Water-based Marker Lightfastness test

Ink lightfastness test

I have made my own lightfastness test for almost all the ink and pens that I currently own. This means that it is very random which inks and pens you will find here, I have never bought a full set of any ink or pens, but I thought that maybe someone else but me have use for this so I decided to publish the result anyway.

Method and theory

I made swatches of all ink and pens and put them in a window facing south for three summer months. Since I am an amateur, I always consider my own testing like this: even if the product (pen, pencil, ink or paint) doesn't show any proof of fading this doesn't prove anything for sure. It is only to consider as a chance of being lightfast. If the samples however show fading of the color, it is safe to say that it is not lightfast.

Markers

I tested some few water-based pens that I have. I don´t have many so it is a very random test. I also included Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen, which contains Indian ink. I did not include any alcohol markers in this list. For information about their lightfastness please follow this link. 

http://markersguild.blogspot.se/2017/02/the-aging-process-of-alcohol-markers.html

Molotow Aqua Twin                               Cool grey 01

Tombow ABT dual brush pen              N95

Tombow ABT dual brush pen              N65

Tombow ABT dual brush pen              912

Tombow ABT dual brush pen              947

Pentel color brush                                 Brown

Pentel color brush                                 Gray

Pentel Pocket Brush                              Black

Kuretake Zig Cartoonist Brush Pen     Black

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (size S)    Sanguine

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (size S)    Magenta

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (size S)    Deep Scarlet Red

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (size S)    Phthalo Blue

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (size S)    Indanthere Blue

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (size S)    Dark Sepia

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Cadmium Yellow

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Terracotta

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Sanguine

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Deep red

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Indian red

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Caput Mortuum

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Dark Sepia

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Raw Umber

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   a light gray without name

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   a dark gray without name

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Black

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Dark Indigo

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Phthalo Blue

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Ultramarine

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Purple Violet

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Crimson

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Lilac

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Medium Flesh

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Light Flesh

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen (Brush)   Earth Green

I only have one Aqua Twin from Molotow. It faded very badly, all colors is gone.

Molotow Aqua Twin 

Tombow ABT dual brush pen is a water-based, acid free pen with one brush tip on one side and a fine tip on the other. I tested four of them. None of them are lightfast but the number N65 did considerably better then the other four. 912 and N95 faded completely.

Tombow Dual Brush Pen

Pentel color brush is a water-based pen with a nylon brush tip. They come in twelve colors; I have tested two of them. None of them were lightfast. Especially the brown lost its color hue but the gray faded only a little.  

Pentel Color Brush

Pentel Pocket Brush Pen is a waterproof pen. My testing of the ink indicates that it is lightfast.

Pentel Pocket Brush

Kuretake Zig Cartoonist Brush Pen is water-based pigment ink that is water-resistant. It has a nylon brush tip. According to the company the pen is lightfast and my testing support that.

Kuretake Brush Pen

Faber Castell Pitt Artist pen is a bit different then the other pens in this category. Pitt Artist pens use Indian ink, which is waterproof and lightfast. They come in different sizes: extra small, superfine, fine, medium and brush. They also have a calligraphy pen in the same series. On the pen there is a star system that show the lightfastness. All pens that I have tested showed no fading at all even though some of them had two stars.

Faber Castell Pitt Artist Pen