Pentel brush pen drawings
Dec 22nd, 2009 by J. O'Brien
My daughter signed up to promote her ballet troupe’s Nutcracker performance this season. She dressed up in her soldier outfit and handed out fliers at the Mall of America on Black Friday. She didn’t want me hanging around so I walked down to Crave (website plays music) with my sketchbook and pens and drew people at the bar.
The cap of my Kaimei brush pen came off (found out this is common) and the brush tip dried up. I tried re-wetting it, washing it, all of the online suggestions I could find but no luck. So I set it aside and looked for some other options. In one discussion board, I found this list which also includes recommendations for nonbrush tip pens: Pentel GFKP Pocket Brush, Zebra brush pen, Rotring Sketch EF, Rotring Rapidoliner, and Sakura Micron 08.
I decided to try out the Pentel brush pen (recommended by one of the Wet Paint staff persons). I’ve also been using a Pelikan P58 Style Fountain Pen and a Zebra F-301 ballpoint pen, and a red Uni-Ball roller ball pen.
These drawings are from Crave and from church, my first using the Pentel brush pen.
The top one includes a draped table from church, used for a baptism.
The middle sketch is of a burly man in sweats watching football at Crave.
The bottom sketch is from church, more back-of-the-head views.
What paper stock is your sketchbook, James? Do you get much bleed-through with the Pentel brush pen?
Hey Christina, I’m using a hand•book brand Moleskin-like sketchbook with “heavyweight buff drawing paper with good tooth,” sold at Wet Paint. No bleed-through that I’ve noticed.
I have been using these pens for about 25 years. When they dry out it is a real pain to get them going again. Keep trying! Keep dunking it in water and draw with it and eventually the ink will come down from the cartridge, which you should replace because the ink has probably thickened. It has taken me as long as 1/2 hr. to get it going again!
Excuse me! Just noticed that it was a Pentel brush pen you were talking about. I was talking about a Kaimei brush pen. The mechanics may be the same though of getting it to flow again!