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Has anyone noticed that Sharpies now have shorter ink cartridges ? Probably not because most people just throw them away when the ink is used up.

I regularly use a Super Sharpie and have had no problems replacing the ink cartridges before but have now found to my horror that all the new Sharpies I have bought only have internal ink cartridges about 7.7cm long instead of the original 9.2cm. For those familiar with the Super Sharpie this means the cartridge isn't now long enough to ink the gimmick !

I suspect it is a ploy by the Sharpie manufacturers to get people to buy more Sharpies as the ink will run out quicker but I suspect it has gone largely unnoticed.

The Super Sharpie is absolutely vital to my close-up set. Does anyone know where I can get a stock of the longer cartridges from ?

Any chance of re-inking the existing longer refill?

Kevin Cann wrote:I suspect it is a ploy by the Sharpie manufacturers to get people to buy more Sharpies as the ink will run out quicker but I suspect it has gone largely unnoticed.

Sounds like it to me. Pretty poor show, though.

Mandrake wrote:Any chance of re-inking the existing longer refill?

Excellent suggestion, Mandrake. It is possible to buy ink refills for permanent markers (I don't think you can get Sharpie brand ones specifically). Some of these are "filling stations", in which you stand the pen, a bit like an old-fashioned inkwell, while others are simply bottles of ink (although I think you then have to pour the ink into something like an inkwell anyway!).

I suppose that the catches would be that a Sharpie might not fit a filling station precisely (but I bet you can work something out, as long as the station isn't for a broad or chisel tip) and maybe making sure you choose an ink that is made with the right type of solvent.

I have discovered this sneaky move recently myself. Cutting a spacer out of a dead refill fixes the problem but Kevin has recently found out that one of the 'special' Sharpies still uses a full size cartridge.

Problem solved for the time being. The Sharpie 'pro' 'industrial' markers have the old longer length cartridges. Just bought a pack of 12 from Amazon, so should last a while. However, I suspect it's only a matter of time before these also get replaced with shorter cartridges so I advise anyone with a Super Sharpie to stock up now !

Thanks for passing that on to us Kevin.

If anyone needs to buy Sharpies, TESCO are selling blister packs of five for £2.50, that's half usual price.

Mandrake wrote:If anyone needs to buy Sharpies, TESCO are selling blister packs of five for £2.50, that's half usual price.

Ooh .... ooh .... ooh .... *grabs coat and scarpers out the door*