Intuos4 replacement surface sheets

I was wondering if anyone would have any suggestions, or perhaps had found a material that works well for this?

As some of you probably already know, the new surface sheets they use on the wacom tablets now have textured surfaces, they say helps get the feel of traditional paper. It also works like fine grain sand-paper and wears down nubs a lot faster. I did do some research on line for this, and have seen wacom respond saying they only carry the textured surface sheet, but that you could replace it with a thin plastic or other material, as long as it's not too thick and the pen should still work.

My question is, does anyone have any suggestions on a good material, and have possibly had success with a certain type of material? I've only changed mine once, and did notice that the bottom of the old sheet was smooth and I had plans to use it. (Only needing to remove the adhesive around the border that is used to connect it to the tablet.) But with my on-going remodeling, I haven't been able to locate it? - I actually thought some thick velum might work, but thought to see if anyone else had maybe had some success before going out to get some, since you can't just buy a single sheet. ... What really sucks is that we actually had some at work that I think would have been perfect, or I could have at least tried it out. But it turns out when they moved our office to a different floor recently, some freakin' idiot decided to toss it thinking no one used it anymore since it had been sitting so long! There were two full boxes left, one 8 1/2 x 11 sheets, as well as 3' x 5' sheets. I really wish people wouldn't make choices with stuff they no absolutely nothing about.

Well, thanks in advance if anyone here has any additional info that might be useful.

Sorry Dave, When I had my intuos4 I always taped a piece of copy paper doubled up over the surface so when I worked it felt like I was drawing on paper...er because I was. I never touched the surface of my tablet with the pen.

Thanks. Yeah, I've heard other mentioned they do that as well. Might be why Wacom tried making the new sheet textured? But I do prefer the smooth sheets, like those that I had on my old Intuos3 wide. To me, I find the smoothness allows the pen to glide across easier. And even the textured ones smooth out over time, but I also notice they will also get fine scratches, which can influence the pen when it hits these. That's why I was looking for an alternative to paying wacom $20 bucks a sheet, when I really don't care for the feel until it's worn in.

Thanks again

I found this post where someone is doing what you were going to do with your old sheet and it looks like it worked out well for them they said to take off the adhesive with WD40 here's the link

kazky wrote:

i dont Dave, but i'm just wondering about the screen protectors for ipads etc, do they make them for touch screen monitors i wonder?

Sorry Kaz, must have been typing while your posted. I'm not sure? But will definitely look into it. But aren't they quite thin? I've never installed one myself, but think when my son covered one of the devices he has, it appeared to be very thin and delicate? The sheets they sell are quite sturdy, so I guess I was trying to get similar material. But again will check, maybe they sell it in thicker option?

Thanks again.

evilrobot wrote:

I found this post where someone is doing what you were going to do with your old sheet and it looks like it worked out well for them they said to take off the adhesive with WD40 here's the link

Thanks for the link, will check it out. But I would also not recommend using WD40, since I believe it has ingredients that will break down the plastic. I was planning to use Googone on mine, (which works great on any kind of glues) and will one I find the darn thing.

Had to check up on that out of personal curiosity. From the WD40 website:

wd40.com/faqs wrote:

What surfaces or materials are OK to use WD-40 Multi-Use Product on?

WD-40 Multi-Use Product can be used on just about everything. It is safe to use on metal, rubber, wood and plastic. It can also be applied to painted metal surfaces without harming the paint. Polycarbonate and clear polystyrene plastic are among the few surfaces on which to avoid using a petroleum-based product like WD-40 Multi-Use Product.

Thanks, it's amazing what a whisky, a beer and a bowl of chilli does to a mind that's been awake for 42 hours!!!