Noodler's X-Feather Black - Ink Sample

Good color but dries in pen

I love this color but it is difficult to work with. It is my most frequently clogged/dried ink in a pen. It does require an extended period of drying to become truly waterproof. I chose it for highlighting purposes which I would not recommend this ink for. I use it in a fine nib so it may do better in a larger size. It is very smooth and deep black and once dry is not disturbed by spillage haha. Just not for me.

Good for cheap paper but…

Ok so I bought this ink because I read that it was great for using on cheap paper. That it was well behaved and didn’t feather. If that’s all you need, this is the ink for you. However, I found that leaving my pen unattended for two or more minutes left my pen clogged and having false starts. I work in an office and sometimes I need to set my pen down a moment. I went to Noodler’s black and it’s worked well for me so far in my particular situation.

Awesomely black

For "boring black" I'm surprised how much I like this ink. This may be one of the smoothest inks I've used. It is very dark and seems to sit on the page almost like a paint. It certainly resists feathering, and looks as good on newsprint as it does on Rhodia, and on bad paper it stays vibrant black where other inks fade as they absorb into the fibers. Noodler's Heart of Darkness is extremely close in look and performance and dries considerably faster (near instantly) but of all black inks I've sampled, I'll probably switch to X-feather when my Iroshizuku is finally empty.