Jim P.

Father, geek, serial hobbyist.

I got a sample of KWZ Sheen Machine since everyone praises it, and indeed it sheens like a machine.

KWZ is 2/2 on accurate descriptions. It reminds me a lot of Endless Alchemy Candy Sea, it is very close in color/look.

Scans

The scans minimize the sheen, but some still manages to shine through.

Scan of an ink swatch card made from Col-o-ring paper Scan of an ink swatch card made from Iroful paper Scan of an ink swatch card made from MD paper
Swatch Card Scans. Click to enlarge.

Video

This video was taken inside a light tent where the even light is not the best for showing off sheen, but even under these less-than-ideal conditions, it’s still easily visible.

Video with the MD swatch card tilting to show sheen

Photos

Photo of a col-o-ring swatch card. The ink on the card is a blue almost entirely appearing to be pinkish due to reflective sheen. On the right is a blob of ink with a few places around the edges that have blue showing through. On the right is text reading "KWZ Sheen Machine" with an X and a curlicue underneath. Photo of an Iroful swatch card with a line drawing of a paint pallette. The ink on the card is a blue almost entirely appearing to be pinkish due to reflective sheen. On the left, inside the line drawing is a blob of ink with a few places around the edges that have blue showing through. On the right is text reading "KWZ Sheen Machine" with an X and a curlicue underneath. Photo of an Iroful swatch card at an angle with a line drawing of a paint pallette. The ink on the card is a blue with areas in the lower left appearing as pinkish reflective sheen. On the left, inside the line drawing is a blob of ink with a few places around the edges that have blue showing through. On the right is text reading "KWZ Sheen Machine" with an X and a curlicue underneath.
Swatch Card Photos. Click to enlarge.

Iroful changed a lot by angle, col-o-ring was consistent.

The Iroful card was still wet in the dark line down the middle when I took the photos, and still tacky months later.

The base color is a bit darker than Candy Sea, but the sheen is quite similar.

Microscope

On Iroful, more of the base color shows through and the sheen is more concentrated.

Ink under Magnification. Click to enlarge.

Chromatography

Photo of a chromatography strip. Starting at the right it has a faint blue line and a large area of light blue with some stripes of slightly darker blue. At the left is a dark blue area that fades into lighter blue in places. The far left edge is dark blue.
Chromatography Strip

It’s blue through-and-through, though it moves from a light slate blue to a deep dark blue.

Photo of chromatography paper under UV light.
Chromatography strip photo under UV light

Nothing too noteworthy under UV light.

Uniqueness

I don’t think I have all that much ink in the grand scheme of things and even I have three other inks with similar properties:

Verdict

It looks great, but I’m not sure I’d pick it over the other alternatives. Especially since I already have larger bottles of the others I mentioned.

Based on a Mastodon Post

Updated:

Questions or comments? Contact me on Mastodon

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