Comparison of different black inks

Submitted by  Teoh Yi Chie on  December 8, 2014 - 9:38 pm

Here are comparisons of different black inks I've used so far. I'll keep adding to the list.

Top half of the square represents one layer of ink, and the bottom two layers.

Here's the quick rundown of pros and cons of each ink. If you want the detailed review, just click and visit the individual reviews.

There's no one best ink because each ink has different characteristics and may be suited for different use. And if it's pigmented, it's not recommended for use in fountain pens.

Ink Daler Rowney Calli Black Ink Dr. Ph. Martin's Bombay Black India Ink Pilot Iroshizuku Take-Sumi ink (Bamboo Charcoal, Black) Pelikan Fount India Ink Noodler's Black Bulletproof Ink Rotring Drawing Black Ink Speedball Super Black India Ink Kuretake Zig Cartoonist Black Ink 60 Kuretake Zig Cartoonist Sumi Ink 60 Platinum Carbon Ink Sailor Kiwa-Guro Nano Black Ink (セーラーナノインク極黒)
Pigmented Yes Yes No Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Archival Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Black intensity A A A A A- A A A A A A
Waterproof No Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No
Surface Matte Matte Matte Matte Matte Matte Matte Matte Matte Matte Matte
Concentrated areas Sheen Matte Matte Sheen Matte Sheen Sheen Colour breaks up Matte Sheen Sheen
Drying time A- A- A- A- B A+ A A- A- A A
Bottle opening Medium Small Big Cone Big Cone Medium Big Big Medium Big
Dropper No Yes No No No No No No No No No
Permanence, resistance to erasing B+ A- A A+ A+ A+ A+ A+ A+ A+ A+
Fountain pen use No No Yes No Yes No No No No Yes, with care Yes, with care

Below's the summary for each ink. Visit the individual reviews for a more detailed analysis and drawing examples.

Daler Rowney Calli Black Ink
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Intensely black
+ Waterproof to a great extent (9 out of 10)
+ Opening has good size for dip pens and brushes
+ Dries fast to a neutral tone
- Dries to a slight sheen at concentrated areas
- It can rub off if too much ink is used

Dr. Ph. Martin's Bombay Black India Ink
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Intensely black
+ Waterproof
+ Dries fast to a neutral tone
+ Slight ink comes off with heavy erasing
+ Does not feather even on lousy paper
+ Bottle has a dropper
- Opening is a bit small for dip pens and brushes

Pilot Iroshizuku Take-Sumi ink (Bamboo Charcoal, Black)
+ Intensely black
+ Dark areas blend smoothly to less concentrated areas
+ Beautiful blown glass bottle
+ Holds up well to erasing
+ Drying time is average to fast
- It's a dye ink, not archival
- Not waterproof
- Dries to a cool tone bias
- More expensive than other black inks

Pelikan Fount India Ink
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Black but not as intense as the blackest inks
+ Bottle has a dropper
+ Plastic bottle means it won't get affected on board planes
+ Dries to a neutral tone
+ Quick drying time
+ After dried, it does not smudge even when rubbed
- Dries to a slight sheen at concentrated areas
- Not waterproof

Noodler's Black Bulletproof Ink
+ 97% water-based formula, archival
+ Bonds only with cellulose
+ Waterproof to a great extent (9 out of 10)
+ Sold in very economical 90ml bottles
+ Holds up well to erasing
+ Suitable for fountain pen use
- Less than dark black
- Dries to a warm tone bias
- Looks blotchy when used to fill areas
- Dries slowly

Rotring Drawing Black Ink
+ Intensely black
+ Dries to a neutral tone
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Waterproof
+ Fast drying time
+ After it's dry, it does not smudge even when rubbed
- Dries to a slight sheen at concentrated areas
- Bottle is designed for refilling technical pens and not for dip pens or brushes

Speedball Super Black India Ink
+ Intensely black
+ Dries to a neutral tone
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Waterproof
+ Fast drying time
+ After it's dry, it does not smudge even when rubbed
+ Holds up well to erasing
+ Large base for bottle makes it stable
+ Bottle has large opening for dip pens, brush
- Dries to a slight sheen at concentrated areas

Kuretake Zig Cartoonist Black Ink 60
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Intensely black
+ Large base for bottle makes it stable
+ Bottle has large opening for dip pens, brush
+ Dries to a neutral tone
+ Waterproof
+ Average to fast drying time
+ After dried, it does not smudge even when rubbed
- Concentrated spots will have colour breaking up

Kuretake Zig Cartoonist Sumi Ink 60
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Intensely black
+ Large base for bottle makes it stable
+ Bottle has large opening for dip pens, brush
+ Dries to a neutral tone
+ Average to fast drying time
+ After dried, it does not smudge even when rubbed
- Not waterproof

Platinum Carbon Ink
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Intensely black
+ Large base for bottle makes it stable
+ Bottle has large opening for dip pens, brush
+ Dries to a neutral tone
+ Fast drying time
+ After dried, it does not smudge even when rubbed
+ Waterproof
+ Supposedly suitable for fountain pen use
- Dries to a slight sheen at concentrated areas
- Expensive

Sailor Kiwa-Guro Nano Black Ink (セーラーナノインク極黒)
+ Pigment ink, archival
+ Intensely black
+ Large base for bottle makes it stable
+ Bottle has large opening for dip pens, brush
+ Dries to a neutral tone
+ Fast drying time
+ After dried, it does not smudge even when rubbed
+ Supposedly suitable for fountain pen use
- Not totally waterproof despite being pigmented ink
- Dries to a slight sheen at concentrated areas
- Expensive

Tags
ink reviews
art product reviews
black ink reviews

Comments

Martha (not verified) Tue, 22 Aug 2017 - 03:32

Hi! LOVE your videos, thanks! I'm not seeing the DeAtramis Black that you've got in your group on the other video where you evaluate waterproofness of the black inks... Do you have a review of it? I have a bottle and haven't used it much, so wondering what you think about it.

