Do you have any inks that you wanted to buy after reading great reviews that turned out less exciting than expected?
My biggest disappointment is Diamine Skull & Roses. After seeing swatches online I expected a blue ink with a visible red sheen. Unfortunately the sheen is just not there at all, it looks like an average dark blue ink, not even blurple. I’m glad I’ve only bought the 30 ml bottle.
Robert Oster Smoke Screen - the pictures look great but it’s been boring in every test. It was frustrating because I usually stick with Diamine and felt like wasted money.
I have had some issues with Robert Oster inks and hard starts. In particular, they don’t work well in my Lamy 2000 fine nib and Pilot Prera medium nib pens, whereas a Pilot Iroshizuku ink I bought recently seems to flow a lot better. It’s a shame, because I do like the colours; I might try them in my Kaweco sport pen (which has a wetter medium nib) and see if they flow better.
I’ve really liked most Robert Oster inks and haven’t had trouble in my Lamy 2000 fine nib - though that nib is closer to a medium which may be helping.
Iroshizuku ink has never let me down.
I’m also a left hander, so that may play into it as well.