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Heavy Crude

Small-batch Pittsburgh-made inks in house formulas, from everyday Keystone colors to intense sheeners.

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Specs

Color familyWarm tones

Approx. hex#1F1F19

SheenNot typically noted

BrandBirmingham Pen Co.

Paper & pairing

Warm tones (oranges, yellows, ambers) show strong contrast between light and dark areas of each stroke, which is part of why they're popular with broader nibs. This ink will behave predictably on most fountain-pen-friendly paper. Cheap, highly absorbent paper (standard copier paper) will dull any ink's saturation and can cause feathering or bleed-through with wetter nibs.

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About Birmingham Pen Co.

Birmingham Pen Co. is a two-person American ink and pen manufacturer from the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area, originally based in a warehouse on the Monongahela River in Pittsburgh's Southside and now located in Cranberry Township. The name honors the Southside's old nickname 'Little Birmingham', a nod to Birmingham, UK, the historic center of pen and nib manufacturing. The company hand-produces small batches of fountain pen ink in distinct in-house formulas such as Keystone and Everlasting.

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Storing and using the bottle

Bottled fountain pen ink has an effectively long shelf life when kept capped and out of direct sunlight: most inks remain usable for years. The main risk isn't the ink spoiling, it's a pen sitting inked and unused for weeks: that's what causes clogs, not the ink's age.

Frequently asked questions

What color family is Heavy Crude?

Heavy Crude falls into Inktend's warm tones family based on its typical swatch color.

Does Heavy Crude have sheen?

Heavy Crude is not typically noted for sheen. If you want that effect, browse similarly colored inks tagged with sheen in the ink library.

How should I store a bottle of Heavy Crude?

Years, easily, as long as it stays capped and out of direct sunlight. The thing that actually shortens an ink's usable life is sitting unused inside a pen, not sitting on a shelf.

What paper works best with Heavy Crude?

It behaves predictably on most fountain-pen-friendly paper. Stick to something reasonably absorbent-resistant, since cheap copier paper dulls saturation and can feather.

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Color shown is a close digital approximation of a typical swatch, not a calibrated color match.