Private Reserve Invincible Black ink review

Private Reserve Invincible Black is one of those inks that seem to have vanished from the market between the time when I bought the sample and now, when I finally got the chance to review it. It's quite a shame since waterproof inks (which it is) are not in every manufacturer's portfolio. Outside of Noodler's, not many brands seem to care about this segment. Unfortunately it seems that PR has sent its Invincible inks (along with PR Invincible Aqua Blue which I fancied) along the way of the dodo.

Read the review for curiosity or nostalgia sake but I'm not sure where you'd find this ink if you wanted it.

I reviewed the sample in my Pilot Vanishing Point with broad nib.

Bottle and pricing

Bottle capacity: unknown
Price: unknown
Price / ml: unknown

Color and saturation

Private Reserve Invincible Black is, well, black. A very dark black in fact. Side by side with Noodler's Heart of Darkness it looks even darker.

I also compared it with Noodler's Whaleman's Sepia, just for reference, even though the latter isn't technically black.

Shading

Private Reserve Invincible Black is black as the night and thus pretty much flat.

Feathering

None.

Bleedthrough

PR Invincible Black bleeds less than I would have expected, even on cheap paper. There's evidently some ghosting but even that comes more from the contrast between the very dark ink and thin white paper than from actual penetration.

Flow, lubrication, and smoothness

Invincible Black flows nicely and smoothly in the Pilot Vanishing Point with the broad nib unit. However, I have noticed that it likes to dry up rather quickly in the pen, within a few hours. This makes for hard starts and it's definitely not a feature I appreciate, especially in my most expensive pen.

Drying time

Here's the rub. Umm, pun not intended, but you'll see... Private Reserve Invincible Black dries reasonably fast on cheap paper and even the shinier and more expensive stuff like the Clairefontaine 90g sample. Keep reading...

Smearing when dry

Following up on the previous section, this ink is quite prone to smudging when rubbed. So even though it is technically dry, it needs a lot more time to become inert, and even then you can still get it to smear a little if you rub it hard.

Water resistance

As advertised, Private Reserve Invincible Black is completely water resistant and immune to the elements (not sure about acid rain though).

Conclusion

This review might have been all for nothing, considering Private Reserve Invincible Black has been discontinued, but it was interesting, nonetheless, to see how it behaves in relation to other waterproof inks. Overall it's a decently performing ink, with two exceptions: the drying up inside the pen and the fact that it likes to stain containers, including the Pilot VP's converter. Since it's extinct, if you are looking for a black water resistant ink my only option is to recommend one of many such variations that Noodler's makes, including Heart of Darkness and another black ink that I will review soon.

Following are the two samples on photocopy and Clairefontaine 90g paper, respectively.

Private Reserve Daphne Blue ink review

I haven't reviewed a bright blue ink in, like, forever, so I was almost taken aback to realize that I actually had some Private Reserve Daphne Blue among my samples. Here it goes then: PR Daphne Blue reviewed in the Kaweco Sport Classic with broad nib and eyedropper conversion.

Bottle and pricing

Bottle capacity: 66 ml / 2.2 oz
Price: $11
Price / ml: $0.17

Color and saturation

Private Reserve tries to be cute with the name "Daphne Blue" and I'd say it succeeds because this ink is light blue, bright and cheerful as a warm summer day. You could just as easily call it cerulean/sky blue, or baby blue. Or a light shade of turquoise. It fits all these descriptions.

To get an even better idea, here it is next to two similar inks: J Herbin Diabolo Menthe and Noodler's Navajo Turquoise.

What's immediately obvious from this comparison is that Diabolo Menthe leans towards green, while Navajo Turquoise is a darker shade of turquoise than Daphne Blue.

Shading

Whenever an ink shows color variation I'm a happy camper. Light inks sometimes don't do that, but Daphne Blue shades nicely. Of course, the broad nib brings this better into perspective.

Feathering

I haven't noticed any.

Bleedthrough

No, although a broad nib on cheap, spongy paper tends to at least produce some ghosting. Luckily this is pretty well controlled in this case due to the lightness of the ink.

Flow, lubrication, and smoothness

While it flows very well in the Kaweco, I noticed a tiny amount of dryness, but it's hard to pinpoint. I could chalk it to "measured flow" and I wouldn't be half wrong. So it flows very satisfactorily and it's smooth to boot.

