Pens Trial

[matt scarlett]

After the disaster of having Henner's turn yellow (viewtopic.php?f=53&t=630&p=5639#p5639) I've started to try a few pens and to bring the results back to you. This is what I've learned so far.

Black Pens

1) There is some sort of chemical in black ink (I was talking to a friend who is a tutor at UCLAN on Wednesday about this) that has a yellow chemical in the ink, hence that's why the ink turns yellow.

2) According to the lovely lady i spoke to at this online shop (http://www.websterspenshop.co.uk/) there is a standard ink used in all pens regardless of the fact that it's a cheap BIC pen or a £200 Mount Blanc pen.



Black Ink

I've been told to look at Japanese ink and there was one company I needed to look at.... I’ll get back to you on that. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ink_and_wash_painting)

There is such a thing as 'Registrar’s Ink' that goes darker the older it gets ... it's used for wedding forms etc, but it's not available in 'Ball-Point' form.


Pens

I've tried the following on Bristol board and this is what I found.

1) Gel pens (BIC). In my opinion, they're not good for art work. They're too inconsistent to work with, and to be honest they're not even that good to write with. When i try to use them even to write with i find the leave thick blotches of ink on the paper, not good

2) Roller ball pens. Again I found them to be the same as your average rotoring pen. Great for graphic design but not for the light delicate strokes that my artwork needs. It simply lays down one thick line. There's little control over the lightness of tone or the amount of pressure you can apply.

(Sorry it's 23:59 pm, i've just done a 12.5 hours shift today and i'm gabbling)

3) Archival pens. I wanted this to be the one ... and in terms of ink I'm sure the ink works well, unfortunately the pen I've got doesn't. It acts like something between a normal ballpoint and a gel pen. It will take me time to get used to. For now I think a normal ball point is far easier and more consistent.

As for the Archival Ink, I've bought a black ink pen, and I'll have to experiment on it when i receive it.

http://shop.ebay.co.uk/?_from=R40&_trks ... chival+pen

4) Lamy Pen .. Posh Pen! This is my first go with a .. 'Posh pen', and it's nice to use. Slightly smoother and easier to use than your average BIC biro. The pen feels nice, the push button action is lovely. I didn't realize that a small investment of less than £5 could produce such an improvement over a standard BIC pen. The Lamy pen is smooth a lovely to use.

For artwork it's stunning (or will be when I've done a final piece using the pen)... even thought at a sub £5 price tag it's still cheap. You can apply a fair bit of pressure and still get a light tone. It's fairly easy to control. To be honest I will probably give BIC a miss in the future.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/LAMY-noto-Ballpoint-White-Silver/


From the link below I've found an upmarket Pen manufacturer Conway Stuart in Plymouth where I live (United Kingdom). I might approach them next week and take my failed artwork in (see - Henner's ruined!) and ask for help.

http://www.marcuslink.com/pens/companies.html
http://www.conwaystewart.com/product_info.php?cPath=37_61&products_id=64&osCsid=7c43bb8a30fc01b383cd2f3f4064b656

Back to black Ink & pens

For me there's still a question mark over black ink. I might have a go on the following.

http://www.websterspenshop.co.uk/pens/f ... tell/grip/

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Parker-Urban-Fa ... 136&sr=8-7

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_ ... ker+Jotter

http://www.websterspenshop.co.uk/pens/lamy/logo/

But this is what i really want

http://www.websterspenshop.co.uk/pens/cross/autocross/

[Allan]

Great !!
Nice to have some real try information about other ballpen then BIC oo Reynolds !

[matt scarlett]

What I'm learning is that it's about the ink and refills not the pen. £100 Lamy pens still use the same refill as my £5 Lamy pen! Example, the Faber castell grip pen i'm looking can take the parker pen refills. So why spend £10 on the FB pen when i can buy a £5 Parker jotter pen? Answer; becasue I want to!

http://www.websterspenshop.co.uk/pens/f ... tell/grip/

In terms of refills, my research still shows the same thing, refills are dirt cheap (English slang for 'very cheap') it's the pens that are pricey. Montblanc, Dunhill even Porsche design refills are only a few pounds (Parker refills are compatible with Porsche design Pens).

http://www.websterspenshop.co.uk/pens/p ... -tec-flex/.



The thing is all this is taking me time. I've got a buyer for a future commission however I want to get it right.

But the pen is the least important consideration. What's in the pen (ink & refills) is what you need to concentrate on. I'm still working on finding a solution for black ink. But for now I started Catherine in Blue BIC a few weeks ago. I have been holding on because i really wanted to do it in blue with the Lamy pens I’ve ordered (3 pens, to fit each fine, medium and broad refill). In total the Lamy pens have cost me just over £20, but that's just me being fussy. You could fit all three refills in one pen, but one needs to invest in proper equipment.

[Allan]

Yes, you right about the refill ! It was a big topic in the french part of this forum when a wooden pen maker (Gwenael) came to show us his creations. They are expensive because luxurious and some of the guy on the forum was wondering why bother spend so much when you can use a Biro !

But it as well a mater of nice object you like to have and use for many years !

[matt scarlett]

I got my refills today and some new pens. The Cross refills (top of picture) are tiny ... too small to work with, but i might have a go.

Click the images to enlarge



Lamy broad, meduim and fine



The Lamy pens are smooth and easy to work with. They're very, very controllable. The Paker pen (refill) isn't that good if i'm honest. It's not that much better than your standard Bic biro. Although the ink seems to flow better than a Bic, it's a bit harder to contorl and not as fluid as the Lamy pens.