Diamine Inkvent 2025: Day 13 — Molten Basalt
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*Please note that the scan is the accurate representation of this color.
Day 13!
Welcome to day 13! Today, we’re looking at Molten Basalt.
The Color and Properties
Molten Basalt is labeled as a standard ink. The base color is a very dark blue-black, and although it’s labeled as standard, it has quite a nice red-brown sheen to it. It’s not the most reflective, but it’s very prominent. I would categorize this as a sheening ink. Because of the high saturation and sheen, there isn’t any visible shading.
Ink splat
Ink droplets
Performance | Cleaning
Rhodia
Leuchtturm
Molten Basalt was well-behaved on all the papers I tested it with and didn’t exhibit any traces of bleeding or feathering during my tests. The ink has a medium flow and is very well lubricated, but curiously, it seemed to thin out my nib size slightly. Still, the ink performed fine for the most part. I didn’t have any hard starts, skips, or sudden stops, but there was a drop in flow halfway down the page during my extended writing test. It was never enough to make the writing unpleasant, but the drop in flow was noticeable in feel.
Keep in mind that due to the sheen, this ink will be prone to smudging from residual hand moisture even after it’s dried.
Cleaning the ink out was surprisingly easy, and the ink washed out of the barrel of the pen without any stains or residue left over in the barrel. Unsurprisingly, because of the high saturation, it took slightly longer to clean out of the nib units than normal (using a bulb syringe). I recommend allowing the section/nib units to soak for a few hours prior to flushing if possible.
Writing Samples
Written on 52 gsm Tomoe River paper (white, 7mm ruling) with a broad nib.
Written on Midori MD paper (cream, 7mm ruling), with a fine nib.
Written on Midori MD paper (cream, 7mm ruling), with a medium nib.
Taken in lower, single sided lighting to better showcase the sheen.
My personal thoughts…
Okay, first things first — I have no idea what Molten Basalt has to do with Christmas, the holidays, festivities, or Inkvent, but here’s the thing: It is sick, so it is allowed. Yeah, Molten Basalt is pretty awesome. But what exactly is that? I’m glad you asked.
This is Molten Basalt. And I think Diamine did a pretty good job getting the idea across. It’s almost an orange sheen, and that’s probably as close as it can get. I’m honestly a little impressed. Inkvent-y or not, I had a lot of fun with this one.
Written on 52 gsm Tomoe River paper with a broad nib.
More Images/Info:
Featured in the photography and writing samples:
Diamine Molten Basalt
Traveler’s Company “Have a Nice Trip” brass clip — Endless Pens | Amazon
Nanami Paper Tomoe River Cafe Note B6 Slim - Ruled
Midori MD A6 lined notebook — Amazon
Current text: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens — Amazon
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Tools and materials used in the writing samples:
A TWSBI Diamond 580 AL with 3 nib units including a Fine, Medium, and Broad. All nibs are tuned to perform at the same wetness.
A Rhodia No16 A5 DotPad
A Leuchtturm1917 A5 Notebook