Noodler's Cactus Fruit Eel: Fountain Pen Ink Review

Noodler's Cactus Fruit Eel fountain pen ink bottle and swatch cards on wooden desk background

From Noodler's today we have Cactus Fruit Eel — this vibrant lubricated fountain pen ink helps keep your pens working nicely and provides lovely smooth flow onto the page. Inspired by the color of prickly pear cactus fruit, this ink will keep you coming back for more! Check out our review below.

Noodler's Cactus Fruit Eel fountain pen ink writing samples on white dot grid paper

Noodler's Cactus Fruit Eel fountain pen ink writing sample on cream colored dot grid paper

Noodler's Cactus Fruit Eel fountain pen ink writing sample on white blank paper

Ink Review

Supplies Used:

LAMY AL-star with medium steel nib
Rhodia No. 16 dot pad, 80g white paper
Tomoé River 52 gsm white paper
Leuchtturm1917 80g notebook

Smear Test (Dry Time):

15 seconds – This ink dries pretty fast from the medium LAMY nib even though it's lubricated. Inks with those properties tend to sit on the page a bit longer.

Drip Test (Water Resistance):

Low – No water resistance on this ink but that does help with cleaning!

Saturation:

High – Very bright and vibrant and when laid down heavily it changes to a nice medium purple color with almost no blue tones to it. In writing, the ink is very legibile and leaves nice clean lines.

Ease of Cleaning:

Easy – The lubricated inks from Noodler's usually clean very easily and this ink is one of the easiest to clean for us!

Shading:

High – Nice shading from Cactus Fruit Eel; the dark to light is really lovely here and it's very pleasing to the eye. This shading will give your writing an extra bit of flair!

Flow:

High – Unlike the high flow of fast-drying inks this ink gets its wet flow from the lubrication and its overall formula. It feels like it wants to jump out of the pen but remains very controllable with little to no feathering. Of course, using a broad or stub nib will put down a good amount of ink, but as long as you're using fountain pen friendly paper, you should be good to go!

Packaging and Aesthetics:

The Noodler's bottles always have interesting graphics and this one is no different! The cactus fruit is prominently displayed. The tall 3oz glass bottle also makes filling a breeze.

Noodler's Cactus Fruit Eel fountain pen swatch cards on wooden desk background

If you're interested in similar colors, check out our Swab Shop where you can compare colors side by side.

Summary:

Bursting with bright happy purple, Noodler's Cactus Fruit Eel is a lovely choice for those seeking a bright and different fountain pen ink that's legible, flows nicely, and provides some lubrication for your piston or converter. It's a fan favorite and and for good reason!

This color is available in 3oz bottles as well as our sample size.

Posted by Brian K.