Warrior Ancient and Medieval Rules

scott holder · Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2012 12:54 pm Post subject: Pens Update

Ten years ago this question was asked:

http://www.fourhorsemenenterprises.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=15290&highlight=pens

I have an update. First some background.

20+ years ago, I read an article in the old MWAN newsletter about using technical/drafting pens for blacklining. I can't remember the brand. What I do remember is that the tip/nib of the pen was hard-ish (I'll come back to this).

The pen worked okay for some things but blacklining wasn't really one of them. Why? Any figure with too much relief and the pen couldn't fit in the crack very well. Also, ink flow could be a problem. I was constantly having to scribble on a scrap piece of paper to get the ink to flow, then move to the figure. I very quickly went back to blacklining with slightly watered down ink and a brush whose only purpose was as a blackliner.

Flash forward to now. I'm not blacklining (dipping with already-shaded polyurathane takes care of that for the most part). Instead I'm working on Ancient British/Gauls in 15mm and decided that I wanted to paint plaid patterns, lined cloaks and pants, etc.

Brush work and my usual water-base paints simply weren't cutting it. Brushes were either too thick or too thin plus control was an issue. And getting a water-based paint diluted down to a Goldilocks "just right" consistency so that it would flow without running was impossible. So I went back to the pen approach.

So, I headed out onto The Internetzezzzz in search of pen solutions. To nobody's surprise, most info about pens being used for painting still revolved around blacklining. Also not surprising, most comments about pens were to be found on various Warhammer forums.

The first problem was that I couldn't find pens with the hard tip/nibs that I remember despite recommendations from the aforementioned Warhammer forums. They're somehow softer this time which mean ink flow was easily stopped when working over part of a figure already painted with water-base paint.

Next up was the infuriating vagueness from posters. What I wanted was a specific brand and "model" number. I saw some references to "brush pens" but didn't know wtf these posters were referring to.

Until I found a pack at a Hobby Lobby. These are made by Sakura (www.sakuraofamerica.com). You'll often see them referred to as PIGMA pens. The confusion is another word used "MICRON". These are the hard tipped things you want to avoid.

Instead, look for BRUSH on the front of the package just below PIGMA. On the back of the package, the Sakura stock number is: 38062. Here's a link:

http://www.sakuraofamerica.com/Pen-Brush

Don't let the size of the pen fool you. It looks far fatter than a hard-tipped micron pen. If you're deft enough with the touch, the tip of that pen will make very nice, thin lines. You have great control and most importantly, the brush pen allows you to work over the relief of a tunic or cloak, totally unlike a hard-tipped pen.

I doubt I'll have anything done for Hcon 12 to show how well these work but as somebody who's blacklined a crapload of figures over the years with a brush and ink, these brush pens are pretty impressive. My Ancient Brits will now have the clothing they deserve!

scott

Raphael · Recruit Joined: 03 Nov 2007 Posts: 51

Hello Scott,

Sounds very interesting. As I have an Ancient British army that could do with some more style I might pick up some of these.

Never having used them before, could you let me know if they can be varnished with a solvent based varnish?

Thanks,

Raphael

scott holder · Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2012 2:13 pm Post subject:

Varnished?

You're talking about some kind of polyurathane?

No matter. Yeah, they'll be fine.

scott

lilroblis · Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2012 12:59 pm Post subject: Pens

Scot - great post - painting Hoplites for H'Con right now only 72 to go - but will use this for future reference
(May be borrowing some figs as I dont see m yself finishing)

scott holder · Posted: Fri Jul 27, 2012 1:09 pm Post subject:

I painted at Hcon 12 while waiting for rules/geometry/worktheref questions. Had these pens with me and you wouldn't believe the interest. I had people writing down names, the web site, etc. At first, many people didn't realize they were "brush tipped". Once I showed them that, this company had at least 3 sales as a result. Smile

scott

Historian · Posted: Fri Jul 27, 2012 1:13 pm Post subject: Eye Balls

I don't do blacklining, but can see where the pens would excel there. I do do eyeballs, and have an .01 Pentel for the job.

Bill Low · Moderator Joined: 02 Apr 2006 Posts: 329

I ordered a set off the website, right after Scott's first report; the goods were actually shipped by a local supplier (2 towns over), which is good for resupply and customer service.

BTW, they work great, but you have to get used to them. Initial application can seem to be light compared with regular paints, until you learn to slow down and get the flow/application you want. At least that was my experience.