I posted this on the Product Design Forums but I still don’t think i’ve found what i’m looking for.
I’d like to find a Biro like pen with the sticky ink (not wet ink like a rollerball) but in colour BLACK not a very dark purple (that is supposed to be black). Could anyone recommend a pen that i could try?
I.e. a like these cheap Bic pens (but Black - as black as your average fineliner):
I buy the black version of the “bic round stic” by the gross… It’s my drawing tool of choice. It’s not sold in the UK.
http://www.bicworld.com/inter_en/bdd/product_writing.asp?product_id=130
Does it look black? Or better than the usual Biro’s?
no, they are the same dark indigo type black you are talking about.
have you considered gel ink pens?
Damn. I just ordered half a million of those pens in bulk from the USA.
Yeah i’ve tried all the others - i must have got about 200 different types of ‘black’ pens here.
I disagree, I just laid a bunch of ink down and did a gradation on bright white paper stock. It’s just as black and actually darker than fresh sharpie marker ink when viewed at an angle without glare. The color temp appears to match graphite.
Obviously ballpoint ink is going to be glossier, which can give it a warm-metallic glaze at the wrong angle vs. the colder reflection you’d get off graphite.
Try a Uniball Power Tank or a Zebra Jimnie Z.
Both have fairly dark ink (much darker than your standard Bic), don’t skip, and come in .7 nib sizes. They’re the best 
a quick/sloppy test
the scan may not be completely representative of viewing in person ofcourse
-in person the bic looks cooler to me than the tul
-the pilot also appears a little warmer in person
should be noted the prismacolor premeir fine line marker used may have been
running a little dry
Awesome!
IDiot, could you add some variable-pressure gradation samples too?
Obviously the Hi-Tec, prismacolor and sharpie can’t do that, and why so many designers prefer the Bic.
I’ll get right on that
I have also been informed there is a rather pricey uniball that uses gel ink, is very similar to the Pilot Hi-Tec C’s and is pressure sensitive
How does that one differ from the clear plastic Bic Pens?
-J->
