Posted 09 March 2014 - 05:07

So, inspired by my attempts earlier today with diluting Diamine Majestic Blue, I decided to see if I could make a version with the correct colour.

And so -- behold Faux Penman Sapphire #9

Diamine Majestic Blue ..... 4 Parts

Diamine Sapphire Blue .... 3 Parts

Water ............................... 8 Parts

Depending on your particular pen and paper, you may wish to add more or less water to get a pleasing depth of colour. This particular batch works very will with fine nibbed pens, you may want to wind the water back a bit if you are using a medium or broad nib, or more absorbent paper.

I have attached some scans

The first compares the colour of FPS #9 with real Parker Penman Sapphire. It was done on Clairefontaine notebook paper.

The second scan compares the degree of feathering with both inks. As you can see, both inks feather to the same degree on this paper.

The third scan shows the degree of bleeding, which again, is the same on this paper.

The second and third were done on old stock Reflex paper, which is a marginal paper for feathering and bleeding. On better paper, neither ink feathers or bleeds.

Other Properties --

Spreading. There was no noticeable spreading with either ink.

Dry Time. Both inks dry within seconds on most paper. Using fine nibbed pens on Clairefontaine I got 3 seconds dry time for each ink. Less on more absorbent papers. Of course, if you are going to use a broad nibbed firehose, dry times will be longer.

Red Sheen. Both inks will show a degree of red sheen when concentrated, or used in a wet pen.

So, as far as I can tell, I have been able to make an effective duplicate of Parker Penman Sapphire, in colour, appearance and behaviour.

The Quest stops here.