PILOT Namiki Standard Fountain Pen Ink, Blue, 60ml Bottle (69201)

This is a fantastic blue ink that comes in a really nice bottle. Its a beautiful blue hue that I really like. It has surprisingly good water resistance, and it has good flow. It well behaved, with no hard starts or skips. No excessive bleed through or feathering (I haven't noticed any feathering so far actually), and it doesn't stain anything blue like some Noodler's inks have a reputation for. So far, this is my favorite blue ink, and will be my go-to blue until I try out Monteverde Horizon Blue. I'll try to remember to update this review with a color comparison between the 2 once I try it out. I just wish Pilot's Namiki Black was this good. UPDATE: 3/27/2024 I have now tried Monteverde Horizon Blue and Monteverde Gemstone Sapphire and both are more saturated and vibrant than Pilot Namiki Blue. Horizon Blue and Namiki Blue are fairly similar in tone, while Sapphire is darker and seems to have a touch of violet. All 3 are great colors and well behaved. Namiki Blue does have a significant water resistance advantage over the 2 Monteverde inks.

This is a well-behaved medium blue ink that seems tailor made for my Pilot Custom 74. The color is actually close to that of disposable blue Pilot gel rollerballs. Not flashy or pretentious. Good stuff.

One of the best inks I have purchased. The flow is good and dries quickly. I had left it in a pen that was not used for long. There was not clogging or drying up.

A nice, smooth flowing medium blue ink for my Parker. The funny smell is noticeable, but not bothersome. I also prefer Waterman blue, which is darker than this ink. This Namiki ink feels a bit watery, though with no smearing once it is on the page. Regardless, it dries quickly, doesn't seem to feather on regular paper, and seems to photocopy well (Parker blue Quink doesn't scan or copy well, so beware if you're signing legal documents!). The bottle is attractive, and a decent conversation piece on my desk. For drawing purposes, the color goes down a bit unevenly onto the page, and it is harder to get good shading from this ink than with more "oily" or darker inks. Wide lines wind up blotchy and it is impossible to "pull" the ink into a finer line before it soaks into the paper.

This is a great ink! I own over 100 bottles of ink, various brands and kinds. Yet I use Pilot Blue nearly every day. I always have it in a Pilot Metropolitan that I bring to work. It's a nice shade of blue and very water resistant. I work in a high volume coffee shop, and I absolutely need a water resistant ink. This ink fits the bill nicely. Other than water resistance, there are no other bells and whistles with this ink. It's just a nice, well-behaved blue ink. On the wet side, too, which is why I keep it in a Pilot Metro with a fine nib. Japanese pens write on the dry side and usually benefit from wet (Japanese) inks. This ink displays very minimal feathering, if any, even on the cheapest notebook paper. I am a lefty underwriter and have had no problems with this ink. Dry time is fairly fast. A bonus is that there is a small well at the bottom of the bottle to assist with filling a pen when the ink level gets low from use. When capped, just turn the bottle upside down to fill the well, then place on a level surface, remove cap, and you're ready to fill your pen! There is a lot of bang for the buck to be had from this ink. The price is quite good for such a good, workhorse ink. The color of this ink may not blow anyone's socks off, what with the proliferation of boutique inks now available in every color of the rainbow. Yet this blue color is solid and appropriate for any setting, professional or casual. I very highly recommend this ink!

I purchased a bottle of Namiki blue after a good experience with the black starter cartridge that came with my first fountain pen - a Pilot Kakuno with F nib. I find both the blue and black inks to work well on standard paper: they dry quickly, resist washing off with moisture after drying, bleed-through and feathering have not been issues. I find these to be good workhorse inks for professional use (note-taking and math work) - enjoyable to write with, and basic but pleasing shades of traditional blue and black. The bottle works well for preserving and drawing out ink, and I think it looks nice for display. I do not have experience with other fountain pen inks at this point for comparison, but these 60ml bottles seem to be a great value. I was also considering the highly-regarded Iroshizuku inks; from browsing reviews, I get the impression that the Namiki inks are more water resistant and permanent.

Amazing stuff! Perfect viscosity and vivid cobalt-like color. This works better in my Mont Blanc 146 and Dostoevsky models than the following fountain pen inks; 1) Waterman, 2) Pelican, 3) Noodler's and, 4) Mont Blanc's own ink! The feel is just right and it seems to clean and lubricate the pen as it goes along. I cannot recommend this enough for Mont Blanc fountain pens, let alone other brands. While my Pelican 140 and TWSBI Diamond 580 are fine with whatever I feed them, this ink seems made for Mont Blanc fountain pens. If you don't own one, buy this ink anyways. It's inexpensive, the writing lasts for at least several years without fading, and the ink has the perfect viscosity for smooth and even letters using a medium nib. I suspect it would be great with a fine nib as well. It dries an almost ethereal blue.

I have been looking for a permanent medium blue ink for a while. I tested several waterproof blue samples from Noodler's as well as Platinum Pigmented blue. Some of the samples either feathered, were chalky blue, or bled through the page on standard spiral notebook paper. This ink is a vivid blue, is totally waterproof (I put the paper under running water and it didn't fade or streak), it doesn't feather, and it doesn't bleed through notebook paper so that I can use both sides of the page.