Document Ink Koh I Noor Prague trip

This is a long-awaited moment for me, as I have been looking for this ink from Koh-I-Noor for some time with no success. I could not find it locally anywhere and it was the same story the first time I have visited Prague. It was not available in the shop. On my second visit I did not put much hope in finding it but ... here it is.
And when it rains it pours, I see that the official Koh I Noor website is selling it in Romania as well. For now, it is available only online, but maybe in the future, it will be available in stores as well; fingers crossed.

The Document ink is Koh I Noor's permanent ink. Available in blue or black colors, plastic bottles as the standard Koh I Noor ink, and in a more classic ink well made out of glass which comes in a cardboard box.

I have bought the more "elegant" version.

The inkwell has a classic look to it, with a white label on the face. The logo of Koh I Noor, underneath Document ink is written along with the quantity, 30 grams. 

It is a very dated design, a bit boring but I am not going to judge the ink by its label.

In this setup, it is more expensive. The price was 87 CZK which is 3.42 EUR or 3.82 USD. It is still very accessible but the standard ink is about 3 times cheaper and the quantity is almost double. 

But the comparison is not fair as the standard ink comes only in plastic bottles and not in a more premium glass well. You can "czeck" the standard ink out in this older post.

As I said this is a more expensive ink due to the fact it is permanent and because mine came in a glass ink well. But if you choose to buy the plastic bottle (image of it to the left) you will receive the same formula of ink in a  more economical package, and maybe a nicer design of the bottle and label.
This bottle is 50 ml and costs around 2.10 euros. Much better pricing. If we compare the cost of the document ink in plastic bottle to the standard ink the prices are closer as the standard costs around 1.25eur.

The box is plain white with blue writing. If you get the black document ink the writing on the box will be black. The design of the box is quite underwhelming, I will leave it at that.

And apparently, it is not to be used by penguins?! I did not know why Koh I Noor forbids penguins to use their ink, a bit racist.
But it turns out this means that you should not freeze it.

The ink performs well, as I expected. It works well on cheap paper, it is smooth, it dries fast, and it does what is meant to do. It stays on paper regardless of external factors. It is an archiving ink so it is no thrills. The light blue looks nice but nothing special

The water resistance is excellent. You cant get it out of the paper no matter what you do to it.
I tested it under running tap water high flow cold and hot for 30 seconds.
I also left a piece of paper underwater for close to 10 minutes. The paper was a bit fragile and I just wanted to make sure it does not disintegrate

Before and after pictures.

 

note: I would like to say that the variance in color is caused by the lighting and the camera.

I am also testing the ink's resistance to UV rays. I will be back with the results.

PS. After taking a look at Koh I Noor website I see they have a new ink limited edition. It seems it is in the same plastic 50 ml bottle but the sticker is different.

Mephisto 0.7 Koh-I-Noor Prague souveniers

The second pencil souvenier in line from my recent trip to Prague, is a mechanical pencil named Mephisto.
I will spoil the read saying this is another gem by Koh-I-Noor. I was surprised by how nice the pencil feels and how well it is built.
The pencil features a plastic construction. It is available in different colors, and I chose this incredible dark metallic red color (almost candy apple).

It has a rubberized grip that may not appeal to everybody. Not to mention that the grip seems a bit high and it has an hourglass shape. So you can't really move your fingers too much up or down. It certainly has a sweet spot, it forces you to hold it in the way the designer thought you should hold the pencil.
Besides this, which is not a big deal for me, the rest of the pencil is awesome.

The clip has the name Koh-I-Noor stamped on it. Not too dip, but a nice touch. This is the only place where the name Koh I Noor appears on the pencil. The clips is very solid.

On the barrel, the name Mephisto and lead size are printed in silver lettering. Also, the plastic is color-coded, blue for 0.7 mm lead.

Like most pencils, it has a standard white eraser, covered by a chromed end cap with a hole on top for safety reasons. The endcap slides on and off easily, but not to easy. I did not have any trouble with it falling on its own while in the bag.

The lead is loaded by removing the entire color-coded plastic, along with the eraser and the chromed cap.
The cone tip is stainless or some sort of chromed metal.
It hides a retractable tip that works flawlessly. Either if you hide it or deploy it the action is smooth and does not require any pressure.
And the thing I love the most is the lack of wiggle of the tip. Just after seeing this implementation I can tell the pencil is incredibly well built. Most of the pencils in this price tier and above struggle. Not the end of the world but a definite turn off, especially if you are a stickler like me.

