High end Chinese pens?

[RocketRyan]

Happy new year to all. Does anyone know of any high end Chinese pen makers? To be honest what you can get under £5 is pretty impressive, so I'm wondering what you could get for the price of a Sheaffer prelude for example.

[KrazyIvan]

Kaigelu and Duke seem to be better built than your typical wares from Jinhao and the like. There is still quality control issues though.

[RocketRyan]

I had looked at a kaigelu, I had assumed it was Australian due to the kangaroo on the nib. I actually quite like them.
Is that as good as it gets from China?

[KrazyIvan]

I think Wancher is Japanese but made in China. I have one of their Lamy 2K (Wancher 807) wannabe pens and a Delta look alike (Wancher Naranja). They both seem better than any Chinese pen I have owned. The Naranja is turned acrylic and the 807 is brushed aluminum. The Naranja will take #6 nibs so I replaced the stock nib with a Goulet 1.1mm. The 807 does not seem to be replacable but looks a bit Lamy Safari from what I can tell. The clear feed on the 807 is a plus.

The Delta simulation:

https://c6.staticflickr.com/8/7289/8739461349_d94965ea65_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/ejh2o6)Wancher Naranja Fountain Pen (https://flic.kr/p/ejh2o6) by Ivan Romero (https://www.flickr.com/photos/ivan_romero/), on Flickr

and the Lamy wannabe:

https://inktronics.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/photo_2012-12-22_09-57-49_pm-scaled1000.jpg

[dr.grace]

From my experience, if you're looking to step up, you'd be better advised to look at Japanese pens.

[penwash]

These look high-end enough to me. Anyone have one from this brand?

http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/7cgAAOSwstxVN-uH/s-l1600.jpg
http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/8ikAAOSwv0tVN-ub/s-l1600.jpg

DISCLAIMER: Images linked from an ebay ad (eBay item number: 231540392934). No connection with ebay, nor the seller.

[Barry Gabay]

Years ago, I had a Duke model, can't recall which, with an 18K nib. It was an excellent writer. Clean, consistent, and smooth flow. Later traded it because it felt too heavy for long periods of writing.

[RocketRyan]

Not really stepping up so to speak, more curiosity if such a thing existed.

[Scrawler]

I like the look of that Wancher Naranja. I have just done a search but cannot find them for sale.

[RocketRyan]

I did the same.

[KrazyIvan]

I like the look of that Wancher Naranja. I have just done a search but cannot find them for sale.


I did the same.

I know they had other colors, a brown/amber but the exact model name was never clear to me. The eBay sale just called it Wancher Naranja. It was from a seller engeika but I have not seen the model in a while.

[Scrawler]

I did the same.

I know they had other colors, a brown/amber but the exact model name was never clear to me. The eBay sale just called it Wancher Naranja. It was from a seller engeika but I have not seen the model in a while.

I have bought from Engeika in the past. It it the exact size shape and colour that you have posted here that I like.

[matteob]

There is a nice pen with a blue cap called a Hua Hong that a guy on FPN managed to buy but they seem as rare as hen's teeth. The Kaigelu looks like a nice pen but people say it is a bit too heavy and unbalanced so have resisted buying one as yet.

[KrazyIvan]

There is a nice pen with a blue cap called a Hua Hong that a guy on FPN managed to buy but they seem as rare as hen's teeth. The Kaigelu looks like a nice pen but people say it is a bit too heavy and unbalanced so have resisted buying one as yet.

The Kaigelu is only unbalanced if you post the cap, which I'm not sure why people do it. It does not post very well.

[mmd]

There are a couple of people doing custom handmade pens and one of my friends had very good experience. Really beautiful works and fully made to your preference. You can specify the nib unit, the section width, weight, length and they will make a dream pen for you. They also use a wide variety of materials like ebonite, precious wood, ox horn, bamboo and even some minerals. Normally it's going to cost ~$150 and obviously it's not cheap. However, considering the cost of materials, full customiaztion and time commitment, I think it's very reasonable if you compare it with pretty much any custom penmaker in the US. And their "production line" costs like $30.

[dr.grace]

There are a couple of people doing custom handmade pens and one of my friends had very good experience. Really beautiful works and fully made to your preference. You can specify the nib unit, the section width, weight, length and they will make a dream pen for you. They also use a wide variety of materials like ebonite, precious wood, ox horn, bamboo and even some minerals. Normally it's going to cost ~$150 and obviously it's not cheap. However, considering the cost of materials, full customiaztion and time commitment, I think it's very reasonable if you compare it with pretty much any custom penmaker in the US. And their "production line" costs like $30.

link?

[Scrawler]

There are a couple of people doing custom handmade pens and one of my friends had very good experience. Really beautiful works and fully made to your preference. You can specify the nib unit, the section width, weight, length and they will make a dream pen for you. They also use a wide variety of materials like ebonite, precious wood, ox horn, bamboo and even some minerals. Normally it's going to cost ~$150 and obviously it's not cheap. However, considering the cost of materials, full customiaztion and time commitment, I think it's very reasonable if you compare it with pretty much any custom penmaker in the US. And their "production line" costs like $30.

I feel that information such as this, which could stimulate the acquisitive desires of members here, should be followed up with sufficient detail that they can evaluate this service for themselves.

[jar]

I did a comparison of the Chinese made Sheaffer Prelude and the FT Madison Sheaffer Prelude and frankly the Chinese version was made to the same standards as the one from FT Madison and also came with a gold nib where the Ft Madison had a steel one.