Drying time

Nothing out of the ordinary here. As expected, it takes its sweet time on good paper, up to 30 seconds or so (especially with the broad nib). On cheap paper it dries in a few seconds.

Smearing when dry

None.

Water resistance

Water resistance is exactly as I was expecting, despite knowing nothing about this ink prior to testing it. It's non-existent. You can see from the bottom (copy paper) sample how it reacted to only 30 seconds under water.

Conclusion

Private Reserve Daphne Blue has all the markings of a great ink, provided you're on board with the baby blue color. It's very well behaved on all fronts, with the exception of water resistance but that wasn't an advertised feature in any case. If you like turquoise inks, there's nothing that would prevent me from recommending it, with the caveat that it might be a bit light for certain uses. Otherwise, a solid ink.

Following are the two samples on photocopy and Clairefontaine 90g paper, respectively.

Private Reserve Invincible Aqua Blue

I haven't reviewed many Private Reserve inks so far, and Invincible Aqua Blue makes my third. It's also the most "exotic" of them, mostly because it has been discontinued (correct me if I'm wrong). This means that you won't be able to buy it anywhere, which makes this review almost pointless. However, since I managed to grab a sample before it disappeared completely, and because I tested it anyway, I thought it might be worth posting a review just for completeness' sake.

The other thing that makes Private Reserve Invincible Aqua Blue special is its water resistance, denoted by the term "invincible" in its name. I rather like this. I wish other brands followed a similar naming scheme. Noodler's Ink comes close with certain ink series (Hunter, Bad..., Baystate, etc) but it's still erratic.

But enough chit-chat. Let's get down to reviewing this now-defunct ink, which I tested in my Pilot Varsity.

Bottle
Back when you could still buy it, Private Reserve Invincible Aqua Blue retailed for... hmm... I don't know anymore, because I failed to record the price. However, going by the price of its surviving sibling, Invincible Black, you will notice that it costs about $9.75 for a 2 oz (60 ml) bottle, or $0.16 per milliliter. That's not very expensive at all for a waterproof ink.

Color and saturation
Invincible Aqua Blue is an aqua-bluish kind of ink. That means it is a lightly saturated light blue color. It reminds me in a way of Noodler's Polar Blue, which also happens to be a waterproof ink, with the special distinction that it is also cold-resistant. Although the two inks are distinctly different (with Polar Blue darker and more saturated), they both have the "faded jeans" look.

Shading
Invincible Aqua Blue is quite flat and doesn't show any shading.

Feathering
None.

Bleedthrough
Unfortunately this ink tends to penetrate the paper a little. It doesn't bleed heavily but it ghosts a little on cheap paper and almost shows through where the nib presses harder. In this case it's a good thing the ink is only lightly saturated.

Flow and lubrication
Invincible Aqua Blue flowed well in the Pilot Varsity, perhaps a bit on the wet side.

Drying time
One good feature of this ink is that it dried extremely quickly. As you can see from the two samples, it dried in less than 5 seconds even on the shiny Rhodia 80g paper.

Smearing when dry
None.

Water resistance
Private Reserve Invincible Aqua Blue was marketed as a waterproof ink and, true to its purpose, it casually rejected any attempts to wash it off with water. I didn't try other liquids.

Conclusion
I have no idea why Private Reserve decided to discontinue Invincible Aqua Blue. It's not a bad ink by any means. The only negative is that it bleeds a little on cheaper paper but that shouldn't be a major detractor. I'm sure they had their reasons for it and I'm not going to waste time googling it. Too bad it is not among us anymore but what can we do about it? If you are looking for a waterproof ink with these qualities, the closest I can recommend is Noodler's Polar Blue. You can even dilute it a little with water if you want to match colors.

Following are the two samples written on photocopy and Rhodia 80g paper, respectively.

Private Reserve Tanzanite ink review

It's been a long time since I wrote a review and here I am now, typing this from an airport waiting-lounge on another continent. In truth, I haven't been using other inks save for the one I'm reviewing now: Private Reserve Tanzanite. In what has almost become a tradition, I tested this new ink in my trusty Pilot Varsity.

