Type of device* : Wacom Intuos Pro Tablet
Brand and version of the device: Wacom Intuos Pro Medium Tablet
System** : Windows
When I upgraded my Wacom tablet a few years ago… the buzz was that the nibs were wearing out much much quicker than previously. The claim seemed to be wrt the tablet surface or something. I was dubious but still ordered a bunch of extra nibs.
Well… I’m still using the original nib in my Slim Pen… SMH…
Others?
For example from Reddit from 2 years ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/wacom/comments/u7uiwd/are_wacom_pen_nibs_supposed_to_wear_down_this_fast/
On my first Intuos I replaced them a few times because it had a rougher surface, for my pro just one or two times and for my Cintiq not a single time but I also don’t draw that much anymore.
I’ve been meaning to pull the trigger and buy a new tablet. Do you recommend that one? What’s the feel on pen to tablet. The Huion I’m currently using almost feels like drawing on paper. If I do change I want that similar type of feeling. Thanks.
I love the Wacom tablets … been using them for years…the more recent ones are more like paper but nothing even close to the feel of paper … I’m a graphic artist as well.
Just ordered one. Thanks for the info.
Also depends on the nib, there is one that is supposed to emulate paper but for me it felt like drawing with a worn out felt tip pen and then I thought: I’m a digital artist, why do I try to emulate paper feel anyway? And I have like 10 different kinds of paper here for when I want to do traditional again, all feel different, also depending on the brush/pen I use.
I haven’t been using Wacom for too long yet, and I got it second-hand (Intuos Pro Large), so perhaps the surface has already smoothed a bit. I replaced the nib right away (I’m using a standard black nib currently).
So far I haven’t seen any wear, but I changed my pen setting to softer by a notch, and I tend to rotate the pen around to even the nib wear (I hardly use the pen buttons). Perhaps the wear only gets bad if you’re used to pressing down the pen hard, which isn’t my style.
@Bobrowsdower As for Wacom, again, my experience is very limited, but I think the magic really is in the pen itself. The Pro Pen 2 is really something else. Compared to Huion’s Pen Tech 3 pens (PW517, PW550), the Wacom nib is thinner, and the pressure response and tilt are so much better and consistent. Honestly, as a Huion long-term user, the only real thing they are visibly worse at is that jittery pressure and tilt. For example, pen tracking is excellent in both Huion and Wacom.
So yeah, Wacom is very expensive, but it’s worth it, at least their Pro models. You can really feel it’s a step up from the other brands. It’s kind of mind blowing when you realize Intuos Pro (PTH-860) was released in 2017.
Thanks for the info. I’ve been using Huion from the beginning. Its been reliable so im not going to throw it out just yet. Ive got my Wacom coming Friday so ill let you guys know how they compare.
Yep, let us know! I’m on Windows 11 and it wasn’t a completely plug & play experience, but after tweaking a few settings to my liking, it’s been perfect.
Just for grins I took a close look at my black nib (on my slim pen) and it definitely is/was worn ate a pretty good angle leaving a very sharp point. Replaced it with a new one and it definitely made a difference in how it feels/operates. I was almost shocked … will continue my current work using it and see if it makes any real difference or makes painting easier, etc…
I’ve used two Wacom tablets, a small bamboo and a large Intuos 4.
Tablet size and painting style definitively influence the rate nibs wear off, but no matter what I’ve noticed wear on nibs from both models. I’ve never used one to the stub, mine tend to get round if not nearly flat and that’s enough to thrown my sense of pressure off besides interfering with my grip.
Something else about nibs and pens though… I think everyone has dealt with nibs wear at some point, but have you ever dealt with nibs squeaking? 
I’m not sure if it’s something mechanical about the pen – which is very old –, something that’s out of alignment or whatever, I only know last year my Intuos pen started to make a noise that drives me mad. A tiny amount of lubricant oil on nib’s side applied with care to not cover anything else makes it go away, but the noise always returns in a couple of months.
That’s a neat solution, applying the lube.
I didn’t have the squeaking problem, but I had an old Huion pen model where the nib was somehow catching on the pen frame when pressing down, which affected the pressure reading. It was a bit better after lubing, but still I eventually upgraded to a newer pen.
Interesting about the squeak! Need to turn your music up! 
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