Robert Oster Frankly Blue Ink Review & Giveaway!

Robert Oster who now carries well over 80 colors, has introduced a new blue, Robert Oster Frankly Blue Ink. Blue ink continues to be a favorite of many writers. The variety of blue inks on the market today continues to amaze. Robert Oster Ink Company has a multitude of blues, each with a slightly different hue.

Robert Oster Frankly Blue Ink Bottle

Robert Oster Frankly Blue Ink Bottle

Created to honor both the one year anniversary of being sold in America and “Federalist Frank” of Federalist Pens, the first to carry Robert Oster inks in the US. The ink was originally sold at the 2017 DC Pen Show and is one of the newest blue inks produced by this Australian company.

Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink is a nice blue shade, almost an “aqua” color. It has a slightly blue-green hue, that is heavy on the blue. The ink is probably not quite light enough to be considered a turquoise color and not vibrant enough to be a royal blue. The color is a unique variation between the two.

Robert Oster inks are known for their quick dry time, nice shading characteristics and some possible sheening as well. Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink has all these characteristics and is bound to be another blue ink to put on your “to buy list”.

Continuing reading for a chance to win the bottle of Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink we used for this review.

Robert Oster Frankly Blue Ink

Robert Oster Frankly Blue Ink

We found the following characteristics while we were testing Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink that you may find helpful:

Testing Factors

We used Rhodia dot pad paper with a J. Herbin glass dip pen for this Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink review. Both the Rhodia paper and the J. Herbin glass dip pen are French made, while Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink is handcrafted in Australia.

Bottle Sizes

Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink, like all Robert Oster bottled inks, come in a simple plastic 50 ml bottle. The slender bottle stores well, as it doesn’t take up much space, but contains a nice amount of ink. There is no outer packaging or box with Robert Oster inks. The only telling mark indicating the color of ink is a white label on the cap with the color name and an inkblot sample. The simplicity of the bottle Robert Oster uses has not limited their popularity with consumers.

Cost

Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink is a mid ranged priced ink retailing for $17.00 in the United States, which is a reasonable price understanding that it is being imported from the land down under.

Dry Time

Using a J. Herbin glass dip pen on Rhodia paper, we experienced a reasonable dry time of between 7-8 seconds. Not as fast as some other Robert Oster inks, but quick enough to be considered an everyday ink option.

Bleed Through

We did not experience any bleeding during our review of Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink. Even during our cotton swab test there was no bleeding with Rhodia dot pad paper.

Feathering

We did not experience any feathering during normal use while testing Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink. Like most non-waterproof inks, we did notice some line distortion during the water test, but only at the wettest points.

Water Test

Our water test running a wet cotton swab over a dried ink sample produced a typical color smear, as do most non-waterproof inks. The wettest portions of the test also removed some of the lines and cause line distortion. However, the majority of the sample lines remained visible and were still fairly crisp.

Shading

Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink produces some nice shading and color variations with the right nib, paper and writing style. Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink also produced some very slight dark red sheen at the wettest points of the cotton swab test.

Conclusion about the Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink

Blue inks continue to be very popular. Finding the exact blue ink can be a fun and exciting task (since you will probably end up with a bunch of blue variations and you may end up loving them all). Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink is another such ink. It is different enough from other blue inks, as it is not a traditional blue color. Regardless, Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink has a nice unique color, has a fairly quick drying, and beautiful shading traits. It is “frankly” is just another wonderful blue ink by Robert Oster.

Enter to Win

Enter to win the actual bottle of Robert Oster Frankly Blue ink that we used in this ink review:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Nicholas Blackwell
6 years ago

Great giveaway!

Scott D.
6 years ago

Another great Robert Oster ink.

Em jensen
6 years ago
Reply to  Scott D.

Totally, they are such a great line

Beth A. Fralix
6 years ago

My favourite colour of ink of is Diamine Grape! I do love this beautiful Robert Oster blue Ink though!!

Patrick Tinney
6 years ago

I love the various blues. My current favorite is J. Herbin Bleu Nuit in an old Platinum with an Extra-Fine nib.

If you haven’t reviewed J. Herbin Bleu Nuit I would love to see it. If you have I will start looking through your archives.

roy c
6 years ago

i have yet to try a Robert Oster Ink

Marko Markolovic
6 years ago

Robert Oster rocks!! Awesome color palette and great choices with great prices.