Francisca Pires (not verified) Tue, 31 Jul 2018 - 16:51

Hello :3
Why is the rotring ink not suitable for fountain pens? Aren't tecnical pens as easy to clog as fountain pens?
Thank you!

Teoh Yi Chie Tue, 31 Jul 2018 - 17:26

@Francisca Pires
That's for technical pens, not for fountain pens.
I've not tested that for extended periods of time with fountain pens.
For safer waterproof ink for fountain pens, go with Noodler's Bulletproof Black, De Atramentis Document, and Sailor KiwaGuro

Dylan (not verified) Fri, 28 Sep 2018 - 13:13

Hi Teoh, Just wondering what your go to waterproof ink would be for refilling brush pens with?

Jome (not verified) Thu, 04 Oct 2018 - 02:05

Hi Teoh,
Just building on the last question by Dylan concerning refilling brushpens. What ink do you recommend to refill brushpens that are Copic/promarker proof?

Teoh Yi Chie Mon, 08 Oct 2018 - 19:22

@Jome
Platinum Carbon Ink should be very permanent and can resist marker. But always test first before using it to create actual art.

Suzann (not verified) Sat, 19 Jan 2019 - 03:33

Hi Teoh, thank you so much for this review. The chart and swatches are particularly helpful for me. It saved me so much time and money trying out different waterproof inks for my fountain pens. I love your work and your YouTube channel. Keep up the great work.

Antonia (not verified) Thu, 15 Aug 2019 - 01:59

Very helpful. Thank you. With the carbon inks, does 'with care' on fountain pens mean that you should clean the pen as soon as you're taking a break of more than a day from using it, or is there more detailed care required?

Teoh Yi Chie Thu, 15 Aug 2019 - 12:46

@Antonia
If you use the pen everyday, it should be fine. Just clean it every two or three weeks.
If you're not going to be use the pen often, it's best to clean out the ink.

VENU K V (not verified) Wed, 21 Aug 2019 - 23:55

I am a great fan of Endre Penovac..and his ink paintings on wet paper.. According to your study..which Ink is best to achieve such effects.

Teoh Yi Chie Thu, 22 Aug 2019 - 10:30

@VENU K V
Looks like the artist is using ink as a paint. You can get either waterproof or watersoluble inks. It's best to get waterproof ones as they are pigmented and hence lightfast. The ones I recommend are Sailor KiwaGuro, SketchINK, De Atramentis Document.

From what I see, he/she applied the ink, let it dry, and applied colour later.

Julia Pace (not verified) Thu, 10 Sep 2020 - 09:05

Thanks for your many YouTube reviews and drawings. They are much appreciated. I'm wondering how can Doodlers ink be archival when it isn't pigmented?

Teoh Yi Chie Thu, 10 Sep 2020 - 10:01

@Julia Pace
That's a good question. I'm not sure.

When I look at the ink bottle after weeks of not using, the "pigments" seem to separate from the water. But this is unlike other pigmented inks I've used.

The separation is very clear. With other pigmented inks, you won't see the separation but if you use a dip pen you can dig out pigment from the bottom.

With Noodler's ink, the bottle cap is free from ink crust whereas most pigmented ink bottles will have physical ink particles.

Pedlars Pen (not verified) Mon, 24 Jan 2022 - 05:17

The Pelikan fount india is definitely safe to use in a fountain pen with the strict proviso that you DON'T leave it sitting unused for more than a day or two because it does have (non-nano but still very fine) carbon particles in it. It has been used for decades now by myself & many other artists who want a permanent sketch & to take a wash from the line using water. It is very good for this purpose & is still the only safe(ish) permanent ink that can do this to my knowledge.
While Higgins "Eternal black" is very good at this technique too & the manufacturer even claims it is safe in fountain pens. BUT BEWARE ! if you leave the Higgins in an extra-fine pen overnight & it's already starting to cough & splutter - the flow is fast getting clogged !
I enjoy your extensive pen coverage over the net Teoh , you do a great job promoting the joys of pen & ink drawing .Keep up the good work ! Mike

Melanie (not verified) Sat, 31 Dec 2022 - 22:45

Hi Teoh
I recently found your reviews and am really enjoying and appreciating them. So thorough!
I saw somewhere you said that pigmented means ink is lightfast. What does archival mean then? I think I had that mixed up. I googled it and see it means its resistant to fading... could you please clarify for me? I feel like I'm missing something.
Thank you for all the time and effort you put into your videos and communications.

Teoh Yi Chie Sat, 31 Dec 2022 - 23:39

@Melanie
Pigmented means there are physical particles. E.g. Pigmented inks can clog fountain pens if the pigments are too big, or the ink dries up.

Opposite of pigmented is non-pigmented. Dyes are non-pigmented and are used to create colours. E.g. Alcohol markers, coloured fountain pen inks.

Lightfast means resistant to fading. That's a good thing. Archival means the same as lightfast. Archival is a selling feature and is usually mentioned on the label of the product.

Pigments have varying degrees of lightfastness. In other words, not all pigments are lightfast (archival). There are pigments where the colours will fade. Even black can fade. To know which pigments will fade, you have to check the lightfast rating from the company.

You can find more information on pigments from Kremer Pigments, Handprint, Natural Pigments.

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