Good Ballpoint Pen

#1

Hey all, I’m in search of a good ballpoint pen that won’t bleed with Copic markers. I’ve recently been sketching with a Zebra pen (recommended by a local art supplier) but it bleeds very badly with Copic markers. I’ve searched through this forum and found a few discussions on pens in general but most of the recommendations revolve around felt tip pens or the like. I’m not a big fan of this type of pen. For some reason I can work much faster with a ballpoint. I think it’s because I don’t have to worry so much about every little contact with the paper causing a dark mark. Thanks for the help.

#2

I have no idea how they react with Copic markers, but Pilots are good ballpoint pens. They have good inkflow and you can move around on the paper very quickly and the ink will keep up. I don’t think their ink is waterproof, which is what you really need for no bleeding.

#3

Schneider and Papermate make waterproof ballpoint ink refills.

For example Schneider:
http://www.passion4pens.com/site/735447/product/Express225Schneider

-DBC

#4

Is it water that the pens are reacting to or alcohol? I thought it was alcohol in the markers that caused the bleeding. I don’t make pens or markers so sorry if this is a dumb question. All I know is that the lighter the marker (i.e. a 10% grey vs. a 70% grey) the worse the bleeding which sucks when I’m trying to blend a dark shadow into a highlight while keeping the contrast relatively great. In a previous post someone mentioned the Pilot Precision series so I’ll have to give that a try since you mentioned Pilot pens. Not sure if it is a ballpoint though. Is a roller ball pen the same as a ballpoint? You can probably tell I’ve never had any formal drafting/sketching training. I love concept art and am pretty much learning on my own. Thanks for the help.

#5

Those ballpoints are likely alcohol based as are the Copics, so they’re smearing because you’re just re-wetting the ink. If you stick with ballpoint, you could try drawing on top of the marker instead. I’d rather suggest some other pen besides a ballpoint, like a Micron or NeoPiko marker. I’ve used these with colored markers (Tria & Prismacolor) and they work fine. If you’re using a light weight paper that could make the bleeding worse. A thick hot-pressed paper or illustration board is better.

-DBC

#6

Hi-Tec C’s don’t bleed, not sure if they are considered ball point though. I know they don’t bleed with prismacolor markers.

Might just have to change your workflow. Xerox the line art and then render on the copies…

#7

The pen bleeds about the same on a pad of Bristol paper (which is pretty thick) as it does on my preferred Bienfang 360 so I’m not sure that the paper is the culprit. My technique is to start with a quick marker layout and then I start flushing the sketch out with a pen. After that I like to add a little more contrast with another pass with the markers. This is when things get messy. I’m pretty sure that my Zig Millennium’s are pretty similar to the Micron’s and they work well as far as not bleeding goes. However, I’m just not a fan of how they feel (i.e. I think the black is just too black and the marks are too definite). I find it much easier to vary the weight of the lines with a ball point vs. the nib on the marker pens. I probably just need more practice with this type of pen before I get the feel for it. I looked into the Schneider brand of pens that you mentioned earlier and I’m pretty hopeful that they may work. I noticed that Zig’s specifically say that they are waterproof so I’m hoping that the Schneider brand inks – which also make note of being waterproof – are similar. Thank you so much for the help.

#8

I don’t know if it’s of any help but Letraset Tria markers have an extra fine nib over the small nib. http://www.letraset.com/row/info/products/Tria-Markers.asp

They exist in a whole lot of Pantone colours, so you will most likely find a good black, I think they have 4 or 5 blacks. Excellent markers, and there are refills available. I don’t know how fast you draw but I find them to have a good flow of ink. They are pretty durable too, I have been using my black one for about 2 years now (with refills) and the nibs still seem fine.
Colour list: http://www.letraset.com/row/colourpicker.asp?src=Template6.asp&catId=44

#9

copic markers are alcohol based. if you insist on using a ballpointpen, do it on top of your coloring. :slight_smile:

#10

The faint lines that ballpoints make is definetly a good feature of them, no doubt. Most of them are not archival, however. I think the Schneider Express brand is, so I hope they work out for you (I’ve not used them.) Have you tried roller ball pens? From what I understand the ink is water-based, so that would resist alcohol better I would imagine. Also, I think gel pens are oil-based inks, so that might work also. Again, not archival to my understanding.

-DBC

#11

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Just in case people were interested, I found this site which pretty much states that the Schneider pen is probably what I’m looking for. I just thought I’d post it in case people were interested in having too much information about pens and ink. Thanks again for all the advice. It’s been a very big help. I’ll let you all know how it turns out.

http://lightningi.artistnation.com/forums/printthread.php?t=205481

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#12

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