Up to 50% off Inks & Additives (from $10.35 Per 30ml Bottle) + Shipping @ Van Dieman's Inks

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Van Dieman's Ink

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  stockastics on 11/08/2025 - 14:32

  This vs Noodlers ink? Thanks

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    alteyez on 11/08/2025 - 14:46

    Can't be compared, both are completely different from each other.

    VD is highly saturated, colourful ink some with added particles to make it sparkly.

    Noodler's is basically standard ink in alot of different colours with special properties depending on which range of inks you buy from but all centre around forgery resistance.

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  Chazzozz on 11/08/2025 - 14:46

  I have found in the past that Noodler’s is super-saturated colours which give you dark, solid coverage, and their bulletproof range of inks are permanent once dry (very permanent). However, that means it can cause clogging if allowed to go a bit dry and it’s imperative to throughly flush between changes. I haven’t checked for a long time but they also used to have a range called Baystate that was notorious for dissolving the feeds of some pens so I’d steer clear of that.

  Van Dieman’s, however, are very Ph neutral so I’d say it’s safe in all pens. The colours are quite saturated as well, and they’ve gone full-on into making inks that change shades or have some shimmer to them. Again, a thorough flush is recommended. I find their ink is a tad ‘wetter’ so may be prone to feathering on papers with big fibres or high Cotten content.

  At these prices, though, it’s worth getting a few to try out, or PM a friendly OzBargainer who might be able to help with some samples…

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    CacheHunter on 11/08/2025 - 21:46

    I've been fascinated by the idea of some of the VD special effects - shimmer, sheen, glitter, etc. To date I've stuck to waterman and diamine.
    I've read stories about such inks ruining feeds and nibs. Any suggestions for some interesting VD inks that might be safe in an L2000 or other pen with a gold nib? What about inks to trial in a Metro or a Chinese cheapy? I mostly use my pens for business writing + note-taking.

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      Chazzozz on 11/08/2025 - 22:12

      +1

      The trick with inks like this is never allow them to dry out in the pen. I avoid this by simply not loading the ink to full capacity and so it runs out sooner. Also, practice good hygiene and flush the ink reservoir, feed, & nib regularly - some people argue to do this only when changing colours, I happen to do it whenever I run out because that’s when I usually swap pens as well. Always flush and allow to dry when storing a pen for a while.

      I’ve bought a few $10-$20 metal barrel pens from Ali Express recently and been very surprised. The quality and smoothness of writing beats some of my $100+ mid-tier pens, so I’d highly rate them as test units for trialling inks.

      I guess I’ve been lucky that I’ve never encountered problems with the few shimmer inks I have ( J Herbin, Robert Oster, and another I don’t recall), and I’ve tried them in everything from sub-$10 cheapies up to my most expensive pen. But, as you can likely tell, I’m really pedantic about keeping them clean.

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  stockastics on 11/08/2025 - 14:53

  Thanks I use Noodlers, so wondering if it's worth switching. Amy other alternatives that you guys suggest? I find that Noodlers is great in terms of flow and saturation. But it stains my hand all the time as bottle is filled to the brim.

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    Chazzozz on 11/08/2025 - 15:19

    +1

    Robert Oster is another local maker (SA based) who also has some really good formulations. Otherwise, some of the other brands I’ve personally tried and liked are Sailor Jentle, Caran d’Ache, Pilot Iroshizuki, Pelikan, Parker (old & new formulations), Sheaffer, Waterman’s, Private Reserve…and a few others I can’t recall.

    If you want to really dive deep then I highly recommend heading over to The Fountain Pen Network. There’s a few forums at FPN dedicated to just ink and you’ll find a lot of really helpful people who’ll be more than happy to enable your habit answer your questions.