Out of the vast rainbow of fountain pen ink colors available, there are two shades I generally don’t care for: Red and Green. Red does nothing for me - bright, brick, blood - none of it registers. Green was there at one time too, especially traditional greens and dark greens. I think it is time I moved green off the list, because I found a new one I am enjoying immensely.
Graf von Faber-Castell Viper Green is one of the newest GvFC inks, which I picked up from Vanness Pens at the D.C. Pen Show. I was looking for a new ink to match my recently purchased Nakaya Piccolo Heki-Tamenuri and its brown-green finish, and Viper Green has turned out to be a great match.
For me, Akkerman #28 Hofkwartier Groen is the only green that sees regular use. It’s bright with yellow undertones and has fantastic shading. It looks great in all nibs, but shines in wide ones. Viper Green shares some of the same brightness I enjoy from Hofkwartier Groen, but with less yellow. It’s like a bright apple green hard candy on the page.
Traditional, standard production line greens (think Lamy, Waterman, Sheaffer) are some of my least favorite inks around. They tend to look washed out and weak, with no character at all. Viper Green has great character, with a deepness and saturation that makes it pop off the page. There is not a huge shading range, but enough to where you can see the variance. It dries reasonably well too, at least on the few pages I’ve tried it on.
While I’ve enjoyed several of the darker green inks I’ve reviewed, they never stick in the rotation. I’m not sure why. They are nice, and loved my many. Maybe it’s not my aesthetic. That’s ok, I have bright greens to fall back on, and Viper Green fits the bill perfectly.
(Vanness Pens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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