Uni Pin Fineliner Drawing Pen Set of 9 Black Ink with Different Nibs

Product Information

It would be great if there were a table that rated these pens on these characteristics to get a full picture. Trivia: Uni PIN is produced by Mitsubishi Pencil Co (makers of UniBall pens) – which has zero relations with the larger Mitsubishi conglomerate. Despite having known about the Multiliner , I’ve not tried it out until now. Perhaps due to the negative experience I’ve had with the more costly Multiliner SP series. Main difference being the Multiliner version is fully plastic and disposable while the Multiliner SP has refill tubes, changeable nibs, tool sets, etc. What surprised me was how good the ink flows and how well it holds up to layering. I was also somewhat surprised by the cost. It’s very competitively priced and performs better than most brands within its price range. There are discussions on various social media boards debating which pens are ACTUALLY the thinnest, despite what size they are labeled as being. That some are not really producing lines as thin as they say they can. I reviewed this last because I don’t want my familiarity with this product to influence how I evaluate other pens. I’ve still not changed my mind after the test. This is by far the best performance for the money IMHO. Nibs wear well and generally are quite durable. Ink flow is smooth across most paper types I use for sketching.

Staedler Pigment Liner used to be my go to brand when I was studying overseas. They feel nicer in the hand (my preference) compared to the Sakura Microns due to the textured surface (as opposed to the glossy surface on the Sakura). A big issue with Staedler pens is they tend to look more transparent when dry and that can be an annoyance to some artists. Generally the pen is pretty alright to use, but can cost a little more than average. I’m very curious, because maybe the artists that are stating this are mistaken. It’s possible that they think they are comparing their experience with different pens, but don’t realize they may be actually comparing ink spread on different papers.I’ve also recently discovered my fiancé has a set of Deleter Neopiko just as I was wrapping up this review. If time permits and if Parka doesn’t feel its too much work, I’ll update that review here at a later date. CONCLUSION

Uchida Marvy was a familiar brand that I’ve used and rejected. Ink quality was poor, pen didn’t feel robust in the hand. Despite the low cost, it just can’t match up to the consistency of the lines the slightly more expensive pens provide. Some artists swear that dispite pens being labled as being a size larger than other brands, they seem to draw lines even thinner. This is theorized by some to possibly be due to the ink spread/paper penetration, but I would love to see if this is true when lines are drawn on the same paper, side by side. Before moving on to each brand, I must confess I’ve used many of these brands over the years and have settled (quite happily) on the Mitsubishi Uni PIN after my own habits. I’ve also had very good results with Staedler Pigment Liner as well as Sakura Microns. With that, let’s move on to the review. Disclaimer These pens are relatively affordable, disposable, lightweight and fairly maintenance-free. Initial costs for a set of Fine-liner pens beats the more expensive Isograph/Rapidograph technical pen sets and makes it very attractive to switch. Fine-liners also don’t have the maintenance issues of Isograph pens, they don’t clog and you can toss it out if they dry up. Brand new pens see little ink flow problems and they are a pleasure to use on smoother paper. Most of the time the pigment inks are waterproof (up to a certain point) and will work well with highlighters, watercolor or markers. The inks are developed for fast drying to prevent accidental smudging.Both Copic multi-liner and Rotring Tikky surprised me. I’ve not used either before and they performed quite well. The Copic pens did better than some brands in the same price range. With the exception of a wobbly pen clip which is a fairly cosmetic issue, I had a great time drawing with the pen. I might switch over to Copics if I ever have difficulty finding the Uni Pin. Non-Thinning beginning, middle and end of a stroke - is it thin at the beginning (not a morning person) or does it start dying out after a short while. Fineliner pens are favoured by artists looking to create detailed and precise linework. Their plastic or fibre nibs are usually long and in metal casing so they can be used with a variety of sketching accessories like rulers and templates without catching. They are mostly disposable, although some like the FW Mixed Media Technical Marker Pen can be refilled. I’ve used the Zig Millennium previously and I liked how it was smooth and easy on the paper surfaces I use on a typical day. More recently Kuretake offered the ZIG Mangaka version. Zig Millenium supposedly uses a photo-safe, archival grade ink that can be used to mark photographs, while Zig Mangaka is lightfast (won’t fade easily with exposure to light) and smudge proof when used with Alcohol based markers and watercolor.