This pencil costs a little more, 113 czk which translates to 4.44 EUR or 4.93 USD.

Mechanical Pencil Koh-I-Noor Versatil 5216, Prague souveniers

As you can remember from my recent post, I have visited Prague and 2 Koh-I-Noor shops. And of course, I had to bring back home a few souvenirs.
The first rabbit out of the bag is a Koh-I-Noor clutch pencil with 2 mm lead, Versatil 5216.
This first picture is not an exact representation of it's looks as it has a paler purple color and not a blueish tone.
The pencil looks very nice in my opinion, not to mention the price was incredible. Just 65 CZK (Czeck Koruna) which equates to 2.55 EUR or 2.84 USD. A real bargain.

The pencil body is a hexagon, painted in a nice purple color with gold lettering on one side. Koh - I Noor Hardmuth Versatil 5216. The printing could be improved as some of the letters are a bit fuzzy. The barrel I think it is made out of aluminum, while the mechanism inside is stainless steel and what looks like copper.

I have to say I am very pleased with the construction, I was expecting a cheap all-plastic no thrills 2 mm clutch pencil. The pencil has an integrated 4 spike sharpener in the push button as most Koh I Noor lead holders, and no pocket clip. It is a very classic design that I like, with a nice touch of modern brought by the colors it comes in.

The grip on the lead is good as the lead will not rotate when you try to sharpen it and will not slide in when you apply vertical pressure on the lead. This is nothing to brag about, as it should be standard, but Koh I Noor had this issue with some variants of this pencil made out of plastic.
 

All in all, I am very surprised by this mechanical pencil. Its low price and good quality, the feel in hand as well by the colors it is available in. I love it and I recommend everybody to get one or more of these pencils.

Trip to Prague, Koh-I-Noor shop hunt

I went on a trip to Prague and of course, I had to go hunting for Koh-I-Noor shops. 

As beautiful as Prague is, the weather was not the best, not even close. Around 1 - 3 degrees Celsius and constant rain. I wondered on the streets, but because of the weather and the limited time available, I only got to visit 2 Koh-I-Noor shops. One of the shops I had visited on a previous trip in Prague (link).

What I really like is that Koh-I-Noor knows how to promote themselves and associate the stationary brand to Czech and to Prague. I would say they are very proud of their tradition and that is great. Going to a Koh-I-Noor shop in Prague should be on everyone's tour. In the end, these shops are landmarks just like a church, a bridge...

  The first Koh-I-Noor shop visited was in the old town, in center. I was a mix of of pencils and souvenirs, so I don't think it's owned by Koh-I-Noor. Also, it was kind of a tourist trap as everything inside seemed a bit overpriced. On Google maps you will find this shop under the name Koh-I-Noor Pencils.

 

The second shop was the one I have visited on my previous trip. A very large shop dedicated exclusively to the Koh-I-Noor products (Koh-I-Noor Hardmuth as). It is located in the vicinity of Prague Castle. This shop had a smaller selection of clutch and mechanical pencils and it was more oriented to the artists. But I still managed to find some very interesting products, and not to mention the prices were better.

I really like the decor Koh-I-Noor uses in the shops. It has a feeling of traditional, classy, and very friendly. Also, they address a very wide range of customers. From kids to artists and everything in between.

Preview Koh-I-Noor hunt

This little bag contains the souvenirs which I brought back from my visit to Prague. This and a bag with a few boxes of chocolate that I forgot at the airport. 

The good part about the times we live in is, when someone spots an unattended bag in an airport, the security gets alerted immediately.

