When your ink bottle is left unused for too long

That's the problem with pigmented ink

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[zenink]

Perhaps you can use the dried ink in a similar way to solid inks used for sumi-e. If you just scrub the solid ink into a little water in a stoneware or terracotta dish, you might consider adding a binder, such as gum Arabic, or even a tiny bit of dish soap, and I mean tiny, as in a dot on the end of a pencil eraser... Something along the lines of a 1:100 ratio, soap to water.

[RobertBobNolan]

I would strongly advise against ebay "stainless". I would got for glass beads instead. I paint miniatures and I bought stainless ball bearings from ebay to add as agitators. They rusted even when advertised as Stainless.

[iggysixx]

I just found out that you can buy glass 'agitator balls' in bulk (made especially for this purpose :))

Those are the same balls as in paint markers / chalk markers / certain ink markers.
(You could also open up any empty markers to scavenge the agitator balls, if you don't plan on refilling and reusing them.
Personally, I even take those out of empty Pilot Parallel Pen cartridges - the super tiny metal ones.. Feels wasteful not to salvage those)

Glass doesn't react with anything, so they should be safe to use with any ink.

[RivkahSong]

If you have a mortar and pestle that you don't use for food you could easily and quickly grind those pigments down and mix them back in with the rest of the ink. Thanks for the tip about the ball bearings!

[FaerieDust]

Hm, I still have a bunch of little stainless steel balls left over from my nail polish making days (they're pretty much standard in both commercial and hand made nail polish, I've only seen some tiny 5 ml bottles without), might add some to my ink bottles. I don't use them very frequently, I should at least make it a habit to give them a shake every now and then :P

If you chuck the dried up pigment in a mortar and pestle you could probably grind it down pretty quickly. I would do that, or just use the diluted ink for applications that don't require a proper deep black

[SerenaLewis]

I assume it would work for ink too but, for jars of paint, I usually add cling-wrap over the top of the jar before screwing the lid back on. It helps to seal better and the lids come off much easier.

[Mylenapony]

This actually just helped me save my ink bottle, kind of. My ink turned completely to rock with no liquid at all. So I mixed it with some water, shook it a good while and it’s not perfect. It works now.

[bigboyanimation]

I have a small plastic bottle from rotring ink you must squise it to get out the ink i have it from 20 years and from 2 monthes i shake the bottle and i heared the sound of liquid maybe the ink still good because rotring are better then other ink or maybe because its inside of a plastic bottle not glass bottle what do you say?

[lesleycrawford]

Sticky caps are a problem. Try putting some Vaseline around the screw and see if that helps.

[volcanowb]

Good advice! 🤣
Good video on a rarely discussed topic.

[synchronicity]

this same issue happened with my old Winsor Newton black India ink.
I still had the original box which says "Inks may be mixed with each other or thinned with *distilled water. Water resistant when dry. Contains shellac. Wash brushes & pens immediately after use. Keep from freezing."
It's the shellac that has solidified in my bottle.
I'm not sure if grinding it to powder would help to reconstitute the ink in water alone or the existing watery fluid in the bottle. I read elsewhere you can add a bit of rubbing alcohol to the shellac.
*Using distilled water assures that your product is kept free of bacteria and organic micro-organisms found in tap water.
I will not use India ink or any ink w/ shellac in a fountain pen as the shellac is gummy and would dry like glue and therefore gum-up the works of the pen.

[dmc]

I’ve been using Noodlers for at least 17 years and never experienced anything like that. I’ve recently bought a big bottle of Pilot Blue Black Fountain Pen Ink. I guess I better start shaking it vigorously once a month, as it will take me the rest of life to use it up. Thanks for sharing. I guess this could be a real issue. Could you tell us by chance how old the ink is that you are having trouble with?

[artiskimo]

Thank you for making an effort, and posting during this time.

[DrPhilologist]

I am not sure if dropping those ball bearings is safe, tbh. Stainless steel resists water and neutral pH environments. Inks can be variant in pH and leaving the steel exposed to an entire bottle (as opposed to the smaller amount in a nib or a converter) could potentially lead to rust.

[glitxdude]

"Paler Rowney" hahaha so accurate

[dmc]

Have you tried putting some water in a pot on the stove, Bring it up to about 140* put the ink bottle in the pot and leave it for 15 minutes? Remove and shake, and continue until the fragments emulsify. I have also read that a little bit of dish soap can make the ink flow better if it’s to thick.

[iggysixx]

If you manage to get the pieces of solid ink out of the bottle.. You could try to push it through a sieve / strainer.
(I think they also do that with oil paints, to break up any small pigment chunks)

[theartbox]

Very nice trick, , thank you for sharing

[fredeemoon]

Loved your video, thanks. Just wondering though, have you tried.... boku undo e sumi water colour paints set a mixture between ink and watercolour...some people call it " chameleon watercolour paints ". Would love to see you use it as you are a favourite of mine 🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡

[BillySoh]

there are little glass beads from whiskey/cognac bottle necks that are good to use as an agitating aid too.