Good brand of paint pens for enclosure?(Artistro sucks)

[drgonzo1969]

what brand of paint pens do you guys use on enclosures? I have been using these Artistro brand ones i bought on amazon but they are garbage. the paint is watery and the colors not accurate. red is pink. gold is just yellow. the white doesnt work at all. the paint just looks like spilt milk. do you guys have any recommendations?

 

[BuddytheReow]

I bought these from Amazon as well but more as an experiment. Yes, they are finicky at times. I always make sure to shake them really good and then test on some scrap paper to make sure the paint is flowing (I literally have to mash the tip into the scrap paper to get it to start). I wouldn’t call these garbage just yet. I do have to go over my work a few times to clean up all my lines, but it doesn’t bother me that much. OR, maybe these ARE crap and I have no idea what good ones are, lol. A box was $10-12. You’ll probably have better luck walking into a craft store and trying individual ones out.

 

[Barry]

I've had best luck with POSCA and Sharpie.

Note: With any of them you got to shake them vigorously for a minute or two!

 

[szukalski]

Posca were great for me.

 

[Erik S]

I bought a set of Posca because there seemed to be a lot of pedal builders using them. They are expensive. They flow nice and look good, but they scratch off pretty easy. I top coat with an aerosol clear coat, but I wish there was a pen I could use where I didn't have to do that.

The Posca red is also kinda pink too. I wish it was more red. My set came with two white pens. One works pretty good if it's shaken up enough, the other one just laid down clear-ish liquid. Maybe it just needs a lot more shaking though.

 

[benny_profane]

Posca are water-based and require a fixative on nonporous substrates. Non-water-based markers (e.g., Sakura’s pen touch) will be more robust and not require a fixative after curing. Essentially, look for anything in use in the street art scene if you want something that is permanent.

EDIT: This enclosure is posca markers with a satin gloss clear coat.

 

[DeadAirMD]

I've used Aroic pens from Amazon. They are true to the colors advertised. In my experience, all paint pens are a bitch to use, they all run, and run horribly. Half the pen ends up on a test piece of paper/cardboard. I always have a scrap piece of cardboard and always draw on that before doing any lines on the enclosure......and I still have issues and have to go back over stuff after it dries. In the end, all the pedals I make are only for me, so I'm more than happy with how they turn out.

 

[Laundryroom David]

I've had best luck with POSCA and Sharpie.

Note: With any of them you got to shake them vigorously for a minute or two!

I’ve had pretty good luck with Sharpie oil based paint pens but they are, like all of them, a pain in the ass sometimes. Blow outs of solvent from time to time. The occasional paint GLOMP. Lol

 

[benny_profane]

I’ve had pretty good luck with Sharpie oil based paint pens but they are, like all of them, a pain in the ass sometimes. Blow outs of solvent from time to time. The occasional paint GLOMP. Lol

Have you ever tried Sakura Permapaque? Similar feel to Sharpie (felt-tipped marker), but better quality.

 

[finebyfine]

I’ve had pretty good luck with Sharpie oil based paint pens but they are, like all of them, a pain in the ass sometimes. Blow outs of solvent from time to time. The occasional paint GLOMP. Lol

Big fan of these myself. The red color is very pink though and the testor’s brand red pen is imho better. Rest of the colors are a++

When I used to do graffiti (we called it “writing graffiti” but I’m a grown ass man now) we'd make our own paint pens all the time. All you need is alkyd / oil based paint, a paint thinner for oil based paints, and an empty paint marker. You can find all at any art or hobby store. Hardware stores are worse about actually saying what kind of paint shit is but the outdoor section is where to start (pass on anything that says "cleans up with water"). Depending on the viscosity of the paint you probably want 1/3 thinner 2/3 paint. With empty markers it's worth springing for the top shelf ones unfortunately. Just a huge difference in quality. For extra graffiti street cred top off the markers with some brake fluid so it'll etch surfaces even if the paint gets blasted off.

Krink and Molotow are as far as I'm aware, the gold standards for graffiti and would work here.

I believe @Bricksnbeatles ? corresponded with Mr. Vex about enclosure painting and has insights galore.

 

[benny_profane]

Krink and Molotow are as far as I'm aware, the gold standards for graffiti and would work here.

Yep. Flow may be an issue for pedals since many of these products are designed for larger nibs.

 

[finebyfine]

Yep. Flow may be an issue for pedals since many of these products are designed for larger nibs.

Plus they're usually thinner -- viscosity, not nibs -- (I think? been a while since I even thought about this sort of stuff) than regular paint pens. Gotta get the drips!

 

[benny_profane]

Plus they're usually thinner -- viscosity, not nibs -- (I think? been a while since I even thought about this sort of stuff) than regular paint pens. Gotta get the drips!

Haha yep. I think Krink may be super drippy? I think I remember Krink recently having a bit of a moment in big panel contemporary art pieces.

 

[Silver Blues]

Echoing the Posca recommendation, I've been experimenting with them lately and they lay down fantastic lines. Before that I was using Molotow markers which I have found to be nice.

 

[Smrtokvitek]

Has anyone tried the classic Edding? They have even an "industry grade" series which should withstand a lot.

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[p_wats]

I've started ditching the pens and just using the giant refills of paint you can buy for them (I think I have Posca or Molotow) and an artist's dip/caligraphy nib instead. Much more control and less waste (no globs or shaking needed).