Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink Bottle

Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink Review & Giveaway

Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink is taking the spotlight this week for the weekly ink review and giveaway. That’s right. It’s another Sailor fountain pen ink. We just gave you all the details on Sailor’s Yomogi ink, but since their latest series of inks are so popular, you’re getting a second Sailor review in short order. This week’s ink is from the new Sailor Manyo ink series.

Many of you are more than intrigued by the Manyo series (you’re a little obsessed), but we don’t blame you. Read on for all the details about another ink in this popular, new Sailor ink series! Additionally, you’ll have the chance to enter to win the bottle of ink used for this week’s fountain pen ink review!

All About the Ink Maker: Sailor

Sailor is a historic Japanese pen company that still manufactures all their inks in Japan. But not all of Sailor’s inks are available in Japan. Some Sailor fountain pen inks are ONLY available in the international market. Sailor currently has five different ink series available in the USA: 

Jentle Ink Series

Basic Ink Series

Shikori Ink Series

Pigmented Ink Series

Manyo Ink Series

Plus…the Highlighter Ink (which is part of the Jentle Ink Series mentioned above)

All About the Ink Series: Sailor Manyo

This week’s featured ink is from an ink series named after the Japanese Manyoshu, an ancient Japanese poetry compilation, including 4,516 poems. Authored by Japanese people from all walks of life from Emperors to merchants to farmers, the poems include frequent mentions of various flowers that are both popular and significant and Japanese culture. 

Each of the eight inks in the Manyo series is named after and based on one of the popular and culturally significant flowers highlighted in the ancient manuscript: Akebi, Haha, Kikyou, Kuzu, Nekoyanagi, Sumire, Yamabuki, and Yomogi.  

Pen Chalet carries a full range of Sailor inks. So to learn more about the different inks currently available from Sailor, check the inventory at Pen Chalet. 

All About This Week’s Chosen Ink: Sailor Kuzu Ink

Kuzu fountain pen ink is one of the eight colors in the new Sailor Manyo ink series. This week’s ink is a beautiful, dark, burgundy red color. Kuzu shows up very dark on paper and is an everyday use ink color. 

** Don’t stop now. Keep reading for a chance to win the bottle of Sailor Manyo Kuzu fountain pen ink used for this week’s Pen Chalet Ink Review. (Or if you’re still cultivating the art of patience, scroll down to the bottom where you’ll find the link to enter this week’s giveaway).

Sailor Manyo Kuzu ink review
Read Pen Chalet’s Sailor Manyo Kuzu fountain pen ink review.

It’s Time: Sailor Manyo Ink Kuzu Review

We always have fun with our weekly ink reviews, but the Manyo ink series from Sailor is such a fun addition to the lineup. We thoroughly enjoyed working with Sailor Manyo Kuzu ink for this week’s review. But it wasn’t all fun and games. We ran it through all the typical tests to identify the characteristics and traits that you want to know when you’re looking for your next fountain pen ink! All in all, if you are considering adding Sailor Kuzu ink to your collection, you’re in the right place. Get the details here first, and then decide if it’s the best ink for your project, your fountain pen, or simply to add to your fountain pen ink collection.

Ink Review Testing Factors (to keep things scientific):

This is the part where we tell you what other products we used alongside the featured “ink of the week” during our review. Letting you know what we used alongside the review ink ensures we give you a fair review. It’s kind of like listing the “controls” of a science experiment, except in the case of our fountain pen ink reviews, we’re really just telling you what pen and paper we used while testing out this week’s ink. For example, while reviewing Sailor Manyo Kuzu fountain pen ink, we used a J Herbin spiral glass dip pen (which has a tip similar to a fine-medium fountain pen nib) on Rhodia dot pad paper.

The results we discuss below came while using this week’s ink with the pen/paper described above. Always remember that different papers and nib sizes may produce different results.

What Sort of Ink Bottle Does Sailor Use?

Sailor Manyo Kuzu is a dye-based bottled fountain pen ink that comes in a heavy weighted 50 ml. bottle. It’s a new display quality, square design from Sailor that we think turned out beautifully. It’s simple, but it’s elegant. The packaging and label reflect the same simple elegance, as well.

How Much Does Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink Cost?

Sailor Kuzu ink is a high mid-range priced fountain pen ink. Although, fountain pen ink lovers hoping to get a lower price can find one at Pen Chalet.

How Fast Does Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink Dry?

Sailor Kuzu fountain pen ink had a dry time of approximately 6-7 seconds and medium saturation. This dry time is quick enough to recommend Kuzu as an everyday ink. (At Pen Chalet, we generally consider any dry time under 10 seconds to be reasonably quick, and appropriate for daily use).

Does Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink Bleed Through?

