about that idea.  I love the little Noodler's Flex pens but they DO run out of ink quickly if you sketch a lot.

The flier gives directions on how to do that, including moving up the O-ring and using some silicone grease to seal the threads...

Want my directions?  Just don't.  Ahab holds a lot of ink, just as it comes.  It's difficult to know why it didn't work for me, but it leaked around the nib section.  Sometimes a little, sometimes a lot.  I tried tweaking more, but...

Spoiled the journal page above with a sudden big drop of ink--and notice the ink pooled in the cap?

After which I decided to heck with it, moved the O-ring back where it was, reinstalled the pump, and it works FINE now.  Sometimes it's better just to be happy with what you have!  The Ahab already holds a LOT more ink than the Creaper.

NOTE: Some people have problems with the Ahab spitting or belching anyway.  No idea why...happily, it is an inexpensive pen, and you may be able to get a refund if yours just does NOT work.  

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My Lamys are workhorses, very dependable, if a tad predictable.  (Very uniform lines...and the EF nib really isn't as fine as I'd like.)

But you still need to take care of them, with an occasional cleaning--especially with some inks.

This nib section of my clear demonstrator had ink dried in it...I tried soaking it, but not long enough.  Online searching for help suggested grasping the nib firmly and just wiggling it back and forth...upon which it broke right OFF.  YIKES, I don't know my own strength!

My husband's Lamy had brown ink in it...and it hadn't been used for months.  The ink feed was very spotty and weak...so I decided to try again with it, and PATIENCE.  I used warm water with a shot of vinegar in it, left it to soak overnight, and that solved the problem.  Look at all the sediment in the bottom of the jar!

Here's the difference a good cleaning can make!  The top part of the page is the "before."

You can use a few drops of detergent, a spoonful or two of vinegar*, or even a little ammonia.  Be sure to rinse the pen thoroughly before re-inking and you should be good to go!

*NOTE:  Some of our commenters tell me there's a problem using vinegar, which may etch or corrode a good pen or nib, and say ammonia is the recommended fix.

It writes smooth as silk now, as do my other Lamy pens...but the one I broke off required buying a whole new nib section.  That was $20 down the drain that could have been saved by exercising a bit more patience...and vinegar* or ammonia.

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I've been experimenting with other inexpensive pens and will do a new post on those next week...but for now, let me say that the Lamys and the Noodler pens are going to be my personal go-to solution in most cases. 

Till the next gotta-test-it pen comes along...

Pool Party Birthday!

This was the new Noodler's Flex nib pen with watercolor...Platinum Carbon Black ink.

You do need to wait a minute or so when you're using a heavy application of ink, on this paper (Fabriano HP) to let it dry thoroughly, because it doesn't sink into the paper.

 

I do love those lines!  

Here's a comparison with my beloved old vintage Waterman 152, from the 1920s...it was almost out of ink, so the lines are lighter, but you can see almost the same variation in line is possible...

Overall, very happy with the pen, as well as with that ink!