MITRA Forum Question Details

​Hi Damir,

I've tried egg tempera in a ruling pen, and if you get the consistency correct (neither too thick nor too thin) it works beautifully. I've never tried ET in a fountain pen.  My guess is that, once the paint is properly tempered (correct ratio of egg to pigment) you could thin it substantially with water and use it in a pen.  The trick would be to thoroughly wash out the pen immediately after use, as any ET left in the chamber would putrefy, and ET left in the nib would polymerize and clog it.  Not sure what carbon black you are using, but my preference is Channel Black, which has an extremely small particle size.  Guerra Paint in NYC sells it as a dispersion.  

I am not an ink expert by any means, but my understanding is that India inks are not hydrocarbon-based.  Traditionally I believe they have a binder of shellac (alcohol soluble); some "modern" versions use a synthetic polymer binder (water soluble).  Perhaps one of those binders/dilutants would suit your purposes?  

Koo

The binder in inks vary from manufacturer and lines. Waterproof vs non-waterproof would also be a factor. The old Higgens waterproof ink was and probably still is a shellac soap made water soluble by adding an alkali. It becomes water insoluble after drying.  In addition to the binder, make sure that the ink is pigmented and not dye based. Not only could the resultant lines be fugitive to light, but they may also bleed through superimposed paint layers.

​I have not seen alcohol included in recipes for shellac soap. If it was included, yes it would completely evaporate from the ink.