Private Reserve is a new brand for me and Tanzanite may just be that perfect purple ink I've been searching for. Let's find out if it really is. But before that, I'd like to mention something. Ever since I heard about the Private Reserve brand, I made an automatic association in my mind with old cognac. Am I the only one who makes this connection?

Bottle
I'm only testing a sample, but Private Reserve Tanzanite comes in a 50ml (1.7oz) bottle which retails for $8.75 or $0.18 per milliliter. This makes it middle-of-the-road, neither cheap, nor prohibitively expensive.

Color and saturation
I have a strong suspicion that the name Tanzanite comes from the semi-precious stone of the same name. As such, this is a purple ink. Dark purple, to be precise. This ink reminds me strongly of another purple ink whose color I liked, Noodler's North African Violet. However, as you might remember, that ink contributed to the ruination of one of my fountain pens so in the end I wasn't that fond of it. Private Reserve Tanzanite is darkly purple but pleasantly so. I really like its color. It is also highly saturated.

Shading
You might be forgiven to believe that PR Tanzanite doesn't shade very well, especially with a thin nib (I guess everything short of broad or italic). Well, you would  be surprised. It actually has some very nice shading, especially when applied liberally, such as I did with the q-tip. Tilting the paper towards the light will reveal the beautiful golden-red accents.

Feathering
None to speak of.

Bleedthrough
Being a dark ink, PR Tanzanite ghosts a little on cheap paper but otherwise behaves nicely and I can testify to that since I used it daily for over a month at work, on the cheapest copy paper possible, on both sides, without issues.

Flow and lubrication
Generally PR Tanzanite flows well in the Pilot Varsity but that pen is very well behaved as a rule. However, it seems to me that flow isn't consistent all the time. Sometimes it's wetter, other times drier. It's hard to pinpoint the exact cause of this and I very much doubt it's the pen. Still, in the overwhelming majority of cases PR Tanzanite flows impeccably.

Drying time
Happily, the drying times are short, between 5 and 10 seconds on photocopy paper and 10-15 seconds on Rhodia 80g.

Smearing when dry
None.

Water resistance
Though this ink isn't labelled as waterproof, it is surprisingly water resistant as can be seen from the sample which was exposed to running water for 1 minute. Notice that the text remains completely legible even though some of the color has washed off.

Conclusion
Private Reserve Tanzanite has been a pleasant introduction to PR's line of inks. I'll be sure to try others from the brand. I love the color and the general behavior and I especially appreciate the added bonus of water resistance. The latter does come at a price though. It makes the ink harder to clean than your garden variety watery ink. In all, I highly recommend this ink if purple is your color.

Finally, here are the two samples of Private Reserve Tanzanite on photocopy and Rhodia 80g paper, respectively.

Private Reserve Electric DC Blue ink review

This is my first time testing and reviewing a Private Reserve ink and so I feel a little bit like a pioneer exploring new lands. I bought a sample of this ink partially attracted by the name, Electric DC Blue, which hinted at a more unusual shade of blue. I will admit that the name is a bit misleading, but read on to find out why.

I had a hard time finding out where Private Reserve inks come from but apparently they are manufactured in the US, in Indiana. That's cool to know. I had no idea that there were other US manufacturers apart from Noodler's.

I tested Private Reserve Electric DC Blue in my trusty Pilot Varsity which I use every day at work.

Bottle
Private Reserve bottles have a capacity of 50ml / 1.7oz and this particular ink is $8.75 per bottle or $0.17 per milliliter. A very affordable price.

Color and saturation
Electric DC Blue hints at something more vibrant, perhaps even similar to Baystate Blue, but the ink is actually a somber navy blue, I would almost call it blue-black. It features fairly high saturation, but I see nothing "electric" about it, whatever that means.

Shading
Because Electric DC Blue is darkish, you will be forgiven to believe that it doesn't have any shading. In fact it does, but it's very subtle. The q-tip sample shows what I'm talking about. Under the correct light I can also detect a very faint red sheen, almost like Diamine Midnight Blue but make no mistake, you won't see this in normal use.

Feathering
There is no feathering that I could discern.

