...derrh, does this go here or in Tips & Tricks? Whatever.

I normally use Micron pens and the occasional Sharpie. But often Microns end up making two lines when I'm inking...perhaps I'm pressing down too hard at first, but after it becomes really annoying to ink with...and often they simply just don't..."obey" me. :smt012

...and Sharpies....smudge.

Can someone suggest some good pens? Preferably ones that can be picked up at Staples or Wal-Mart or something (I don't have any good art supply stores nearby...well, maybe one..haven't really checked that place out yet) ....or I guess the internet.

Uhm, what are they called, Pilot Precise, or something? Those are pretty nice for non-art-specific pens. I got mine at Staples. I used them for a while; now I use a brand called Millenium, they're pretty nice. They don't smear at all, and they were cheaper than Faber-Castell (which I've heard are basically the best).

SarahN
...derrh, does this go here or in Tips & Tricks? Whatever.

I normally use Micron pens and the occasional Sharpie. But often Microns end up making two lines when I'm inking...perhaps I'm pressing down too hard at first, but after it becomes really annoying to ink with...and often they simply just don't..."obey" me. :smt012

...and Sharpies....smudge.

Can someone suggest some good pens? Preferably ones that can be picked up at Staples or Wal-Mart or something (I don't have any good art supply stores nearby...well, maybe one..haven't really checked that place out yet) ....or I guess the internet.

I actually have two really good pens I will tell you about but you will have to wait till I get home for I am at work.

But yeah,.....I hate sharpies....they bleed so much.

SarahN
...derrh, does this go here or in Tips & Tricks? Whatever.

I normally use Micron pens and the occasional Sharpie. But often Microns end up making two lines when I'm inking...perhaps I'm pressing down too hard at first, but after it becomes really annoying to ink with...and often they simply just don't..."obey" me. :smt012

...and Sharpies....smudge.

Can someone suggest some good pens? Preferably ones that can be picked up at Staples or Wal-Mart or something (I don't have any good art supply stores nearby...well, maybe one..haven't really checked that place out yet) ....or I guess the internet.

Ok the one I use to use was A Tombo ABT. It was a number 15 and had a brush tip on one side and a thin tip on the other. Now I can't find those anymore.

So I use a Vellum Writer. One side has a .05 mm Fine tip and the other side has a 1.2 mm bullet tip. It was only 2 bucks I think.

Faber-Castell PITT artist pens are quite nice. They can come in a set of four with a small, medium, full, and brush pen. I haven't really gotten used to the brush one but I do like them in general. They're Indian ink, waterproof, and dry quickly.

While they're not super expensive, they're not cheap either and the one thing I didn't like about them is how they become faded if I were to erase over them. I usually try to get around this by drawing with a non-photo blue pencil but I dislike those and sometimes I really do want to draw in pencil.

At work I use nylon fiber point porous pens. The box I have at home with me (which I think is the same one at work) is produced by PMOP. They're incredibly cheap which makes them disposable and I find they're okay when I erase over them.

The cheap part is the key as the longer you use it, the more the point becomes blunt so the lines become thicker. They also take a lot longer to dry and they're cheap for a reason. :S And as one incident at work proved, they are definitely NOT waterproof. If you're just looking to outline stuff though as I often do at work, they do get the job done.

I suppose an upgrade to those cheap office nylon fiber point pens is the Pilot Fineliner. They have a plastic tip and that's all I can say about them because I only used them a few times. My friend uses them often but the fineliners in particular are more expensive.

I used to use Microns but I only like them when they're brand new. Once you start using them, the tip starts to wear out and the marks and ink quality feels poorer to me when I scan them in. I obviously can't keep buying new Microns so I switched.

You can definitely pick up the Pilot and office pens at Staples and Wal-Mart but I'm not sure about the Faber-Castell pens.

.: Black Kitty :.

If you're looking for something that has a nice selection of line width like the Microns, I'd definitely suggest (long name here!) "Zig memory system Millenium" pens. They go from .005, 01, .03, .05 and .08, and the ink doesn't smudge and is fairly dark as well even after you erase (at least that is the result I have had in working with them) They are usually located in the scrapbooking/stamp aisle at craft stores or department stores, rather than the craft/art supply aisles. Also online too, I'd supply a picture but my internet is being slow again.They usually run about $1.99 per pen.
I'd say my only complaint with Zigs is that rather than run low on ink, the demise of the pen seems to come from the plastic nib being pushed back into the body of the pen, of course not being heavy-handed with lines will ensure a longer lifespan for the pen :-D
My preferred size is .03, it's a nice medium and usually can get you the widest range of width as compared with the .05 and .005-.01, I'd also suggest you avoid the .005 because it'll only give you fine lines for a short while as the impossibly tiny nib will inevitably crush itself or retreat early, leaving you with thicker lines than the .03 at times (all of mine have dones this in fact) .05 is very nice for bold outlines in tight spaces.

Also a third vote for the Pitt pens, though they are harder to find, they are quite nice.

Thanks so much for the suggestions everyone! (I think I need to make a list!) Right now I just got a Pilot Razorpoint to replace my Sharpies. It's a lot like the Sharpie except it doesn't smudge and only goes through the paper a little.

Though I'd still like to replace my super-duper fine (and crappy) Microns and try other pen widths...

....and.......yeah.....I'm going to bed now.