Que Horor!

[fountainpenkid]

Monday morning I was studying in the library at my school using my OMAS Paragon, and I turned around to say hi to someone and accidently pushed it off the desk with my elbow. It fell 2 feet onto the soft carpet. I looked around after and found the pen but not the piston knob. Somehow, the piston knob broke off quite cleanly from the rest of the barrel. I bought the pen NOS last summer, and have treated it well. It seems like this braking often happens to Italian pens, especially the more expensive models. I don't think OMAS has great customer service, but I'm not letting them get away with a shoddily made pen breaking after dropping 2 feet onto a carpet.

[kaisnowbird]

:cry: I'm so sorry to hear that!!
Broken piston knob -- didn't see that coming at all. If Omas has any business foresight, they should take good care of you. I, for one, would hate to lose you as a customer.

[Bogon07]

FPK - that is horrible.
You would expect the pen to be more robust than that. Hopefully Omas will do their best to return your pen to working condition quickly, although it could take a little longer this time of the year.

[gentlyom]

I am very sorry for your loss. This is a horrible feeling, breaking a beautiful and treasured pen... When was your pen made? Maybe if recent production that you can contact the US distributor and have them taking care of it?

[fountainpenkid]

I am very sorry for your loss. This is a horrible feeling, breaking a beautiful and treasured pen... When was your pen made? Maybe if recent production that you can contact the US distributor and have them taking care of it?

It was a LE made in 1990 for the world cup.

[Laura N]

OMG. So sorry. I'm sure it will be fixed, but I really feel for you.

[hamag]

Sorry to read that.
I think like Bogon07, they should have made the pen more resistant.
It didn't fall from a skyscraper, just from a desk and on a soft surface.
Isn't it a bad design?
I remember that Sony designed the first Walkman strong enough to stand a fall from a height as tall as a desk.
They assumed that would be the most common accident
Hope you'll get a satisfactory repair.
Cheers from Buenos Aires
Horacio

[earthdawn]

Will ... very very sorry to read this story. It certainly should NOT have had that happen and I am surprised it was that fragile.

I know it is one of your favorites too.

I'm really hoping you get a solution to this.

[Mags]

Hoping it is shipped off and back to with a repair very soon. The short drop on carpet sounds like a mishap we all fear but should not have caused the damage you outline.


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[dduran]

Hey! Let me know how it goes, might need to send a pen to Omas. My fault though.. Don't know if they offer any after sales support. I've read some pretty bad reports but I can't remember if it was Omas or another Italian maker.
It's a LE pen btw, don't know if it'll make a difference..

[fountainpenkid]

I think the problem is the material..."vegetal"resin is what it is called, and I think it is made with inherent stress faults due to incomplete mixing of the materials. That is a total guess, but under light I can see bands of slightly lighter green resin that shouldn't be there.

[AltecGreen]

Sometimes you are just going to have to chalk things up to bad luck. Gravity trumps fountain pen every time.

The bands you see are probably from the mixing of the dye into the resin. You see this on many vintage pens. One cannot assess the state of the an opaque plastic by visual inspection. This plastic will change with time. Shrinkage is the most common problem. All plastics do age and change with time. Omas has been making pens from this type of materials for probably over three decades and one just does not find rampant reports of failures of this type. Omas pens are known for other problems but this is not one that is commonly reported. The ebonite collar on the feed is more likely to die that the rest of the pen.

If you can find the knob, a repair could be made although it would probably not be worth the cost. The easiest fix is to find another complete knob assembly (I believe these were one piece) from a donor pen.

[gentlyom]

I am very sorry for your loss. This is a horrible feeling, breaking a beautiful and treasured pen... When was your pen made? Maybe if recent production that you can contact the US distributor and have them taking care of it?

It was a LE made in 1990 for the world cup.

I see. In case you will have to get a new replacement of the same pen, here is one to consider:

http://www.ebay.it/itm/Omas-Italy-90-/111231597161?pt=Penne&hash=item19e5eb7a69&_uhb=1

But, I would contact Omas for repair options anyway.

Best of Luck!!

[fountainpenkid]

Sometimes you are just going to have to chalk things up to bad luck. Gravity trumps fountain pen every time.

The bands you see are probably from the mixing of the dye into the resin. You see this on many vintage pens. One cannot assess the state of the an opaque plastic by visual inspection. This plastic will change with time. Shrinkage is the most common problem. All plastics do age and change with time. Omas has been making pens from this type of materials for probably over three decades and one just does not find rampant reports of failures of this type. Omas pens are known for other problems but this is not one that is commonly reported. The ebonite collar on the feed is more likely to die that the rest of the pen.

If you can find the knob, a repair could be made although it would probably not be worth the cost. The easiest fix is to find another complete knob assembly (I believe these were one piece) from a donor pen.
Good idea. I made it unclear in my original post, but I have the knob. As you said, it is probably not worth the cost of fixing the knob. I have taken the pen apart many times and would know how to fit a replacement knob if only I knew how to get it out.