All 3 Oysters Bottles have a facet on one corner so you can tilt it for easier filling when the ink level gets low.

Ink Review: 3 Oysters Delicious Inks

June 5, 2019

The sheer volume of excellent fountain pen inks on the market continues to astound me. I know I talk about this all the time, but I still remember a time less than ten years ago when there were only two brands (Noodler’s and Private Reserve) that had color options in the double digits. Even as more brands emerged in recent years, most companies focused on bright, highly saturated colors. Those have their place, but when it comes to choosing ink, my interest lies in the darker, more muted, and somewhat murky corners of the color palette. Korean ink maker 3 Oysters checks all of those boxes.

Since I’m a sucker for dark greens, and especially green-blacks, I picked up a bottle of Black Moss as I was leaving this year’s Baltimore Pen Show. A month later in Little Rock, during a visit to the Vanness store, I added samples of Gogung (a grayish brown), Red Wine (self-explanatory), and Chilli Red (a brighter red with hints of orange). The only color I did not care for was Mustard. The color is interesting, but it’s a bit light for everyday writing and doesn’t fit a need in my rotation.

All of the 3 Oysters inks I tested dried quickly and exhibited zero bleeding, feathering, or even show-through. These really are great inks! I used 3 Oysters on a variety of papers across several work days, and never had an issue. If I could anticipate any criticisms that someone might have with the 3 Oysters inks, it would be that some might find certain inks a bit undersaturated (i.e., washed-out), especially colors such as Chili Red and Mustard.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

I’ve enjoyed my time so far with the 3 Oysters “Delicious” inks, and the bottle of Black Moss will certainly see some use. Behavior-wise, they remind me of Pilot Iroshizuku, being slightly less saturated and having similar flow. The price point is $18 for 30ml, which on a price-per-ml basis sits on the expensive side, but I don’t have any information on the scale of production - it’s actually difficult to find much information on the company behind the ink. I assume it’s a relatively small operation, with import and shipping costs driving the price of the ink up even further. That said, the price is not per se unreasonable, and sits well below Sailor’s new price point of 20ml for $15.

You can currently purchase all 3Oysters inks from our sponsor Vanness Pens, which carries the entire line, including not only the “Delicious” inks featured here, but also the “Hun Min Jeong” and “I.Color.U” series, and a special edition “Marine Green” ink.

Disclaimer: This post contains links to paid sponsors and affiliates. Vanness Pens is a sponsor of this site and provided me with the ink featured in this review free of charge, for review purposes.

Six Month Review: Miscellaneous Paper, Accessories, & More

June 2, 2019

Last recap post before things get back to normal this week! Today I’ll look at miscellaneous stationery accessories that I’ve enjoyed reviewing in 2019. As with other similar posts, all links are to my own previous reviews. Enjoy!

Traveling with Fountain Pens: Do You Need a Traveling Inkwell? Although “Traveling Inkwells” or “ink pots” have been on the market for some time, they’ve received a lot of attention over the past year when Visconti and Pineider both made a push to get these products some additional exposure by lowering the price to a more reasonable level. Personally, I use my two inkwells to hold the remnants of near-empty ink bottles, or to help me use inks from bottles that make it hard to fill pens with larger nibs. It’s also much easier to fully fill a vacuum-filler fountain pen using an inkwell - just be sure to hold the inkwell tightly so it doesn’t fly across the room.

Traveling with Fountain Pens: In Praise of the Humble Ink Cartridge. In the second entry of my “Traveling with Fountain Pens” series, I looked at the ink cartridge - something that often gets overlooked (or mocked) by “serious” fountain pen enthusiasts, but which I use regularly as a convenient and functional way to refill pens at work and on the road. Use those cartridges proudly!

Jetstream SXR-600 Refill. For years, I’ve wanted a Uniball Jetstream hybrid-ballpoint refill that I could use in my standard ballpoint and rollerball pen bodies. Now, you can have the Jetstream’s write-anywhere, quick drying experience in any pen that takes a standard Parker-style refill, such as the Retro 51 Tornado or the Baron Fig Squire.

Staples TRU RED Notebooks. The paper in the black “soft-cover” notebooks is excellent for fountain pens, and I hope Staples continues to source this paper in the future. It’s a low-cost option that’s readily available at your local office-supply store, and the leatherette covers are nice as well.

Pen Storage Solutions: Pen Boxes and Folios. I’ve really reworked my pen organization/pen storage over the past year, and am preparing to do another round of thinning the herd in the coming months. In this post I highlight several storage options that I use to keep my pen collection (relatively) organized and easy to navigate.

