A review of Staedtler’s Pigment Liners

As a fan of both writing and (amateur) drawing, it was only a matter of time until I added the highly regarded Staedtler Pigment Liners to my stationery collection.

The Pigment Liners are available in black and a wide variety of colours. I knew I wanted the black fineliners for outlining purposes but, with 11 point widths and a chisel tip to choose from, I couldn’t decide on which sizes to try.

In the end, I opted for the handy flip-top six-pack, which contains the following nib sizes:

• 0.05 mm
• 0.1 mm
• 0.2 mm
• 0.3 mm
• 0.5 mm
• 0.8 mm

Each pen is 10 mm in diameter and 165 mm in length when posted, and they feature a metal clip for convenience when on the go.

Having read about the Staedtler Pigment fineliners for years, I knew that these pens were seen as the industry leaders when it comes to liners, so it is great to finally have the time to give them my undivided attention.

Firstly, I want to outline some of the best features of these fineliner pens.

One of my favourite aspects is the long metal tip protecting the nib, which means these pens can be used with rulers, stencils, and templates. This is handy for artists and invaluable for graphic designers, architects, interior designers, and others working in the design industry or creating technical drawings.

Another fantastic pro is the pigment ink, which is indelible, waterproof and lightfast. This means your writing and illustrations aren’t budging for anything – even if you use watercolour paints with them!

The only exception to this rule is if you draw or write on drawing film; the ink can then be erased as you desire.

The pigment ink is also gloriously deep in its colour intensity.

For those of you who forget to recap your pens, or lose the caps altogether, you’ll be delighted to know that these writing tools can be left uncapped for a whole 18 hours without drying up. Very forgiving!

Finally, if you’re a frequent traveller, the Staedtler Pigment Liner has automatic pressure alteration, making it 100 per cent flight-proof. Goodbye leak worries!

Below you can see each pen tested on paper.

The pens are enjoyable to use and move smoothly across the paper, creating an even line every time. Of course, the larger sizes feel smoother than the thinner ones and are, therefore, incredibly pleasing to write with.

For an artist, using a combination of the point sizes would no doubt provide unparalleled intricacy. Personally, I’m no artist, but I’m enjoying creating with these pens and feel that they make my sketches look a lot better than they do in pencil.

The ink dries very quickly, and so it makes a nice change to be able to erase the pencil lines without fear of smudges, too.

Overall, I can’t honestly find one con for these pens. If you enjoy writing, sketching, or drawing, or work in design or illustration, then you should certainly give them a go if you haven’t already.

You can explore the entire Staedtler fine liner range on The Pen Company’s website.