I'd also like to give a shout out to an old friend, Ryan Steinmetz, whose birthday is today. Happy Birthday from One Swell Loop Ryan. Here is what I've sent him:
To continue on with the somewhat educational and informative tone of the blog I thought I would relate some of my tribulations so people can see the process I work through when I'm having a problem.
In August of last year I ordered some supplies from John Neal Book and did an un-boxing video for another blog. The results are informative. Here is some of the story.
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08/12/13
What did I get? A pair each of 4 new nibs, some new Borden Riley paper I've been meaning to try, and some of that Ziller Classic Glossy Black Ink I've had my eye on.
I thought it was interesting that the ink is a white powder with some black chunks in it. The black chunks are obviously the dye, whatever it is. It does not smell like iron gall ink or sumi, but the recipe was suppose to have been sold for the first time in 1898. I'm guessing the white powder is gum arabic. I've never seen it in a powder before. I wish I had saved some to mix with water to see if it resembles the Windsor Newton liquid gum arabic I have.
I mixed the ink for about 5 minutes. While some of the stuff on the bottom did mix in, I was left with a dense, tarry sludge about the size of a dime. The directions do say to mix well by stirring before each use. Perhaps that is why. I can't wait to try it out!
The Bordon Riley Chalk White Layout has the same surface as the Layout Translucent Visual Bond, it's just much more opaque, and the weight is 16 lb vs 13.5 lb. I need to find out how to convert to gsm for comparison to other papers. I will review some paper later. I might as well run through the whole gamut of papers I showed pictures of in a previous section. I'll show a test of the new ink, as well as several other inks I have on hand.
Also it has become clear to me that I should get a tripod for my phone.
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Well, I still haven't gotten that tripod, or there would be some v-log entries here already. The Ziller Glossy Black Ink was frustration I was not well prepared for, as you can see in the follow up post.
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08/13/2013
Day 2 with Classic Ziller Glossy Black Ink, or the beginnings of a thorough review of said ink.
Today, glorious Tuesday, was day two with the ink. To celebrate this fact, 5 different papers were un-shelved and made ready. The ink, uncapped and mixed (per instructions), with loins girded for good measure, I set out. Much wailing and gnashing of teeth ensued.
I tested it (the Ziller) first on a virgin page of Borden Riley Layout Translucent White. As layout paper goes, Borden Riley is rough. Where Beinfang 360 Layout has more tooth than Canson Pro Layout Marker Paper, Borden Riley Layout Translucent White has even more tooth than the Beinfang 360. Come on, it has the word "fang" in it, shouldn't it be the one with more teeth?! The Borden Riley Translucent is bordering on medium tooth I tell you.
The ink did not take well to this paper. Yesterday the ink flowed fast, but felt dry on the Rhodia paper. Today, on the Borden Translucent, the nib is shuffling and dragging its tines, slow across the page, too dry to leave an even trail. The nib pushes forward, too slow to be a glide, then catches, or drags out of line, or skips; friction appears variable. Blots and globs develop around the edges of shades in some of the letters. Overall the Ziller is difficult and frustrating to use on this paper, and makes me question my abilities as a penman. Onward to the Borden Riley Chalkwhite Layout Paper.
To the touch, Borden Riley Chalkwhite has the same surface as the Borden Riley Translucent. It is a deceptive paper, laying in wait with further tribulations. The best way to tell the difference in paper surfaces is to go ahead and put pen to page, then it cannot lie to you. The Borden Chalkwhite makes for a slow and club footed nib, like the Translucent before it, but now there is also feathering! It isn't pronounced, but it is there if you look close. That will not do. Basically, it performed categorically worse than the Borden Translucent. I made up my mind to bust out the good stuff, entre vous Canson Pro Layout.
With the Canson Pro Layout we see improvement. The nib bites into the paper, but moves smoothly forward along its appointed route. Classic Ziller Glossy Black is also dry on this paper. The dryness causes occasional difficulty in movement, yielding the occasional jerky line. We are still miles ahead of where we were with the Bordon Riley papers. Lettuce test the Rhodia again, for great justice. Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeerooooooooooooy!
The nib moves faster on the page, with less of a biting feeling when we return to the Rhodia. The Ziller Glossy Black makes a smoother, quicker line here. Still, it feels dryer than yesterday, and is not performing quite as well. Which begs the question, is the ink drying out, or is the nib going bad?
Lastly, Clairfontaine Triomphe is tested. The results fall somewhere between Canson Pro Layout and the Rhodia. For this Ziller ink, it is a firm second best choice, under these conditions.
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| A vintage school pen, pulled from the holder like a bad tooth. |
Use of a brand new Nikko G and Brause Steno yielded only marginally better results. The problem was not the nib. Since the paper is of good quality, and the ink has been feeling dry my conclusion is I should add some water before my next use.
Later I spoke with one of my mentors in the guild I belong to about the ink. She said she adds water to it several drops at a time a few times during each use. She finds the ink dry otherwise. This confirms my suspicions somewhat. I will be adding a little water to the ink next time I use it. Try adding a few drops at a time and testing the consistency after mixing. I'm hopeful this will resolve things. One calligrapher's solution doesn't always work for another. However, that is sometimes merely due to not being there to see the fix with your own eyes before attempting it. Go right out and join your local calligraphy guild if you can!
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That mentor is Trish Taylor, the guild is Capital City Scribes. I eventually got around to following her good advice and had a much better time with the Ziller Glossy Black. It is a good ink, I'm just still mad at it 5 months later.
Schin has asked me to review my Blackwell oblique pen holder. So, some reviews of my pens will be on the way soon, to be followed, hopefully, by a more in-depth look at nibs (I am hoping to get some impressions from other calligraphers I've given nibs to for this one) and some paper reviews.
