Taccia Tsuchi
Ink Review #27
*Please note that the scan is the accurate representation of this color.
Overview
The color/properties:
Taccia Tsuchi is a medium brown that shades with a soft gradient and high tonal variation that gives this ink an exceptionally striking appearance. I think that because of the high contrast in color where the ink pools, there’s a lot of potential for experimentation on different papers, and could have especially good results with flex nibs. I’ve also noticed a slight sheen on certain papers. There’s not a lot, but it can be seen in writing where lines cross or the ink pools heavily enough.
Ink Splat
Droplets
Some minor sheening visible at the intersecting points in the “P” and the "T” as well as the dot on the “I”
Performance on paper:
Taccia Tsuchi behaves well on paper, and during my tests, I didn’t experience any noticeable feathering or bleed-through. The dry times were mostly average, but I did have slightly longer dry times with the finer nibs than normal. Otherwise, the larger nibs typically dried within the standard 20 seconds.
There’s some water resistance, and it does leave some shadowing behind, but the results are hazy and the remains may be too light, and too smeared to be legible.
Water resistance
Chromatography
Performance in the pen:
Tsuchi performs well in the pen. The ink flowed with a consistent medium wetness across all the test nibs which provided enough lubrication for a comfortable writing experience. During my tests, I didn’t experience hard starts, skips, or stops, and I expect that his ink will behave well in most pens.
Cleaning the ink out of the pen was mostly easy, but I was surprised to find that it took longer than usual.
Value/cost per ml:
As of writing, Taccia Tsuchi sells for $15 for a 40ml bottle from most US retailers, making it roughly $0.32 cents per ml.
The bottle/packaging:
Tsuchi comes in the standard Taccia bottle. The design is simple but elegant and reasonably functional. The glass presents the ink inside with excellent clarity, and the cap is large and easy to remove. The opening is large enough to get just about any pen into it for filling. When the level gets low enough, it should be easy enough to fill from a pipette or syringe. The Bottle is wide, so it feels stable, but for some reason — and I really can’t put my finger on it — whenever I open the bottle, I feel like any wrong movement will cause the ink to spill everywhere. I suspect that it’s because it has a wide opening, but also a relatively short neck.
Score: 60.5/70
Price per ml: 7/10
Performance in a pen: 10/10
Performance on paper: 10/10
Color saturation: 5/10
Sheening: 1/10
Shading: 6/10
Dry time: 7/10
Water resistance: 2/10
Ease of cleaning: 7/10
Bottle form: 3/5
Bottle function: 2.5/5
*Only 70 of the 100 available points are required for an outstanding score.My personal thoughts...
It’s interesting that “Tsuchi” is a Japanese character for earth and soil, but by the art on the bottle, it looks like they were going for wheat. Still, if they were going for wheat, I think Taccia did a good job replicating it. I think it would make for a nice fall brown. It has rustic, warm, and earthy tones that complement the season. The color stands out for its complexity; the shading truly creates a contrast that makes it memorable. Overall, the potential for experimentation with this ink is high, and I think that makes it stand out over many of the colors in Taccia’s standard line of inks.
Written in a Profolio Oasis notebook with a Lamy Safari “Savannah Green” (fine)
More images/info:
Tools and materials used in the writing samples:
A TWSBI Diamond 580 AL with 7 nib units including a Needlepoint grind, EF, F, M, B, 1.1mm stub, and an Architect grind. All nibs tuned to perform at the same medium 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