Nibs for pen/tablet

[marty2010]

I have read in product review for Wacom pen/tablet that the pen nibs wear out quickly and it is hard to find replacements.

So, prior to purchase I would like to know from a current user about NIBS:
Are they easily available?
How long do they last, on average?
What is the cost?

[LeviFiction]

Nibs...well. That would depend on the tablet probably. Then again all nibs might be useable in all pens. Best to as Wacom themselves on that one.

The only nibs packs I found online were for the Intuos a pack of 10 costs around 10 dollars. So at three months each that's over 2 years worth of nibs for 10 dollars. It's not bad. And nibs are very easy to replace.

How quickly they wear out? That would depend more on how much you use it and how much you abuse the pen.

It's been about three months of on and off use, no more than a few hours every week, and my nib has begun to develop a flat side. If I don't want this to start effecting my drawing I'll have to change it out soon. But in a search I've found people using them for a few months before too much wear and tear, depending on how much pressure they apply over time, to close to a year. Again it's all going to vary depending on the product and how you use it.

I doubt many other tablets would be any better. The nib isn't anything truly important in the sense of technology. It's just a long plastic stick that is used to hit a pressure sensor in the pen itself. So I would imagine other tablets do about the same. But other tablets tend to require batteries in their pens.

[marty2010]

Levi,

Thanks for the detailed answers.

It all sounds good to me.
Very reasonable.

I may try the ($69 US) Wacom Pen and Tablet to get started (it comes with Corel Printer Essentials 4).

[LeviFiction]

That's a good one. I got the Bamboo Pen and Touch so that I could get the 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity and the eraser. But the eraser only makes a difference in Photoshop Elements. With Paint Shop pro it doesn't care which end I'm using. I never use the touch functions. And it's only 40 dollars more. So I imagine the pen usage is just as good.

[marty2010]

Levi,

Thanks for the extra information.
I wanted the "Bamboo Pen and Touch" also but it came with Elements .. which I did not need.
So I settled for the Pen (just purchased) which came with Corel Printer Essentials 4.
I will give it a try tonight.

[marty2010]

Just a follow up.
The Bamboo Pen/Tablet came with 3 extra NIBs.
Works great but there is a learning curve .. for sure!

I will later check with Wacom about replacements and the cost.