Bleedthrough
On Rhodia, as usual, Private Reserve Electric DC Blue does not bleed through at all. On a fresh sheet of photocopy paper it doesn't bleed either but there is some slight ghosting, perhaps in large part due to the darkness of the ink. I have noticed that this ink likes to be absorbed by paper so if you use poor quality paper then you will see some bleed. That is especially the case with paper that has been laser printed on one side. I use such scraps for random notes, at work, because I like to get as much use out of paper as possible. In this case, the paper is rendered more absorbent by the heating process of the laser printer and the ink tends to bleed liberally. I'm perfectly ok with that though. I generally like inks that permeate the paper.

Flow and lubrication
Electric DC Blue flows very well and was quite wet in the Pilot Varsity. It also felt well lubricated on paper, where it glided effortlessly. These are all features that I appreciate very much in an ink.

Drying time
The drying time on cheap paper is quick, once again, due to the ink being absorbed rapidly. On Rhodia the situation seems reversed. It took over 30 seconds for the ink to dry completely and not smear. It looks like the more higher quality (and coated) the paper is, the longer it takes for DC Blue to dry. That's pretty much inline with most inks, so no surprise there.

Smearing when dry
None.

Water resistance
This is by no means a waterproof or even water resistant ink. I found it interesting that the ink isn't washed away immediately when exposed to flowing water. It took me a little over a minute of holding under a running faucet to cause it to run, and it did so gradually. If you dunk it in water and hold it there then you will lose whatever you had written, but if you get some water on it by accident you might still be able to save it by drying the paper right away. Just don't wipe the water off, or you might also remove the ink.

Conclusion

Electric DC Blue is my first foray into Private Reserve ink territory. It has been a pleasant experience, with a very well-behaving ink. The pen felt very smooth when writing and this is something that I hold very dear. I especially appreciate a greater-than-average wet ink because I like to see the sheen of wet ink on paper after I write. The one little flaw (if you can even call it that) of Private Reserve Electric DC Blue is that it prefers more expensive paper but this wasn't enough for me to dislike it. Overall, a solid performer.

Next, you can see the two samples on photocopy and Rhodia 80g paper, respectively.

3rd Goulet Pens haul

The past week has been the "week of the Noodler's flex pen" it seems. Goulet Pens, in particular, was assaulted by orders for the latest batch of Noodler's flex fountain pens and I was one of the lucky ones who managed to get their hands on a Noodler's flex in Lapis Inferno (aka blue with white swirls).

The title of this post is a bit dishonest because I've combined two orders into one post but that's only because the first order only contained ink samples plus a few notebooks (and this is not a blog for notebooks and paper), while the second order had another batch of ink samples, plus the 3 pens.

Here's what this order contained:

Pens:

• Noodler's Flex in Lapis Inferno
• Pilot Parallel 3.8mm
• Pilot Parallel 6.0mm

Ink samples:

• Diamine China Blue
• Diamine Coral
• Diamine Prussian Blue
• J. Herbin Bleu Azur
• J. Herbin Diabolo Menthe
• J. Herbin Vert Pre
• Lamy Red
• Noodler's Baystate Blue
• Noodler's Bernanke Blue
• Noodler's Fox Red
• Noodler's Georgia Peach HL
• Noodler's GI Green
• Noodler's Kung Te-Cheng
• Noodler's Mandalay Maroon
• Noodler's Manjiro Nakahama Whaleman's Sepia
• Noodler's Polar Green
• Noodler's Shah's Rose
• Noodler's Dragon's Napalm
• Noodler's Firefly Yellow HL
• Noodler's Hunter Green
• Noodler's Year of the Golden Pig HL
• Private Reserve Daphne Blue
• Private Reserve Electric DC Blue
• Private Reserve Invincible Aqua Blue
• Private Reserve Invincible Black
• Sailor Jentle Apricot
• Sailor Jentle Grenade

Just a quick word about the Noodler's flex pen. I like the color and I'm glad I picked it instead of another. It also happened that the blue pens were the second most popular after the clear ones. I believe I have loaded the pen with the wrong ink because I used a very light gray which may not be the best option for a flex nib. Though I wasn't expecting much from this pen, at this point I'm not particularly impressed with its flexible nib. I'll have to play some more with it before I can review it though.

From the looks of it, I'll have enough ink samples to review for the next year. Can't wait to use them all!