Thanks for bearing with me while I’ve been on vacation. I’ve needed a break and I look forward to tackling the second half of the year!

Six Month Review: Favorite Inks from 2019, So Far

May 29, 2019

As with my Six Month Review of my favorite pens from the first part of this year, I’ll take a look at some favorite inks I’ve reviewed so far. Unfortunately, I don’t do as many ink reviews as I do pen reviews (honestly, I don’t use THAT many different inks), so this may actually turn into a recap of most of the inks I’ve reviewed this year. The good thing is that those inks I choose to review actually end up being the inks I really like and use, and I’ve loaded up on ink in the first part of this year, and look forward to broadening my horizons a bit going forward.

Pilot Iroshizuku 100th Anniversary Inks Bishamonten (Red) and Hoteison (Dark Green). While I wasn’t blown away by the 100th Anniversary Iroshizuku inks as a whole - I found the overall color palette underwhelming - these two inks have both seen steady use, and caused me to pull out my other underused Iroshizuku inks and invest in several additional colors. Look forward to seeing more Iroshizuku content coming your way.

Rediscovering an Old Favorite: Private Reserve Burgundy Mist. I set aside my Private Reserve inks years ago and more or less wrote off the brand, but my recent experience with Burgundy Mist has me wanting to repurchase more old favorites as Private Reserve has been revitalized under new ownership.

Robert Oster / Pen Addict “Fire on Fire” Collaboration. Brad and Robert Oster came up with one of the best “everyday” orange inks on the market, in terms of flow, visibility, and the lack of any tendency to form “nib crud.” Fire on Fire will be a mainstay of my rotation for as long as they continue making the ink.

Taccia Ebi (Purple Red) and Uguisu (Olive Green). Taccia is a brand that I’ve grown to appreciate over the years. They don’t make a wide range of products, but what they do make - both pens and ink - are of excellent quality. The inks are also quite reasonably priced, and I’m certainly going to pick more of these up in the future.

Waterman Tender Purple. Making a guest appearance in my review of the Tactile Turn Gist 2.0, I will always think of this ink as Waterman Violet, which is what it was called for years before Waterman updated its line not to add more colors, but rather a series of cheesy names such as “Tender Purple,” “Inspired Blue,” “Serenity Blue,” etc. Strange marketing decisions aside, it’s a great ink, and I’ve had multiple fills of this ink loaded in my Gist for the past couple months.

Thanks for reading! For more of my thoughts on inks, check out my post titled “Favorite Workhorse Fountain Pen Inks, as Determined by Actual Use.” As a reminder, I’m on vacation for the rest of this week so nearly all of what I post will be recap-style content. Things will be back to normal next week!

Six Month Review: Favorite Pens From 2019, So Far

May 26, 2019

Every year I take time off around Memorial Day to go on vacation, and while there won’t be any new content until the first week of June, I typically will post a series of short recaps in which I revisit some of my favorite products and reviews from the first six months of the year. First up is pens. All links are links to my own full reviews. Enjoy!

Leonardo Officina Italiana Momento Zero. Though these aren’t supposed to be in any particular order of preference, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that the Leonardo Momento Zero made this list. I now own SIX of these pens - three celluloid and three acrylic - and carry at least one with me every day. The fact that you can get one of these pens well under the $200 price point amazes me, though you will have to pay a premium for unique materials such as celluloid or ebonite.

Desiderata Soubriquet. I waited a long time to pick up my first Desiderata. Too long, apparently. The Soubriquet is the biggest pleasant surprise of the year, if not the entire blog. I love this pen, especially the Briar Ebonite material. Now that Pierre is making these pens with JoWo nibs, those who like the look of the Soubriquet and other Desiderata Pens won’t be limited to the Zebra G Calligraphy nib, which itself is a great option/feature if you’re looking for a fountain pen to do calligraphy.

TWSBI ECO Transparent Orange. While I’ve always considered it a good pen, especially considering that you’re getting a reliable high capacity piston-filler for around $30, the ECO’s design has never appealed to me as much as TWSBI’s 580 line. Something about the acrylic on the standard white and black models made the faceted cap look too chunky. That changed with TWSBI’s release of clear demonstrator versions, especially the orange version that came out this year. Sometimes you find a pen that just checks all your boxes: a great price-to-value proposition, just the right pop of color, a large ink capacity, and a good nib.

Montblanc Starwalker Rollerball. Despite the premium price point, I like Montblanc rollerball refills because they come in a finer tip and generally don’t write as wet of a line as Schmidt refills, which have become the default for rollerball pens such as the Retro 51 and the Baron Fig Squire. I’ve also been wanting to add a Montblanc Starwalker to my collection for years, but have held off purchasing a fountain pen because this particular model is cartridge-only and has developed a reputation for spotty nib quality over the years. But a Starwalker rollerball? On deep discount? I snapped it up immediately.