Jason Schultz
6 years ago

Nice color. Thanks for the chance to win!

matthew fitzgerald
6 years ago

Would like to see a review of R.O. summer storm

Andrew Mulnix
6 years ago

Diamine Oxbood is inked up right now

Jingyi D.
6 years ago

Awesome color! Just right for jazzing up notes!!

Jenn
6 years ago

i just can’t get enough of the robert oster inks! seems that he has a new ink each week! love the shading of his jade~

MP
6 years ago

Awesome! Can’t wait to see a Robert Oster sublime review.

Grace K
6 years ago

My current favourite ink is Robert Oster Viola! I’ve loved every robert oster ink I’ve tried and this one looks great too!

Daniel B
6 years ago

I’d love to compare this to the other Rober Oster blues that I got.

David Murphy
6 years ago

I’m such a sucker for blue-gray inks, especially dark ones. Always on the lookout for work-appropriate, blue-gray inks without a lot of shading.

Melanie B
6 years ago

This one has been on my radar too – thanks for the reviews! You’re highlighting all my wish list items!

Drewski
6 years ago

I love the look of this blue ink. Looking to expand the collection as I’m just getting into the hobby.

Timothy Greathouse
6 years ago

I love all of the Robert Oster inks I have bought! Great colors, shading, sheen, and they behave well in pens!

Cosima
6 years ago

I adore Kon-peki

Andy
6 years ago

Very nice!

Kristal McKenzie
6 years ago

I love Robert Oster’s School Blue and am interested in how this compares. School Blue had a lot more depth than I expected from the online swatches.

Rochelle Kregar
6 years ago

The ink I’m currently using is Noodler’s Bernanke Black. I’m new to this all, so would love some more inks to expand my fountain pen hobby!

Geof Dunn
6 years ago

I’ve been wanting to try this ink since seeing it posted from the DC show! Thanks very much for the chance to win it!!!

Scott DiGello
6 years ago

My favorite blue right now is Private Reserve Electric DC Blue.

Hugh
6 years ago

I haven’t tried any Robert Oster inks either

Janine Russell
6 years ago

Thank you so much .

Stu LeBeau
6 years ago

Great review and a killer blue!

Sharon A.
6 years ago

I like Fire and Ice.

Cheryl Gebhart
6 years ago

Oooh – pretty color!!

Justin chan
6 years ago

Recent favourite would be Blackstone Daintree Green. A bright vibrant green, I think it’s a reasonable substitute for people looking for the Montblanc Irish Green

E N
6 years ago

Great review! As for a favorite ink… it varies. But because I need a permanent black at work and I prefer something with character, maybe Noodler’s El Lawrence right now.

Derek Lin
6 years ago

My favourite ink is Iroshizuku Asagao!

Susan Lawrence
6 years ago

I love the Blues!

Karl Knutson
6 years ago

I think I would like to see further/new reviews of the Platinum iron gall inks.

Everett
6 years ago

Great Review!
Love Blue inks & this is a very nice one

Julie
6 years ago

Still haven’t tried a Robert Oster ink and want to! Too many blues to choose from!

Dan
6 years ago

Would love to see a review of Organics Studio Ralph Waldo Emerson Twilight Blue!

Jen
6 years ago

My favorite ink currently is the Diamine Sherwood Green I just purchased from your site! Would love to see a review on Private Reserve Avacado and comparison to the Diamine Sherwood Green.

YM
6 years ago

I don’t have many RO inks but that is quickly changing! Amazing colors 🙂

Fábio Marcos
6 years ago

Thank you for the review

Robyn
6 years ago

I have a current obsession with Orange so anything Orange with do, except Apache Sunset, which everyone owns/reviews! Great review. Thanks.

Jared Linsly
6 years ago

This seems very close to R. O. Soda Pop. Still nice.

Marcia Straatmeyer
6 years ago

I read a rumor of an olive green Edelstein coming up. If so, please review that.

Tom
6 years ago

Thanks!

Renard Dellafave
6 years ago

A nice blue, but I love RO’s range of teal. Tranquility in particular.

Mike Solinas
6 years ago

Fingers crossed.

Rachel Lalor
6 years ago

My favourite ink is Sailor Jentle Yama-Dori! 🙂

David Verbsky
6 years ago

my favorite blue ink remains Pilot Kon Peki at the moment

Justin
6 years ago

Nice ink!

Angela
6 years ago

Lovely color and I always appreciate the thorough reviews from you ink-experts!