In order to help graffiti writers, artists and creatives up to date on the current supplies, Spray Planet likes to take the time to review the art and graffiti supplies we carry.  We feel that reviewing products like the UniPaint PX-30, Uni PX-20 and Uni PX-21 markers will help our customers make better purchasing decisions for their project, studio stock and an overall deeper knowledge of specific products.  Plus - we just like to play with Montana Spray Paint, Markers, spray caps and more!

A Brief History Of UniPAINT PX-20, PX-21 and PX-30 Markers

Since their creation by the Uni Mitsubishi Pencil Company, the Uni or UniPAINT marker has been recognized as one of the most reliable quality markers by industry, artists and creatives alike. By th explosion of graffiti e time graffiti culture exploded in the 1980’s, UniPAINT markers logically found their way into the hands of graffiti writers and, over time, became thee marker of choice by graffiti writers worldwide.

The graffiti lifestyle is somewhat nomadic, with many writers continually moving or travelling from city to city.  Because of the constant moving around coupled with the innate goal of leaving their mark where every they went, graffiti writers needed a handy, portable, and effective (in terms of longevity) marking tool. Enter UniPaint Markers. The UniPAINT Marker is discreet to carry, permanent, comes in bright colors including gold and silver and will mark on just about any surface. If there was ever a match made in heaven, it is the UniPaint Marker and Graffiti Writers.

Overview Of UniPaint Permanent Markers

The UniPAINT marker itself is a high grade oil-based permanent marker with an extremely durable hard, metal body. The paint is extremely opaque and capable of being applied to almost any surface including: metal, glass, ceramic, wood, paper, and plastic. UniPAINT markers come in 4 different lines with their own unique purpose. For this article we will be focusing on the three models most used by artists and graffiti writers: the PX-20; the PX-21; and the PX-30 (shown in different colors below). Each model is characterized by a unique tip or writing point which gives that marker model it’s own use scenarios.

Quick Rundown of UNI PX-30 Permanent Markers

The UniPaint or Uni PX-30 permanent marker is the model with the thickest marker tip and perhaps the model most favored by graffiti writers due to the solid, thick-lined tags it produces. A nice feature of the PX-30 marker is it has a replaceable felt, chisel tip if you wear it out or dry it out before you run out of ink.  Finally, UniPaint made sure to cover their bases with the PX-30 and gave it seven different opaque permanent paint colors: White, Silver, Yellow, Red, Gold, Blue, and Black.  The combinations of features makes the Uni PX-30 just an all around solid go to marker for any application.

Field Test: The chisel tip on the PX-30 produces solid tags

Quick Rundown of UNI PX-20 Permanent Marker

The UniPaint PX-20 marker is next in line to the Uni PX-30 as the favored marker amongst graffiti writers. Unlike the PX-30, the felt tip on the UniPaint PX-20 is rounded and slightly smaller: about 2-2.5 mm wide in diameter. While capable in most situations, the Uni PX-20 permanent marker is really ideal for catching “landmark” tags on more discreet surfaces. Furthermore if you are into stickers and slaps, it is a perfect marker for any stickers going up in the street as the paint is fade-proof and extremely resistant to the outdoor elements.  The UniPaint PX-20 comes in 12 colors total including: Black, white, silver, gold, red, blue, green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, and light blue.

Field Test: The PX-20 is perfect for catching landmark tags

UNI PX-21 Permanent Marker

Finally, we come to the UniPaint PX-21 permanent paint marker. The Uni PX-21 is not a marker typically used by graffiti writers in the streets but is a solid marker in any creative’s supply box. One of the main reasons it is not great for tags in the streets is due to the PX-21’s extremely fine point - only about 1mm in size. The felt tip doesn’t withstand rough surfaces, so we recommend saving this for adding fine detail in blackbooks, canvases, and stickers. Like the UniPaint PX-20, the Uni PX-21 comes in 12 colors total including: Black, white, silver, gold, red, blue, green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, and light blue.

The extra fine tip on the PX-21 is ideal for use in blackbooks

UniPaint Permanent Marker Features Recap     

Here are some of the key features of UniPAINT Permanent markers:

• Portable; easily fits in pocket
• High quality permanent opaque paint
• Lightfast aka Fade-proof
• Water-resistant
• Easy to use
• Smooth valve and tip for application
• Pumping “or juicing” of tip required to get paint flowing

Overall Pros of UniPaint Permanent Markers        

• Writes on ANYTHING
• Replaceable tips
• No drips

Overall Cons of UniPaint Permanent Markers

• Very difficult to remove if it gets on skin or clothes
• Best if used in ventilated areas as high grade paint may cause dizziness/headache

Spray Planet UniPaint PX-30, PX-20, PX21 Final Ruling

These days there are tons of markers targeting graffiti writers, artists and creatives. While many may be very nice markers, very few have the history of quality to back them up that UniPaint markers do. Beyond the quality and history, most markers that are close the standard of UniPaint Permanent Markers, tend to be almost double the price of UniPaint markers. Having experienced enough leaky, watery, weak valved, fading markers to last a lifetime, we can assure you that you will NEVER have those problems with a UniPaint marker.  Whether you need the chisel tip of the Uni PX-30 marker, the rounded medium tip of the UniPaint PX-20 marker or the fine details of the Uni PX-21 marker you won’t be disappointed and by adding it to your artist supply box – you will have added a marker that will perform any time you go to grab it.