Baux Pens. Though the 22Pen might be a close second, the Baux Pen is probably the weirdest - in a good way - Kickstarter project I’ve ever backed. A premium barrel for a Bic Cristal refill? Sign me up. I’ve used these pens on a daily basis since they made their way into my hands. I highly recommend the Xtra Precision refill if you find the typical Bic Cristal too wide.

Editor’s Note: I’m traveling this week on vacation, so I’ll likely be slow to respond to e-mails and comments. I’ll catch up with all of you when I get back the week of June 3.

The Franklin-Christoph Covered Pen Tray is my overall favorite storage system, with an excellent combination of looks and functionality.

Top 5 Pen Storage Solutions: Pen Boxes and Folios

May 22, 2019

As you might imagine, pen storage becomes an issue around the TGS office. Between my own personal collection and the archive of pens that I keep on hand for review and comparison purposes, space is at a premium, and I’m constantly on the lookout for ways to upgrade my storage game. Back in 2016, when I first wrote about storage options and ways to organize your pen collection, I relied heavily on multiple three-to-five pen “daily carry” style cases and wraps, which quickly became unmanageable as my collection grew. Over the years, I’ve moved towards pen boxes and “album-style” folios that not only protect my pens a bit better but allow me to organize things while taking up less space overall. So what do I use? Let’s take a look.

Pen Chalet Pen Display Cases (via Pen Chalet). If you’re looking for a classic padded pen display box with a glass top, you can’t beat these relatively inexpensive wood-veneer pen boxes. Available in 10, 20, 30, and 60-pen sizes, Pen Chalet’s “house brand” cases feature sturdy construction with lined padded inserts. The only drawback to these boxes is that the slots in the drawers on the larger-capacity models might be a bit tight for larger pens such as Montblanc 149s, Pelikan M800s and M1000s, etc. I personally own the 10-pen case, which sits on my desk, as well as the 30-pen model, which I have on my bookshelves.
Franklin-Christoph Covered Pen Tray (via Franklin-Christoph). For a premium, ultra-classy look, you can’t go wrong with the Covered Pen Tray. I acquired my black leather model nearly three years ago, and it’s held my “currently inked” pens ever since. One advantage to the Covered Pen Tray over a wooden box is portability - Franklin-Christoph created this display box as a way to transport pens to shows and display them without having to remove them from their travel case. It’s perfect for a pen meetup or smaller gathering of friends where you don’t want to bring your entire collection.
Monteverde 36-Pen Zippered Case (via Pen Chalet). Most of my more expensive pens live in the Pen Chalet Display Cases or the Covered Pen Tray, what about the rest? To conserve storage space, I have these pens “archived” in album-style cases on my bookshelves. By far, the most cost-effect means of storing pens in this way is Monteverde’s spacious 36-pen zippered case. The quality is excellent for the price point, and if you need high-volume, low-cost storage, this is definitely the way to go. As the pics below show, it’s not the most visually appealing storage option, but it won’t kill your wallet.
Galen Leather Zippered 40-Pen Leather Case (via Galen Leather). Zeynep at Galen Leather reached out recently and asked whether I would be interested in reviewing one of their 40 pen leather cases. Though I only recently received this item, I have a lot of experience with Galen Leather products and have always enjoyed their work. This zippered pen case is no exception, and while it’s more expensive than the Monteverde option, it’s also more compact, holds a few more pens, and will look quite nice as the leather ages.
Aston Leather 10 Pen Carrying Cases (via Pen Chalet). While my pens don’t live permanently in these cases, the Aston Leather 10 Pen cases are my choice for transporting pens to pen shows. The leather has held up well over time - the one pictured here is nearly ten years old - and the soft insert protects your pens well. I’ve also been able to get up to 14 pens into one of these cases, as there is extra elastic that can hold 4 more pens as long as they’re not too big.

You won’t go wrong with any of these options, and you should pick one that matches up with your needs. If you carry pens around frequently to shows and meetups, an album-style case will likely be the best option. But if you want to spruce up your workspace or display your pens openly, I’ve been very happy with both the Pen Chalet pen boxes and the Franklin-Christoph Covered Pen Tray.

Disclaimer: The only product featured here that I received free for review purposes is the Galen Leather Zippered 40-Pen Case, though I may have used store credit to purchase some of these items over the years. (I’ve had most of them for some time - I can’t remember.)