Ink Lab
Same stroke, three papers.
Write on the pad. When you lift your finger, the same stroke is written again on our three papers, at the same speed, with the same pen and ink.
Your pad
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Write a word on the pad. A short one is best.
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Rag 120 g/m²
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Glaze 90 g/m²
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Washi 52 g/m²
What you are looking at
- Rag
Cotton fibres pull the ink sideways along the grain. The line gets a soft, slightly hairy edge and dries first.
- Glaze
The coating keeps the ink on the surface. Edges stay sharp, ink gathers at the ends of strokes and dries there last, with a darker rim.
- Washi
Thin long fibres carry ink along and through. The front is soft; the back shows a shadow of everything you wrote.
The numbers
How long a line of ink stays wet, from the nib leaving the page to the shine going off. The same Ferrule M stroke on each paper.
| Paper | Dry to the touch | Spread | Show-through |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rag | about 4 s | The line spreads about 15% past the nib | None |
| Glaze | about 10 s | Crisp — the line stays at nib width | None |
| Washi | about 2 s | The line spreads about 6% past the nib | Shows on the back |
Wider nibs and wetter inks take longer everywhere. Gall Black keeps darkening long after it is dry.