The story in a few lines: I went through the security check, just to realize that I am one bag short. I went back to see if I can find it on the bench I waited before. Of course, the bag wasn't there anymore I so I just went through security a second time. While going through the second security check I heard my name through the airport's loudspeakers. The bag was waiting for me at the gate. I got the chocolate back and a nice story to go with it.
If the bag would have been full of beer instead of chocolate I don't think I would've been so lucky :)

Review Koh-I-Noor Notebook 2 mm mechanical pencil

The clutch pencil Versatil made by Koh-I-Noor that I talked about in the post Koh-I-Noor Versatil lead holder from 70s, made me a bit nostalgic about the 2 mm lead holders. And after seeing the Koh-I-Noor Notebook 2 mm pencil, codename 5608, I couldn't help myself and just got one.
The pencil has a very nice design, combining the classic, futuristic looks. I do not know why but the design takes my imagination to the 60s, old small cars with chrome and typewriters. Weird combination..
For me, this was the selling point.
The first thing about the pencil that comes to mind when you have it in hand is "this is soo small". The length of it is a perfect size, I would call it compact. It is long enough to have a good grip on it and it is small enough to fit anywhere. But because the pencil is very thin it contributes to the look. The purpose of this was EDC, no doubt.

Size comparison Koh I Noor Notebook 2 mm and Koh I Noor 5.6 mm

There is a compromise when it comes to ergonomics to the detriment of size. The pencil is fine for a short period of writing and for jotting things down, and the knurled grip feels very nice in the hand.  But even for small hands like mine, when I write with it for a longer period of time, it becomes uncomfortable because it is so thin with just 8 mm in diameter.

So because of its small size and its cool looks, you will be inclined to have it with you all the time.

There are a few things about the Koh I Noor that I do not like, or I would prefer to be better made. The barrel is not attached to the mechanism. I mean that the lead and the clutch rotates freely in the barrel of the pencil. So if you want to sharpen the lead in it you have two options. The first option is to hold it by the lead and rotate it in the sharpener, and the second is to hold it from the advance button which moves along with the clutch mechanism and the lead.
The second complaint is about the clicking mechanism doesn't seem to be sturdy, and mine is rubbing inside between the mechanism and the barrel. I would say this will not last you a lifetime like the old Versatil will.
Koh I Noor has kept the classic 4 tooth sharpener that is hidden in the advance button. It is a nice touch but 2 mm pencils like Rotring 300 have a better sharpening system built-in. And talking about the sharpener, it comes loose easily. I found the pencil several times without this little part attached, only my luck made me find it in the bag or on the desk. You have to take into consideration that you might lose the sharpener.

You can buy a replacement sharpener from Koh-I-Noor, and this is brilliant. But still, they could have put some more thought in designing them.

After finding the sharpener fallen on the bottom of my rucksack several times I tried fixing the issue. I put some super glue on the threads. In the hope of making a tighter fit. It didn't work as I expected it to and messed with the functionality a bit. Why it didn't work? The superglue created a layer that was too thick and after pouring it on the threads I left it for a bit to dry. Apparently not enough, because when I screwed the sharpener on it got stuck, that I had to use a pair of pliers. At this point, I bent the inside shaft a bit, and now there is a bit of friction between the sharpener, when I press the button, and the barrel. the sharpener is not perfectly centered. It wasn't perfectly centered before either.

The conclusion is, I should have used proper thread glue, which doesn't stick so much and doesn't crack and peel of after a time. I might retry this step at some point with a red or blue Locktite.

These negative points destroy a little bit of the aura of the pencil and the brand name. I don't want to say it is made cheap but I would prefer that Koh I Noor would put a little more effort into making a better pencil.

If you want to czech more things about Koh I Noor you could start with these posts:
Koh-I-Noor Versatil lead holder from 70s
Koh-I-Noor in Prague

Updated 12th of December 2021

Pencil highlighter

I saw on the internet that Kaweco has a 5.6 mm highlighter lead, and I think it is just awesome. I like the idea of using a pencil highlighter, you do not get smudges, no bleed, and the pencil will not fade with time. But it is pretty hard to get the 5.6 mm leads, as they don't seem to be very popular. From the searches made almost the only place you can buy them is jetpens.com
They come either mixed, a yellow, a red and a green or a pack of 3 with the same color inside. At the moment of writing this post, the pack of 3 is $ 6.5 and a free shipping in USA for orders above $ 25
They look cool and vibrant but why not use a regular color lead instead of the "highlighter" ones?

