How to make a pen lanyard for the XP-Pen PA6 pen

This is how to make a pen lanyard for the XP-Pen PA6 pen, which is the new battery-less type that comes with the Artist 22 (2nd Generation, 2021) ‘draw on the screen’ pen-monitor.

1. Get the top from a black BIC crystal-type biro pen. These are very common. They fit ideally, and have a hole in the top.

2. Find an old pair of thin round boot laces, with the ends still tightly crimped in tubes. Not thick or flat laces. They must be thin and round enough to fit through the air-hole at the top of a BIC pen-top.

3. Insert one of the crimped ends of the laces into the top of the BIC pen-top. Wiggle and ease it through.

4. Bring the lace right through and then tie off the lace-ends at a length that will suit you at your creative work.

5. Carefully press the BIC pen-top (now ‘laced’) into the top of the XP-Pen PA6 pen, after first ensuring that the protruding lace fits flush against the flat part of the pen top, and that the BIC pen-clip is on the opposite side from this.

6. The fit is very snug, and is usefully aided by the compressed bit of lace.

In this way the precious PA6 (you only get one, not two) can be made far more secure against dropping, but not so secure that the lanyard cannot be removed for pen storage.

As always, never twist or pull hard on the top part of the pen. Ease the new lanyard on and off.

Save the other lace, as you’ll want it again when you get a second backup pen ($26 at present, USA only).

A black cap and a yellow-black Doc Martens type lace suits the matt black of the PA6. But if you want to get swizzly with the colours, BICs are of course available in many colours (blue, green, red, maybe more), as are thin round boot laces.

If you are a creative who has a pen-to-mouth habit, then with this arrangement you could perhaps occasionally have a small nibble without damaging the PA6. But chewing and drooling is going to be too risky. Also risky because of its general kitten-tastic attractiveness to playful cats — keep the other lace handy to distract them from the precious pen lanyard.

In total this DIY lanyard should cost no more than an eBay one, even if you have to buy the items from a regular store.