PenBBS - 379 Kunming
PenBBS - 379 Kunming - Ink Drop
PenBBS No.379 Kunming is an interesting ink. It’s part of Season 25, which includes dye inks, pigmented inks, and shimmer ink, as well. The box and bottle labels are yellow with a drawing of Dragon Gate which overlooks Dian Lake and the city of Kunming, China. The color corresponds with some walls with the Dragon Gate complex.
Swatch and Strokes on Cosmo Air Light
This is a spectacular yellow! It’s warm and saturated, and there’s never any problems with readability. It doesn’t suffer the brightness that causes problems in visibility with some yellows.
PenBBS 379 Kunming Color Range
On paper, it ranges from a dark canary to more of a mustard yellow. On coated papers you may find traces of dark orange or a light tomato red in areas of concentration. Shading is generally subtle and blends from medium to dark, gently highlighting stroke ends.
Writing Sample on Cosmo Air Snow Paper
There’s an unusual shine to the ink when viewed from an angle. It’s not metallic like a normal sheen, but more like a thin, clear, shiny coating that covers the ink completely. This was consistent across the coated papers I used, but it doesn’t show up on uncoated papers. You’d probably never notice it unless you catch the light at an angle.
Shiny, Clear Sheen on Coated Papers
This is a pigment ink, so there’s good water-resistance. I haven’t had any problems with flow in my wet test pens, but in a drier pen you might. In the bottle, the ink has a rich concentration, almost like a paint.
PenBBS 379 Kunming - Writing Samples
Strokes were clean, there were no problems with feathering on coated papers, and only micro-spreading on uncoated papers. Even on cheap copy paper, there’s almost no show-through, and drying was fast on all.
Ink Swatch Card
I like PenBBS inks. I’ve reviewed quite a few, but don’t have many that are pigmented. No.379 Kunming is a gorgeous, complex yellow, and an ink that I’d recommend considering.
Ink Swatch Comparisons
PenBBS 379 Kunming in the 60 ml Bottle