Review of the ACKERMAN PENS’ "PUMP PEN" from Linda Medley

Tools, Useful Information

Linda Medley, the artist and creator of the comic book Castle Waiting has posted an interesting review of the Ackerman Pens’ Pump Pen (One Fussy and Messy Little Pen! Is It Worth It?). Linda gives a detailed review that should be great reading for any artist interested in different drawing tools , especially those interested in classic dip/nib pens. She illustrates the review with examples she created with the pen for her current in progress comic book.

She also includes a section Make your on DIY Pump Pen.

You can read it HERE.

Sat. Open Studio April 21, noon – 4 p.m.

Events

Saturday Open Studio
Maybe it won’t be raining

Sat., April 21, noon-4 p.m., MCBA

We’ll be somewhere in the Book Arts Building.
If you don’t see us right away, ask the friendly person working in the bookstore. This is open studio time for all cartoonists, so come and hang out and draw. There’s plenty of room for everyone.

The third installment of the 12-part 144-page graphic novel challenge (pages 25 through 36!) will be happening during the open studio. Cheer on the page-crazed cartoonists. Or join in! Participants start drawing in the MCBA coffee shop at 8 a.m.
Minnesota Center for Book Arts
(Just down the street from Big Brain Comics)
1011 Washington Ave S, Suite 100
Minneapolis, MN 55415
Phone: 612-215-2520

Future Sat. Open Studio dates:
May 12
June 9
July 21
August 18

Jam in Minneapolis April 5th!

Events

The Minneapolis Cartoonist Conspiracy meets at 6:30 until 10:00 the first Thursday of every month at Diamond’s Coffee Shoppe in Northeast.

Generally, we draw collaborative “jam” comics, socialize and drink caffeinated beverages. Afterwords, we often have uncaffeinated beverages somewhere else.

The meetings are open to anyone who wants to draw with us, and the results are posted here sooner or later (and sometimes even printed).

Diamond’s Coffee Shoppe
1618 Central Avenue Northeast
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Bus info here.

Please spend some money at Diamond’s while you’re there, even if it is just a cuppa coffee… they are excellent hosts, and we wanna stay welcome there.

Big Time Attic is now officially hosting our monthly jam meetings at Diamond’s… they will be supplying us with a big old plate of pastries or something each month. Thanks fellas!

Scott McCloud in Minneapolis April 11th

Events

Scott McCloud’s Making Comics 50 State Tour is coming through Minneapolis April 11th… here’s the info.

April 11
Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis College of Art and Design
One day workshop
Not open to public

April 11
Minneapolis, MN
Dreamhaven Books
912 West Lake Street
Discussion & Signing
7:30 pm
Details | Directions

Speaking of McCloud’s Making Comics, it is the best book I’ve ever read on making comics… you’ll probably get a lot out of it whether you are a seasoned cartoonist or a beginner. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

The Fountain Pentel, and why I love Wet Paint

Cartooning Lessons, Tools, Useful Information

I’ve been using the Fountain Pentel as my pen of choice for many years, and I love them… The Fountain Pentel has a unique plastic nib which bends to draw a different thickness of line depending on how much pressure you apply. They are fun to use, and like no other pen I’ve ever experienced.

I actually bought a gross of them in the 90’s as I was afraid they would stop making them, as they were always a hard to find pen. My supply of this unique pen is dwindling.

Looking recently for replacements, I discovered that, horror of horrors, my premonition was accurate and they are no longer sold in the US… in fact, I couldn’t even find an image of the Fountain Pentels I use online, they are so out of date. Here’s one for you I just scanned:

Fortunately, in St. Paul we have Wet Paint, the world’s greatest art supply store. I contacted Tim Jennen, the marketing manager and buyer for Wet Paint (who also happens to be a member of the Conspiracy) and let him know about my dilemma.

Tim has a passion for hunting down obscure art materials, and he just emailed me some good news shortly after my inquiry:

Hi, Steve—

I’m still hoping to bring in the regular Fountain Pentel at some point, but I have brought in a different version of this pen that I found—the Tradio Fountain Pentel, which is refillable. Here’s some info on it:

Tradio Fountain Pentel TRJ50

Tradio Fountain Pentel

A fountain pen with the perfect combination of style and performance. A flexible plastic nib creates a variety of line widths, from thick to thin, depending on the angle and pressure applied. The innovative, see-thru free-flowing system delivers a consistent ink flow for smooth, effortless writing from the first stroke to the last. The ergonomic barrel design provides added comfort and writing control. Black ink. Uses Pentel’s MLJ20 refill in black.

TRJ50A-A


The pen is $10.00, but on sale during our Make Your Mark sale through the end of April at $8.50. The MLJ20 refill is $3.95.

The next time you’re in the store, check it out!

———————-

Tim Jennen, Marketing Manager/Buyer
Wet Paint: Artists’ Materials & Framing

Refillable! This is very exciting news to me, as my major gripe with the (disposable) Fountain Pentels I’ve used is that they fade with age… hopefully the ink in the cartridges is non-fading, or I can figure out a non-fading ink solution for this. I can’t wait to try one… I’m gonna try and make it over to Wet Paint this weekend, and I’ll give you a comparison to the disposable models once I try this out.

So now Wet Paint is apparently the only US supplier for two of the greatest cartooning tools ever created… the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen (which we’ve mentioned many times before) and the Fountain Pentel. I believe they are also the last place left that you can buy supplies for gocco screen printing machines, which are quite wonderful.

If you’re looking for a specific art supply and can’t find it anywhere, contacting Wet Paint is a good bet… they have an online store with their wares as well, so you don’t have to live in the Twin Cities to get a hold of these wonderful tools. Their prices are great too… we’re very lucky to have them in the Twin Cities.