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What you should know about Pentel vs Tombow Fudenosuke brush pens

By Heidi Grace

14,185 views

Here's my honest review of the Pentel Brush Sign Pens vs the Tombow Fudenosuke brush pens - two small brush pens that are very popular for calligraphy and brush lettering! The pens are very similar, but there are some important differences you should know about and I talk about those in this video.

Used/mentioned in the video (affiliate links):

Pentel Brush Sign Pens (24 color set): https://amzn.to/3yZGJt6
Pentel Pigment Ink Pen: https://amzn.to/476dIbH

Tombow Fudenosuke Brush Pens (2-pack): https://amzn.to/4g7jttI
Tombow Fudenosuke Brush Pens (Colored set): https://amzn.to/3MmgDUi

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Chapters:

Intro 0:00
Pentel Brush Sign pens 0:45
Tombow Fudenosuke 1:11
Size 2:13
Colors 3:19
Ease of use 4:24
Transitions 6:55
Best for calligraphy beginners 9:53
Blending 11:25
Bleed-through 13:14
Wrap up 13:43

20 Comments

@byheidigrace Creator 2 years ago Pinned

Have you used the Pentel Brush Sign Pens or Tombow Fudenosuke brush pens? Which do you like better?

@wanderfulwrits 2 years ago

I’ve used both sets of pens! I like the Pentels slightly better because of the brighter colours and blending with watercolours. The Tombow Fudenosuke has the firmness in the hard tips which helps my calligraphy feel steady. Soothing to watch your handwriting and calligraphy, these are pretty lovely Heidi! Appreciate the synopsis 🎨

@StevenCalwas 2 years ago

FYI: Kuretake also makes fude brush pens, including a fine point which is thinner and stiffer than the Tombow, Pentel, or Zebra pens.

@artisto1010pasha 2 months ago

Excellent ❤ thank you.

@shirleymccarthy3634 1 year ago

This really helped in deciding which pens I need to use while learning calligraphy and lettering. I really appreciate how you explained the differences between the pens, while making the transitions from thick to thin lines. Thank you.

@katoutside6664 1 year ago

Thank you so much!!!
I picked up the 2 Tombow black set not knowing what I was in for. I fell in love.
I was hoping for similar in some vintage or fall colors. I hope they come out with more.
Thank you for the video. You are quite a talent! Your lettering and voice over 5 stars!

@marypickert2908 1 year ago

This is a great review! Thank you so much!

@chewycashew 2 months ago

Your video has been a year old but it helped me a lot with deciding which to purchase since I'm on a budget. Thanks!

@shelicosmetics3278 8 months ago

thank you so much

@MathVideo678 1 year ago

Thank you for the comparison.

@leannet3854 1 year ago

Helpful to know! Thks.

@JordanLikeSherbet 1 year ago

Great video! Thanks

@donnamurphey6886 1 year ago

Thank you great review. I’m a beginner so can wait to try the tomboy pens😊

@AquamarineLego 2 years ago

Your lettering is gorgeous!!

@missagallagher 10 months ago

I find the Pentel really good for left hand lettering. I use both Tombow and Pentel and find the Pentel dries quick enough, so I don’t have it smudge as I write. I find with the Tombow, that I have more control over writing, it just takes a minute to dry but has a nice shiny finish to it. I use between 100-120gsm paper usually one specific for markers so it doesn’t ruin the pen. Using 120 I’ve found it’s less likely to be seen through the other side of the paper.
The pad I’ve most recently bought is amazing, it’s from Amazon I’m sure it’s their own one. (it’s 120gsm marker paper and has a picture of a bird on the front, highly recommend!) ❤❤

@alexroldan45 9 months ago

This is such a great review, very detailed. I know now I like the pentel ones, but I’m afraid they might bleed through tomoe river paper. I’ve mostly only seen people use the tombow ones on tomoe paper. Anyone here tried the pentel ones on this paper?

@misslayer999 2 years ago (edited)

I have the pentel pens and i LOVE them. They were cheaper than the tombows and better/bigger color selection. Another good way to make sure you're not getting the wrong ones (because they look just like the felt tip versions), is they should say Pentel Touch brush pens. I was able to get a 12 pack and then a 6 pack but I wish I would have just gotten the whole 24 pack to begin with. I've only been using them for a month and my hand lettering has gotten so much better since. I had no idea you could watercolor with them so I'm definitely going to be trying that! I also have the zebra fude brush pens which are very much like the tombows because they have harder/finer tips and softer/bigger ones.

@carolyngurney5376 1 year ago

I use the Tombow Fudenosuke hard-tip brush pens on Canson XL Marker paper for calligraphy.

@pamstrauch4372 2 years ago

Where is the link you mentioned in the video?

@davidhunden120 1 year ago

Greetings. I really enjoyed your video. I am curious about the paper you used to demonstrate the Pentel vs Tombow Fudenosuke style pens. Which brand and type of paper did you use for this demonstration? Thank you in advance.