Swisher Blue Black Ink

I have really fallen in love with blue black inks, especially gel inks such as the Pilot Hi-Tec-C refill. It's a color that's not too harsh (black) or too soft (blue) but just in between. I'd read that the Swisher inks were quick-drying and very good, so when I was placing an order recently I decided to give the Swisher Blue Black a try. The 3 oz. bottle is quite reasonably-priced at $8.75, another reason to add this to my checkout cart.

The pen I'm using is a Sailor 1911 Medium with a fine 14K nib with converter. The Blue Black flows nicely and dries almost instantly--no spots or streaks or stains. Written on Clairefontain 90gsm grid paper, you can really see the blue black color even when using a fine point nib.


The Swisher Ink is a dark black with blue, or maybe dark blue with black. The mix is so even that neither color dominates, but I seem to see some green shading (no doubt due to the blue). I like this ink a lot, definitely one I'll keep in the rotation. Now I'll have to look at a few more blue-blacks, such as Noodler's Ellis Island Blue-Black (from Fountain Pen Hospital), Noodler's Starry Night (from Fountain Pen Network, and De Atramentis Sherlock Holmes (which isn't available-yet, I hope-in the States). The only negative is a slightly chemical smell that lasts a moment or two, and is noticeable when your nose is close to the ink. It dissipates quickly and is only a very minor flaw in a beautiful ink.