The printing ink can be equated with ink that is used to reproduce colour separations in an inkjet printer. The German distributor, for example, refers to it as Digital Duplicator Ink . According to the manufacturer, the ink is not classified in respective dangerous goods regulations, which initially makes the colour appear very tolerable. In case of contact with eyes or skin, rinsing with mild soap and water is recommended. Additional cleaning by shovelling it up, then wiping up with a cloth or paper towel is not necessary. ¹

The ink can be stored at temperatures between 5 °C and 35 °C and is best kept away from direct sunlight. In contrast to the CMYK-Euroscale, the colours are not adjusted to a colour standard, but operate more like spot colours. There is, for example, no process cyan (likeused in digital or offset printing for autotypical colour synthesis): only “real” spot colours are available. Cyan, magenta and yellow are not considered “real” colours because while they are of course primary colours of the subtractive colour model and thus also spot colours, except for yellow, they are not used in the colour palette of matrix printers. The colour system of the risograph relies much more on colours that in case of the euro-scale would have to be a combination of two or more colours, like dark blue or green.

Additionally, there are more extravagant colours such as gold (available in metallic and matte), white and also fluorescent colours such as pink, green and orange. One great advantage of the risograph having this ability is that certain parts of the image can be printed with fluorescent colours to achieve special effects. In addition, the variables in mixing the individual colour components and colours is infinite.