I have been working on some pen and ink things. Here I have one of my first sketches under way. I am using a 0/.35 Koh-I-Noor sketch pen and black ink. Some how or the other the paper I grabbed from my pile is thin. Thought I got all that stuff out of here, but I guess not.

From time to time, as I am working along I keep getting tiny 'balls' of paper on the tip of my nib. I am guessing that as I work bits of the paper are getting saturated with ink and shreading off. This is not good paper for pen and ink.

My question is, what is a good weigh of paper for doing pen and ink work on?

Thanks,
Chris


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Neat drawing so far Chris. I like it a lot.

For pen and ink work you need a smooth, smooth surface with little in the way of tooth, depending on the method that you use. Stippling, for instance will be more forgiving to a little tooth but line work will snag your pen and can clog up the nibs which is a real pain, especially if you have an expensive pen.

One of the most commonly used papers for pen and ink work is Strathmore Bristol Smooth. You can also try illustration board which is very smooth but quite rigid and must be cut with a knife.

There are three grades of Strathmore Bristol:

Series 300 is student grade
Series 400 is quality, non-archival grade
Series 500 is professional, archival grade.

You can also try Paris Bleedproof Paper for Pens

Canson Universal Sketch pads are good for practice - it's a bit toothy for some tastes but it doesn't snag Rapidographs. The new pads with the "Improved surface" are the best.

If all else fails, there's always Hot Press watercolor paper, but its a bit expensive to experiment with though.

I hope you find something that suits you and your pen.

Thanks for the suggestions. I will try some of these different papers.

Chris