We saw no bleeding during normal use of Kuzu fountain pen ink, but there was slight bleeding during the heavy saturated cotton swab test. However, the slight bleeding only occurred at the most saturated points, which were really wet.

Was There Any Feathering While Using Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink?

We saw no feathering during normal use, but we did see some very slight feathering during the water test.

How Does Sailor Manyo Ink Kuzu Stand Up to Water?

This week’s ink is not a waterproof fountain pen ink, but we always include a water test in the review. (For the water test, we let an ink sample dry for about 3 minutes before running a wet cotton swab over the sample). Sailor Manyo Kuzu ink is a dye-based ink, so we expected significant color smearing, and that’s what we got. However, the lines were very legible, and there was only some very slight feathering.

Does Sailor Manyo Ink Kuzu Have Good Shading Traits?

Sailor Manyo Kuzu ink has some really nice shading trades, but you need a nib that allows flow variation like a stub or italic nib. You can see a dark red-black color to a lovely, lighter, burgundy color.

Final Conclusion on Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink:

This week’s fountain pen ink falls in the mid-range price for bottled fountain pen inks and comes from a well-regarded, historic Japanese pen and ink company. Kuzu is one of eight ink colors available in Sailor’s newest (and very popular) Manyo ink series and is only available on the International (non-Japanese) market.

The gorgeous dark burgundy red color arrives in a large, display quality, square design 50 ml. bottle and the simple elegance of the packaging and bottle design are reflected in the ink itself. This high-performance Sailor ink is both easy to clean and easy to use and offers a reasonable dry time. Happy writing from Japan!

Enter to Win Sailor Manyo Kuzu Ink:

Enter to win the actual bottle of Sailor Kuzu Ink that Pen Chalet used in this week’s ink review:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Stephanie S
4 years ago

Beautiful color! Would love to try it as it’s much pinker than my current favorite: Black Swan in English Roses (Noodler’s). THanks!

Aaron McVicker
4 years ago

Great color! Love Sailor inks and Pen Chalet!

T
4 years ago

Looks like a solid performer. Been using a sample of Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses, but this may be better!

Austin
4 years ago

What a cool color!

S. Park
4 years ago

Oku Yama is one of my favorites, and this looks similar. I love the performance of Sailor inks.

CY
4 years ago

I love this colour!

Heather Burke
4 years ago

That is unusual. Thanks for the chance to enter.

Linda Jones
4 years ago

Great color, great for landscapes.

Susan Irving
4 years ago

My favorite ink is Diamine Lilac Satin.

Michael S. Simon
4 years ago

I wonder like to learn about more of the Sailor inks in this series.

Mike Solinas
4 years ago

That is a very nice dark red. I try not to get too colorful at work, but I’d consider this suitable for business!

Cindy
4 years ago

Beautiful shade of purple!

Lisa Hunerlach
4 years ago

I don’t have an ink even close to this color. Would love a sample!

dimhelmet
4 years ago

I love the shading! I’d like to see more of this ink series.

Mary
4 years ago

Sweet looking inks in this series!

C Dom
4 years ago

Love Sailor inks!

Adriana
4 years ago

Would love to try this color.

Tony Rose
4 years ago

These bottles would look great displayed on a desk… well done, Sailor!

Colton H.
4 years ago

This is such a passionate ink. I quite like the gradations of color, from the deep reds to the sultry pinks. I know Sailor makes great pens and solid inks, but I wouldn’t have expected such a full-bodied color like this. Not bad at all.

Very pleased to see showcases of Sailor inks. May we see some more Korean and Japanese inks like this? I wonder what makers like 3 Oysters might have to compete with this product.

Roy c
4 years ago

That’s a great color.

RM
4 years ago

Love this color but I wonder how close it is to Kobe Bordeaux? I think I like this one better!

Jak Lee
4 years ago

More reviews of these Sailor inks would be great.

Mary Zielinski
4 years ago

Very nice. I’m a huge fan of Sailor inks.

Marcy N
4 years ago

This would be a GREAT color to use for Valentine’s Day…

Feli
4 years ago

Stunning colour! I must admit, I love those clear shaped ink bottles very much… And deep dark cold red tones are even suitable for work (in my case at least). I would like to finally try one of the Sailor inks… they are hard to come by over here.
Thanks for the detailed review!

rreid
4 years ago

Right now, Pilot Iroshizuku Yama-budo is my favorite ink that most closely resembles this one. I’m curious to see how it compares.

Feli
4 years ago

Great colour! I must admit, I have a sweet spot for these gorgeous ink bottles, clear shaped and designed to sit on your desk… I would love to finally own a Sailor ink. Great deep dark reddish colour, even suitable for work (in my case). I did not know about the many different lines of Sailor.
Thanks for the thorough review!