2 replies to this topic

[welch]

I happen to like older inks...wrote for most of my school years using Skrip Washable Black.

- While it is easy to find older Skrip and Quink on EBay, and I have a Carter's American Blue (almost full), what other inks might I look for? I see Sanford Penit and old Waterman, but my local drug store, in the early '60s, only carried Sheaffer and Parker.

- Did Americans only use Skrip and Quink blue-black? It would almost seem so.

- Is there a place to find other people who are curious about the inks that our older pens were made to use?

[Shadow Wave]

I guess you've mentioned all the major brands. I have a little bit of Crescent "Fre-flo" ink, which turns up from time to time.

There was an English brand called Stephens, not sure if it was related to the Stephens pen, though I assume so.

Why there's so much blue-black: I've heard that it tends to be more stable than many black inks, and I think it is less popular than blue. So it appears there's a glut of blue-black on the vintage ink market. Somebody feel free to correct me.

Pendemonium has a vintage inks page where different things turn up, in case you hadn't seen it. Use the navigation bar on the left of their site to get to the page.

http://www.pendemonium.com/

[Roger W.]

I happen to like older inks...wrote for most of my school years using Skrip Washable Black.

- While it is easy to find older Skrip and Quink on EBay, and I have a Carter's American Blue (almost full), what other inks might I look for? I see Sanford Penit and old Waterman, but my local drug store, in the early '60s, only carried Sheaffer and Parker.

- Did Americans only use Skrip and Quink blue-black? It would almost seem so.

- Is there a place to find other people who are curious about the inks that our older pens were made to use?

Several companies made blue-black. Blue-black, blue and black probably dominated the colors used most. Red was prevalent for accounting and double pen desk sets were meant for a red inked pen and a blue, blue-black, black inked pen. Those however were not the only colors as by 1925 Skrip came also in green and violet and not blue-black but, blue or black. By 1930 we have permanent royal blue for record and legal purposes and purple. Blue-black existed by 1935 with brown added. In the 50's there was Persian Rose, Peacock and Melon Red. John Hinkle knows more about old ink than anyone on the planet though I don't think him active on the boards.

Roger W.