Have not had any cracking issue with NS-104. Works well when mixing with other NS colors and clear. It is usually used in a bead to provide a bit of sparkle much like NS Steel Wool.
It is a darker blue and seen no color change in the 18 or so rods pictured. The issue with PhotoShop is what color would one like to see!!! A gray card was used to balance out to neutral gray, etc. Then comes how much saturation is desired, etc.....