I made a short test with the Koh I Noor 2 mm lead 6 color pack. All the colored leads are very good as a highlighter, as they are vibrant enough to be seen but not too intense that they obscure the writing beneath. The downside is the small diameter, and the fact the leads are not extra soft. Because of this, you will need a shading move of the pencil to highlight the row. So maybe a little extra work. I wonder how the 5.6 colored Koh I Noor leads work for this kind of stuff.
Bellow is the Kaweco highlighter (picture from jetpens.com) and to the right is the Koh I Noor regular color lead.

picture from jetpens.com

Magic pencil Koh I Noor

This has been my view this last few days, during my ride home from work. To better understand some explanations are due. I live in a city that is surrounded by hills, and close to it, approx 30km there are small mountains. I would say it is a pretty nice place. But during winter it gets very depressing. Mostly because the day is short and it gets dark early. And second, when it is not dark outside everything is gray. The sky is covered by gray mushy clouds, the light is very flat, and the snow in the city gets gray fast. Not to mention the buildings that look like this all year round. It is unusual to see a beautiful clear sky, especially when you are trapped in an office all day long. But spring is coming and the day is growing in length.
Now when I go home from work I get to enjoy this type of scenery (somewhere in the black bottom part of the image is where I live).
And each time my brain connects it with the Koh - I - Noor Jumbo Special Coloured Magic Pencil. If I could paint or draw, this would definitely be my weapon of choice for such stunning scenery.
    

KOH-I-NOOR 5340 5,6 mm lead holder

So here it is, the Koh-I-Noor lead holder 5340 5,6 mm in gold. My initial impression was this thing is a lot bigger than I was expecting. I thought that it would be shorter. It kind of feels like holding a weapon. Big, bulky, all metal.
The design is simple and elegant, the mechanism inside is made out of brass, the outside is made out of aluminum and the barrel is painted goldish, while the rest of the parts are polished bare metal. The barrel is an octagon, and on a side, it is written in black KOH-I-NOOR HARDTMUTH. I guess this is not a subtle pencil so why would the writing on it bee any different.
Inside the mechanism's button, there is a sharpener for the lead. Also because of the thickness of the lead, you can use a regular pencil sharpener.
When you remove the cap, you have access to the lead inside, meaning you can fill or empty the pencil from the back, if the lead is not clamped in the clutch jaws.
The pencil was delivered with a lead, 2HB I think. It is plenty dark and smooth, so the writing experience is nice.
One of the bumps in the road is the consistency of the lead thickness. Some of the leads I bought along with the pencil are a bit too thick and they do not go in or out without persuasion. I have to pull on them or shake the pencil to force them out. And I can see little crumbles of graphite from the friction with the clutch.
After playing with the pencil for a few days I found it's role in my life. I think the designer of the pencil had artists in mind, but I do not draw. Or because of it's intimidating size it could be used for manly things. I read on a blog some time ago you can design a shed with it, and I think the one who did the review was pretty close to its purpose.
My use for it is "Visual Note Taking and Markings".

There is a good variety of leads to use for this pencil. You can use regular lead. I do not know if you can get HB, but the softer lead is just fine. Also, you can use chalk, coal, metallic colors, sepia. 

Ink Review Koh-I-Noor blue

The fountain pen ink is produced by Koh-I-Noor in the Czech Republic.
It comes in a plastic bottle, 50 g (or roughly 50 ml) like in the picture. The ink doesn't come in any kind of additional packaging, it has no additional box. All this I imagine is to reduce the cost and offer the best possible price to the consumer.
It comes in just 3 colors, blue, black and red (edit: I also found green recently), so a rather limited selection, but the ink is marketed towards students who need a no fuss, inexpensive ink.
And when it comes to price, it is a fantastic one. It is available in about every shop and costs between 1.1 - 1.4 Euro (average of 1.5 USD).
Another cheap contender would be Hero, but the price for a bottle of 60 ml is about 4.8 - 5 USD
Another comparison could be done with Pelikan 4001 blue 1000 ml (which is cheaper than black). The price on Amazon.de for 1000 ml is 26.59 euro, which translates into 0.03 euro/ml or 1.5 euro for 50 ml.
This makes the Koh-I-Noor ink to be more cost-effective even compared to Hero ink. Yes, the Hero comes in a glass bottle and has a box.

Koh-i-Noor is a well-known brand of artists' supplies, and their ink is considered to be of high quality. Their ink is often used by calligraphers, illustrators and artists due to its rich, vibrant color and smooth flow. Some of their inks are also waterproof, lightfast and pH neutral which is great for artists who want to create long lasting works. Many artists and calligraphers also appreciate the fact that Koh-i-Noor inks are made with natural pigments, which can give their work a unique and organic feel. In addition, Koh-i-Noor ink is also used for technical drawings and is suitable for use with fountain pens and dip pens. 

