noodler's kung te-cheng

suitably oriental-sounding name

Hello, hello! I got off school about a week ago, which meant a lot of relaxation time. I've been spending most of the last few weeks studying for finals and not doing a whole lot of anything, but with any luck I'll have some reviews for you guys soon!

Noodler's Kung Te-Cheng is a beautiful purple-blue color. However, it has some pretty major issues, which can definitely turn you off from purchasing this ink.

It dries slowly, even on the worst of copy papers. It feathers, it bleeds, and it has a very high opacity - which means it's not all that great at shading. It is somewhat waterproof, so you can go ahead and write with it in that cave you found while hiking. It's also only available in 4.5 oz. bottles (and 2 ml. samples), so if you don't use it often it will probably last forever.

The worst part, unfortunately, was how it turned the pen it was in into a classy paperweight. If you use Kung Te-Cheng in a pen, try to use it in a cheaper or "disposable" model - something that doesn't have an incredible value to you. I put Kung Te-Cheng in my Baoer 100 (a very nice pen I was quite fond of), and at the end of the month I could bend the nib all the back away from the feed with minimal pressure. I'm not exactly sure why or how this occurred. I don't think it was a problem with the nib itself - I couldn't do that prior to putting the ink in.

Now, this was also partially my fault. I left the ink in the pen for about four or five days with no use. This is definitely an ink that you need to use often - or an ink that requires extremely good care of the pen you put it in.

Edit 6/10/12: I completely forgot to mention the rather smelly portion of Kung Te-Cheng. Upon opening the bottle, you'll notice that it has a chemical smell. It's difficult to describe what it is, exactly, but it's definitely not a good one. If strong smells are an issue for you, this is definitely not the ink to go for.

I'm not saying this is a bad ink. I'm saying that it will require you to be more careful. It's an incredible color (I'm uncertain if there is anything like it on the market, but if there is please let me know!) and I loved to use it on good paper. It, unfortunately, is not the ink for me, simply because I'm a little irresponsible and I won't be able to take good care of the pens I put this ink in.

Also? Check this out. On the left I have Noodler's Black Swan in Australian Roses. On the right I have Noodler's Kung Te-Cheng. Notice how stained the bottle is. I have no idea how this happened. Both of these inks are kept vertical in dark storage. Weird.

You can purchase 4.5 oz. bottles of Noodler's Kung Te-Cheng at the Goulet Pen Company for $27.50. It comes with an unmarked Platinum Preppy and a rollerball tip, as well as a brush pen.