Ferris Wheel Press Roaring Patina Black
Ink Review #47
*Please note that the scan is the accurate representation of this color.
This is Ferris Wheel Press’ 2022 Limited Edition Ink
Overview
The color/properties:
Ferris-Wheel Press Roaring Patina Black is a shimmering ink. It’s a black ink with fine golden shimmering particulates. There are some blue undertones, and that last detail is significant because depending on the nib and paper, there’s a good chance that this ink might appear more blue-black than a true black. When doing my tests, it felt like the larger the nib size, the more blue this ink appeared. If you want this ink to keep its black color, I recommend sticking to the fine-medium nib sizes. This ink had a light red sheen in the ink splat and droplets, but I don’t think this ink is flowy enough to get much of that in normal writing.
Ink splat
Ink droplets
Performance on paper:
Roaring Patina Black performed well. There was the usual light bleeding on Kokuyo, but otherwise, there wasn’t any noticeable bleed-through or feathering on the other test papers. The dry times were just a touch above average and, in many cases, managed to dry within 15 seconds using the larger nib sizes. There was some water resistance, but the remains were cloudy and hazy. There’s still some light shadowing of what was written, but readability may vary.
Water resistance
Chromatography
Performance in the pen:
Roaring Patina Black has a dry to medium flow. For the most part, the ink was well-behaved, and despite the drier flow, the ink felt adequately lubricated and comfortable to write with. Still, I did run into plenty of hard starts with the broad nib, and even a clog with the stub while testing on Midori. I think that for a shimmering ink, this performs pretty well overall, but I recommend using it with a wetter nib to get the most out of it.
The cleaning experience was easy! The color washed out with basic a soak and a few flushes, and there wasn’t any haze, particulates, or sediment left in the barrel of the pen or along the crown of the piston.
Value/cost per ml:
This ink has been discontinued, but when available, the standard price for Roaring Patina Black was $25 (from US retailers) for a 38ml bottle putting this ink at $0.66 per ml.
The bottle/packaging:
Both the box and bottle look fantastic. It comes in the standard Ferris Wheel Press flat bottle with the brass cap and an outer box with some beautiful Art Deco-inspired artwork (and similarly inspired artwork on the bottle, as well). Unfortunately, it’s not as practical as it is beautiful. The bottle feels unstable and the neck is extremely narrow. The brass cap also makes the bottle top heavy and even more prone to tipping over if it’s disturbed. I strongly recommend using something to stabilize the bottle when filling.
Score: 61/70
Price per ml: 4.5/10
Performance in a pen: 8.5/10
Performance on paper: 9.5/10
Color saturation: 8.5/10
Sheening: 2/10
Shading: 2/10
Dry time: 8/10
Water resistance: 3.5/10
Ease of cleaning: 8/10
Bottle form: 5/5
Bottle function: 1.5/5
*Only 70 of the 100 available points are required for an outstanding score.My personal thoughts…
Hello, viewers! Welcome to 2024! It’s a new year, and what better way to celebrate the spirit of the new year than with Ferris Wheel Press’ Roaring Patina Black!
Unfortunately, that means airing a small grievance I have with limited edition inks. I really loved Roaring Patina Black when it released. Perhaps I’m biased — I have a deep appreciation for things inspired by the 1920s. The box alone had me sold; I couldn’t get my hands on this fast enough. That’s why it makes me so sad that it’s a limited edition ink. I was barely able to work up the courage to fill the test pen for this review because that meant my bottle was a few ounces closer to being empty. I physically cringed while doing the ink splats and droplets. The horror. I think my reaction in the end is a testament to my fondness for this ink. I just wish they would bring it back someday.
Written in a Leuchtturm1917 notebook with Conklin Endura Abalone (Fine)
More images/info:
Tools and materials used in the writing samples:
A TWSBI Diamond 580 with 5 nib units including an EF, F, M, B, and 1.1mm stub, All nibs are tuned to perform at the same wetness.
A Rhodia No16 A5 DotPad
A Leuchtturm1917 A5 Notebook
A 68gsm A5 Tomoe River Notebook
A Maruman Mnemosyne A5 Spiral Notebook
A Kokuyo Campus A5 Notebook