India Ink

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

I’ve heard alot about this, but have never seen it.

Is India Ink something I can get at a local hobby store? Or is it something I’d find easier at an art supply store?

Mrs. Mac

2

art supply stores should all carry india ink. I am an artist and am sure you will find india ink in any art supply and possibly in craft supply stores.

3

There is a formula for black ink in my old chemistry reference book. You can get already mixed black drafting ink in the drafting supplies at any office supply (Thank God for CAD and printers). Most India inks are water soluable; you may want to use Sharpie permanent ink. If you mix candle soot in alcohol you get a quick drying water soluable ink. Lindsay

4

I remember going into the Office Max and Staples asking for India Ink. I may have well have asked for Martian Ink for the blank stares that I received. The closest thing that they could come up with was callagraphy ink, which most definately is not the same thing.

Hey Lindsay, is candle soot the stuff that I get by putting a jar over a candle?

Also, I typically use water based paints on my figures, Is there a way to protect them form the alcohol’s tendency to eat away the base coat?

5

Art supply stores are your best bet. Remember, if you going to use the ink for weathering, a little goes a long long way. Kepp it off your fingers and clothes, it’s pretty stainy stuff. [:D]

6

Hi,

I believe you can most easily find this in the office/school supply section of any local department type store - Wal-Mart, K-mart, Target, etc.

At least they used to carry it in the past . . .

7

I never thought about it before but is it INDIA ink or INDIAN ink? If the latter, in today’s PC climate, maybe they would have understood if you had asked for NATIVE AMERICAN ink.

8

Just to complicate matters, some Indian inks turn a blue-purple on plaster and hydrocal, and others are black as they should be. I have seen the wrong Indian Ink being used and trust me, it does happen.

I use Higgins Indian Ink and it will work as a “black wash” on plaster.

9

You can buy India ink in any arts & crafts store, Office Depot, Staples, Wal Mart, dime store or even some drug stores. When mixed with alcohol It is great for weathering.

10

Indian ink (English) India ink (American English) Made from black carbon pigment in an aqueous glue or binding medium. Real India ink is made from soot of burning resin or wood, different types of wood create different coloured inks. Try an art supply store, calligraphers usually use India ink.

11

I’ve seen some very impressive weathering results with this India Ink. Very effective on buildings.

12

actually if your trying to obtain a silvery weathered wood look on basswood , that effect can best be done use fiebings leather dye, a USA made product.

Use a 99% pure rubbing alcohol, called isopropinal.available at your local drug stores. 99% is preferred over 70% pure as it dries quicker.
Use your ink squirter into a 2 oz airbrush jar and put 2 ink squirters full of leather dye USMC BLACK. fill bottle with alcohol and use a hair type hobby bru***o apply and wait for it to dry. If this is nit the exact shade your trying to achieve just add a bit more dye until your satisfied.

The same process is also used when using india ink…best one to use is HIGGINS black india ink. It will give u a weathered brown effect not a silvery grey.
Test your mixes on scrap basswood
madmike3535

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13

Be careful when you use India ink. If you spill it on your clothing or furniture, it’s a permanent stain. I’ve got a small dot of India ink in an inconspicuous place on one of my white dress shirts. It’s been laundered tens of times since the stain occurred, and it’s still just as dark and well defined as when it first happened. Even looked up methods of stain removal on the Internet, it’s one of the few materials that no one has a method for.

-Ed