Diamine Red Dragon: Ink Review

Diamine Red Dragon Fountain Pen Ink ink splatter and LAMY AL-star

Diamine Red Dragon is a deep red fountain pen ink; a little darker than a true red and can fluctuate in color depending on the paper you are using. If you are looking for a new red ink to try, read on to see how awesome this ink is!

 

Diamine Red Dragon Fountain Pen Ink writing sample
Diamine Red Dragon Fountain Pen Ink writing sample
close up of Diamine Red Dragon Fountain Pen Ink

Supplies Used:

Smear Test (Dry Time):

  • Long– This is not a fast drying ink! It was still smearing a little bit after 30 seconds. That being said, it would certainly be dry in under a minute. If you are a lefty or a quick writer, you might want to try another faster drying ink.

Drip Test (Water Resistance):

  • Low-This is not one to use in a rain storm or spill a glass of water across! It became illegible as soon as water was introduced. It could be good for ink washes, however, so if you are planning on creating art with it, it could be great!

Saturation:

  • High– This is a highly saturated ink. The bold red color doesn't fluctuate between the first and third swab.

Ease of Cleaning:

  • Easy-Low water resistance means this ink was easy to clean out of my pen. A couple of rinses with water and the pen was good to go!

Shading:

  • Low– In this instance, high saturation led to low shading. 

Flow:

  • Medium– This ink performed well! It kept up with the flow of the pen in all nib sizes, from extra-fine to broad.

Packaging and Aesthetics:

  • Pleasing 80 ml bottle packaged in a box. 30ml bottles and ink samples available.
  • Box is nice, not super fancy but pretty.
  • The bottle has a medium round opening and a flat bottom.

Inks Similar in Color

Summary:
This is a solid red ink option.It isn't quite as bright as Diamine Wild Strawberry, but it's a good true red. It has a long dry time, but it is well behaved and writes well in any size nib. This ink is particularly striking on cream paper, so that's something to keep in mind. This would be a great ink for editing! Outlining or underlining could be another option for this ink.

You can find Diamine Red Dragon in 80ml glass bottles  30ml plastic bottles, or 2ml ink samples.