pen 06: sharpie ultra fine point

here is a perfect example of a pen that lives up to its reputation. the sharpie.

lately it seems that sharpie has gone crazy with the variety of pens that are now available, there are so many colors and pen types to choose from and the marketing, in both retail stores and on the internet, seems to have gone up a notch. in many ways it seems like they aren't really trying to up against the fine art market but to the everyday person, school projects, decoration, crafts, etc etc. i may be wrong but thats just how it seems to me. 

these pens have always been a favorite of mine, even before all the options. they are easy to find, sold everywhere, they are fairly versatile and as i said they are a solid product.

from moving boxes to writing your name on a p.e. shirt, labeling a cd or a fuse box, these pens are fairly durable and the ink lasts forever. in the few places that a regular sharpie is not the best choice, the company has made a line of water based and oil based pens that work on glass plastic or pretty much anything you might want to scribble on for whatever reason.

the downsides are few but worth noting. they bleed... although there are new models out that claim to be bleed free - i haven't really tested those claims yet. the ink does flow well  but any mistakes you make are pretty much set in stone, unless you don't mind whiteout or are planning on doing something digitally. there isn't
really any middle ground when it comes to the value of black to white, with these it is all or nothing.

the ultra fine model is ideal for laying down heavy line work, its bold lines and ability to do detailed work are super useful in graphic design, anime/manga, or those with a graffiti-esque style. these pens last, it takes a lot of usage to bleed one of these babies dry, in fact i mostly have to replace them because they either grow legs and wander off or that rare occasion that  i've worn the nib down. these pens are also great for things like lettering/writing crossword puzzles (if you're confident enough to use ink) and images/fonts that you are planning on scanning and vectorization. 

the price is right, in that they are fairly inexpensive, and if you can't afford the price you might want to consider looking in the junk drawer or garage workshop, chances are you'll find one there.

all in all this is one of the more useful tools in my bag, it is a rare day that i leave home without one.