You were told “Ohuhu is the Copic slayer! They’re like Copic Markers but better!”
Is it true?
Every Ohuhu Marker has different characteristics based upon its unique ink formula. No matter how great they say the marker is, test results do not lie.
So are Ohuhu markers as great as you’ve heard?
Let’s look at Ohuhu V340 to find out.
WARNING: Ohuhu markers have numbers on the cap but not on the body of the marker. We do not recommend coloring with both caps off due to the risk of accidentally placing the wrong caps on a marker.
Test results: Ohuhu V050 Pearl Violet
REFILL WARNING! At this time, Ohuhu does not sell refills for V340. To date, you must purchase a new marker when your current marker runs dry. See Ohuhu’s current list of refills here.
Temperature: A light cool gray-violet
Resemblance: a violet-leaning Neutral Tint watercolor
Actual Value: N5
Unlike Copic, Ohuhu does not measure value— this is a glaring deficiency which makes finding blending combinations harder than it has to be!
All Copics are measured on a Neutral Gray value scale. The last number on the Copic cap indicates the value. We’re using the Copic scale to measure Ohuhu until Ohuhu releases a reliable value scale.
Cap Accuracy: The plastic on an Ohuhu Honolulu V340 marker matches the color of one coat of this ink
Copic Substitution: Ohuhu V340 is slightly more violet but otherwise close to Copic’s BV23
Note: similar colors rarely behave the same way. From experience I can tell you that Copic BV23 is a relatively easy blending marker. I teach with BV23 frequently because it’s an extremely useful color for underpainting. On the otherhand, in my testing, I’ve noticed that Ohuhu V340 can not be used as a similar underpaint. When blended with lighter colors, this Ohuhu marker mottles. Since the entire premise of underpainting is to layer the color underneath lighter colors, I do not recommend Ohuhu V340 for underpainting. Proof that two similar inks can behave radically different in usage. See Copic BV23 test result here.
Buildup: V340 reaches a maximum value at about 2-3 coats.
Overinking: We do not recommend using more than 3 coats of V340. As with most Ohuhu markers, four layers seems to be a waste of ink since the color isn’t as buildable as Copic.
Shattering: V340 did not shatter in testing, indicating that this is likely a single color ink formula.
Chromatography testing shows this ink’s behavior when it comes in contact with #0 Colorless Blender (solvent). High shattering colors may leak unexpected color when you make corrections or attempt to blend with any color that has a high solvent to colorant ratio. Shattering is not bad, it’s just something to be aware of.
Staining: V340 a mildly staining color, an improvement over most Ohuhu colors tend to fall in the range from staining to extremely staining.
With alcohol markers, a staining ink is generally a sign of a low quality ink. Staining inks bond to the paper fibers and are reluctant to release. Staining inks make blending harder than it has to be!
Lift: V340 lifted pretty well during testing. As usual, Ohuhu markers really pile the ink along either side of the correction zone but with patience, I think mistakes with this color can be corrected.
See staining swatch. Sample was given 6 stripes of #0 Colorless Blender, drying between each stripe. Results indicate how much lifting you can expect.
Lightfast: V050 faded by about 20% during the test period. Copic BV23 faded slightly less. See BV23 results here.
Samples were swatched on X-Press It Blending Card. 1 layer of ink was exposed to windowsill sunlight for 21 days. Approximately 10 hours of sun per day based on weather conditions. Note: we do not recommend displaying original marker art under these conditions.
Ink Color Family: Ohuhu has violet and purple markers hidden in several marker families including R Red, RV Red Violet, RP Red Purple?, P Purple?, and B Blue. I’ve given up trying to understand why.
The Ohuhu numbering system is complete garbage and doesn’t always make sense. When it comes to color families, you can not trust anything you read on an Ohuhu cap.
Cap Numbering: V markers all have 3 digits rather than two. I have no idea why because they all end in zero… except for one stinkin’ marker (V322) which I’m convinced is only there to throw off any accidental logic.
It’s also hard to classify the V300’s as a number group. V320 is the darkest in the group but it’s also a warm purple rather than cool violet. V340 is an odd-ball in that it’s grayer than the others and 390 looks more like an Ultramarine Blue than violet.
As stated above, the Ohuhu numbering system makes no sense. The markers are not arranged in chromatic order so you can not trust the numbers to tell you whether this marker is lighter or darker than other Ohuhu markers with similar numbers.
I’m still early in the Ohuhu testing process. I will add more info to this article as I learn more and when I spot behavioral patterns.
From what I’ve learned so far, I will not be working with Ohuhu markers and I will discourage students from using them in my classes. They’re simply not worth the frustration.
Learn about V340 Lavender Blue, a light violet Ohuhu Marker. We swatch and test Ohuhu colors- layering, staining, lift, value, lightfastness, saturation, and cap accuracy. | MarkerNovice.com | How to color with alcohol markers
