Diamine Ancient Copper Fountain Pen Ink Review

Writing sample on Maruman Smooth To Write loose leaf paper.
Writing sample on Maruman Smooth To Write loose leaf paper

I have improved my review format for the writing sample to make it more informative.  I am now including a rating system for four key areas; the ratings are from one to five (five being the best).  Please let me know what you think.

I love red/orange brown inks and Diamine Ancient Copper is my new favorite.  My two other (now former) favorites in this category are Montblanc Red Chalk and Noodler’s Antietam.  Unlike Noodler’s Antietam, there are no issues with feathering and long dry times (on the papers I have tested) and unlike Montblanc Red Chalk, the flow is generous.  Ancient Copper shows excellent shading; it doesn’t get much better.   Dry time on this ink is on the faster side and it is not waterproof.

This ink changes quite a bit with different nib sizes; if you look at the writing sample you will see that with the Italix (1.3mm nib) the color is lighter and more orange, then compare to the Pilot (M nib) it looks darker and more red.

Overall, Ancient Copper is a beautiful, well behaved ink.  I highly recommend it.

Please note: this product was provided to me at no charge by JetPens for review purposes.

Here are some great reviews of Diamine Ancient Copper:

(I have no affiliation with the sites linked below)

Pens! Paper! Pencils! – Diamine Ancient Copper Ink Review

Inkdependence – Diamine Ancient Copper

Vertical Paper – Ink Review: Diamine Ancient Copper

Noodler’s Antietam Ink Review

I am rarely a fan of orange inks but Noodler’s Antietam is special.  Antietam is a very unusual rust orange/red with great shading.  I have been using Antietam this last week and I love it.  The color varies red to orange in different pens and on different paper; it is a real chameleon ink.  The flow is good, not too dry not too wet.

Noodler's Anitetam Ink

I tested this ink on Maruman Smooth to Write paper (my go-to for use with fountain pens) and used dry cotton swabs to test the dry time.  Even after 90 seconds it wouldn’t fully dry; I got bored and gave up.  The Maruman paper is quite smooth and for most ink I see an average dry time around 15-25 seconds.  I did try later on more absorbent Exacompta 60gsm paper and it was near dry in 15 seconds and completely dry in 25.  The ink is not waterproof; to test this I waited 5 minutes for the ink to dry and wiped the paper with a damp cotton swab.  If you can put up with the long dry time Noodler’s Antietam is definitely worth a try.

Here are some great reviews of Noodler’s Antietam Ink:

(I have no affiliation with the sites linked below)

The Eccentric Orange Gentleman – Noodler’s Antietam

NakedSushi – Noodler’s Ink Antietam

Goldspot Pens – Noodler’s Antietam Ink Review

The Pen Addict – Review: Noodler’s Antietam ink