[KrazyIvan]

I did a comparison of the Chinese made Sheaffer Prelude and the FT Madison Sheaffer Prelude and frankly the Chinese version was made to the same standards as the one from FT Madison and also came with a gold nib where the Ft Madison had a steel one.

Touché. Lol:applause:

[mmd]

I haven't tried it out myself so I really can't provide "sufficient" detail. Also, the pens used a lot of "sensitive" materials like precious minierals, horn (animal product) so according to my experience, it's going to be a pain to export/import these pens. Cost of insured shipping + very likely custom fees + moderate likelihood of border examination make me feel like I need to try it out myself before stimulating your acquisitive desires further. I just know this recently and I'm already experimenting with the shipping and will definitely try it out soon. For now, I can provide you some "stock pictures". Another interest thing is that the production line pens are actually a crowd-funded project. I also heard they product high quality papers by themselves but I'm not 100% sure about the "produced by themselves" part.

First production line with I think is #5 sized nibs, cost like ~$35 including a leather pouch
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=29272&d=1484330674
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=29273&d=1484330684
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=29274&d=1484330694
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=29275&d=1484330705

Custom works: $100~$200 with steel #5 nibs
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=29260&d=1484270563
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=29261&d=1484270569
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=29262&d=1484270575

[KrazyIvan]

Okay, but where are you getting this information from?

[RocketRyan]

They all look pretty cool actually.

[mmd]

Okay, but where are you getting this information from?

My friend told me and they have a small online store on taobao.com . My friend also mentioned some other pen makers but I just cannot recall at this moment.

[mmd]

They all look pretty cool actually.

They are amazing works and this maker definite have huge potential considering the fact that they are crowd-funded for just several months. I'm a little worried about the import/export and the nib. #5 seems a little small and I hope they could make #6 Jowo threaded pens. I will definitely "smuggle" one of their pens when I come back to China if I could resist purchasing one in the next three months.

[dr.grace]

They do look very interesting. Maybe you could communicate to the seller via your friend that there might be a lot of interest in western countries, and they could sell via Amazon or eBay, or even on fpgeeks and FPN.

China has such a huge developing consumer base, many of whom have experience with fountain pens, so IMO it's surprising that the big pen companies generally have such mediocre designs.

[matteob]

Those last pens do look the business. If you have contact with them and there is interest maybe a group buy could be set in motion?

[mmd]

Be patient people. I can contact the seller and I'm also happy to help with the shipping/handling, which I have a better idea now. The shipping from China to US will be $12 for the first 1kg and $3 for every 500g afterwards. It takes approximately 7 days to arrive and I could possibly do the distribution afterwards. But before all of that, I need to make sure the pens are as good as I was told.

[RocketRyan]

Fingers crossed.

[sidpost]

Interesting. I'm curious about the Chinese pens as well.

[RocketRyan]

We wait with baited breath.

[Z-Tab]

The red/black combo and unusual cap dimensions on that last pen are quite striking. I would also be interested in a pen like that with a #6 nib unit or threaded to accept Pelikan M800 or (even better) M1000 units.

[RachelP]

I just came across this thread so I hope it's not tool late to reply. Quality Chinese pens are a favorite subject of mine. I find myself often annoyed when people assume all Chinese pens are cheap knock-offs of American or European pens. there are quite a few Chinese pen companies that do wonderful pens, usually along with the cheaper sort, but either way, most are their own styles and designs. The premier Chinese company is probably Hero of Shanghai. Very wide range of models, including knock-offs of the Parker 51, one model of which has a very nice gold nib. But they also have independent models, including an elegant blue marbled pen, with an excellent soft gold nib that gives some nice line variation and is always smooth. I had a wonderful gold nib 660, now almost impossible to find for sale. It had one of the most flexible modern nibs I've come across. I gave it to a friend when we were in china together. Kaigelu does all levels, including some with gold nibs. I had a very nice one, with an unusual vertical striped cap and a striking gold clip. Soft gold nib. This one I gave to a friend who had sold off many of his pens to help a neighbor who had hit hard times. I found that so remarkable i sent him three good quality pens. I also have an elegant marbled Duke, again with a soft 14k nib. Possibly my favorite quality Chinese pen is a Picasso, called "Dream of Maya." Striking cap based on a Picasso painting, gleaming black barrel, and a soft gold nib. It also came in a gorgeous piano black box that I have pressed into other service (too nice to simply put away). Thanks for reading.

[RocketRyan]

It's a shame that the gold nibbed Chinese pens are reasonably unknown, I think they would be popular. Thanks for the information.

[mmd]

Recent acquisitoin, a true high end Chinese pen. Golden Star Zodiac Dog. It's a really really beautiful pen. Gold plated solid silver filigree over Platinum plated solid silver body and two semi transparent enamel dogs over the filigree. I got it used so the gold plating on the filigree wears off a little bit but I still think it's a quite striking pen. The filigree is very intricate and I believe is also hard to manufacture. The only pen I've seen with a comparable filigree is a Visconti Taj Mahal. The enamel dog has a nice transparency with good color variance so you could kind of see the filigree below the dogs. The pen has a big gold nib, and you can see the size comparison with a Waterman LeMan 100. Overall, a true high end pen but not very pratical because it's very heavy (~2oz) and the filigree will hook onto fabrics if you want to carry it around. However, I think it's a very good addition to my collection and it's a steal at the price I paid for.

http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=30480&d=1488233035
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=30481&d=1488233140
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=30482&d=1488233166
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=30483&d=1488233186
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=30484&d=1488233241
http://fpgeeks.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=30485&d=1488233255

[RocketRyan]

Impressive looking pen, how does it write?