So the ink comes in an unimpressive plastic bottle, the label is in Czech and English and this is about it. The top colored band from the label represents the color of the ink.
It is a light blue, not too saturated, but I like the look. The color and saturation is in between the Faber Castell Royal Blue and the Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue. The Pelikan 4001 has a little more of an indigo color in it.

As I stated before, the ink is marketed for students, so this is a no fuss ink. It does not shine and it doesn't shade. But it flows well, hasn't been able to clog a pen so far, it dries reasonably fast, and does not bleed.

There is an area where it doesn't do very well, and that is water. Running water over a piece of paper almost erased the entire Koh-I-Noor ink. It was hardly visible after. The Pelikan is not a lot better, but I would grade it a little higher.

Off course, this is not necessarily a bad thing, as people who use fountain pens tend to have inky fingers. So it will be easy to clean off in case of an accident.

To conclude, I give it a thumbs up. It is a great value ink. 

The company also produces a document ink. "Ink suitable for fountain pens, light and moisture-resistant, cannot be removed from paper without damaging the paper. For use in archives, for writing documents and at registry offices." They offer it in 50 g plastic bottle and 30 ml in a glass bottle, available in blue and black

 

If you are interested in Koh-I-Noor's offer for document ink, you can check the following link:
Koh-I-Noor document blue ink in glass bottle

Advertising with a pencil

Many companies use promo materials to raise the public's awareness about their company, brand, products etc. Many times with a cheap plastic ballpoint that has the name printed on the side. Why not be a bit different and use a pencil instead.

Koh-I-Noor has a catalog to present their advertising products. In the images, you can see a lot of known brands using Koh-I-Noor pencils for marketing purposes

The pencils come in a variety of forms, and sizes and are using the colors of the brands they represent.

I really like the idea of using something less plasticky for marketing, plus they do not look all the same.

A double treat for me, apart from the cool idea of having marketing material in form of a humble pencil, is that I work for one of the companies that is present in the Koh-I-Noor catalog.

Ink over time

Recently I started writing with a fountain pen again. The appetite for fountain pens has been ignited by the cheap Preppy. The sensation was quite nice switching from ballpoint to fountain pen. But the fact that ink is soluble into water made me contemplate on the resistance of ink over time. You can find on the Internet and on the forums good UV tests of different inks. But I wanted a test of my own to see how my inks work in my situation, so your  mileage may vary. I live in a place with moderate sunlight. I tried to replicate what would happen to your ink writings left on a table on which you get a fair share of sunlight.
The test is not very scientific as i used different fountain pens and the exposure to light was different as i did not used all the inks in the test from the begining but still the results are interesting.

Inks used: platinum blue black, Faber Castell royal blue, Faber Castell permanent black, Pelikan 4001 royal blue, Pelikan 4001 black, Pelikan 4001 personal mix 1:1 royal blue and black, Koh I Noor Blue

The test was conducted for a period of 4 months from March until June.

Results:
Koh I Noor blue with the least time exposed to sunlight is almost invisible
Faber Castell royal blue is very hard to read even though it received a similar amount of sun with Pelikan 4001 royal blue
The blacks from Pelikan and Faber Castell look similar after sun exposure.
The winner of the test I would say is the Platinum blue black
The ink was not the only one affected by the sun the paper that was exposed obtain a yellowish tint

Also see: Platinum Preppy

Koh-I-Noor and the Olympic Games PyeongChang 2018

It is very hard to find a connection between the sports world and the stationary world. But somehow there is such a connection, in the Czech Republic. Continuing the posts about Koh-I-Noor... 

It is very interesting to see how much the Chech company is tied to the country. In Prague, there are several Koh-I-Noor stores in very central locations. They are in the old part of the city, where it is full of tourists. I would expect to see a bar, a tourist trap or some fashion shops instead of a stationary shop, but they promote themselves very well and want to show the ties of the company to Prague and the Czech Republic. It like bohemia glass, when you say it, Czech Republic comes to mind. To show how "Czech" they are, they closed the production facility in China, so all the Koh-I-Noor products are made in EU.

So since 2016, Koh-I-Noor is a partner of the Czech Olympic team. I think this is the only stationary brand that promotes itself by partnering with the Olympics or with any kind of sport.