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Thread: The Allure of Cheap pens

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    Default The Allure of Cheap pens

    Even though I have the pens I need and I find myself buying cheap pens just to play around with. Pens I don't really need. I guess it's just the fun of getting something shiny and new. For many the latest chinese pens are pens of choice.

    Does anyone else find this? Sometimes I guess a good deal is hard to pass.

    If anyone's interested (this is by no means this is an ad). Currently on amazon UK one of the higher end Parker Urbans is at £12. I'm not expecting much but for £12 it's hard to pass. Normally this finish retails around £65 with it's street price around £40

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Parker-URBA...TTQSXYDN70GV13
    Last edited by top pen; July 8th, 2020 at 04:15 AM.

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    I've been bitten by a similar bug recently and bought 2 Moonman C2 pens from a great ebay seller. He not only supplied them with M nibs, unusual in itself, but he supplied them with M Jinhao nibs and enclosed the original EF Moonman nib on the second one I bought. I love seeing those barrels filled with ink and they write so beautifully smoothly.

    Thank you for the Amazon link. I have a £5 voucher offer if I can get to a total of £25.
    Regards, Chrissy | My Review Blog: inkyfountainpens

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    Agreed.

    There's nothing quite like the anticipation that comes when you've got pens on the way.

    Cheap Chinese pens don't give quite the endorphin rush as a fancy pen, but the post receipt letdown isn't as bad either.

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    Quote Originally Posted by manoeuver View Post
    Agreed.

    There's nothing quite like the anticipation that comes when you've got pens on the way.

    Cheap Chinese pens don't give quite the endorphin rush as a fancy pen, but the post receipt letdown isn't as bad either.
    I agree with you. If I had a special Montblanc on the way and I had paid a sumgai price for it I might feel even better. But feeling reasonably good in these times of crisis works now.
    I've recently suffered a complete disaster in my garden that I can't discuss here, (or anywhere), so anything remotely good, even if it is only a slight distraction, is currently worth having.
    Last edited by Chrissy; July 8th, 2020 at 09:31 AM.
    Regards, Chrissy | My Review Blog: inkyfountainpens

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    Quote Originally Posted by Chrissy View Post
    I've been bitten by a similar bug recently and bought 2 Moonman C2 pens from a great ebay seller. He not only supplied them with M nibs, unusual in itself, but he supplied them with M Jinhao nibs and enclosed the original EF Moonman nib on the second one I bought. I love seeing those barrels filled with ink and they write so beautifully smoothly.

    Thank you for the Amazon link. I have a £5 voucher offer if I can get to a total of £25.
    Glad it's of use to some else. I've been quite curious about the newer Urbans for a few years they definitely seem a step up in design compared the old ones which were a bit odd looking. It might have not been my first choice of finish definitely one I can live with.

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    I frequently swear that I will buy no more Chinese pens. And then something comes along that is irresistible. Last week a Wing Sung 699 plunger filler arrived... Usually I pass them along but there has been the occasional keeper, like the Moonman 600S. Chinese pens are improving all the time which makes them even more addictive. Curse them and their attractiveness!
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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    I like the look of some of the Moonman pens or PenBBS. And I'm curious enough to buy the Parker 51 vacumatic clone.

    But I just can't get past the fact that these are just another C/C filler. The fact that excite me the way overripe bananas do.

    What would be irresistable to me, is a well proportioned, classic styling (think Conklin Endura or the original Duofold), ebonite, piston filler.

    If PenBBS (or whoever else) came up with one. I'll buy it.
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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    Must be something in the air - I was googling the "new" Urbans just this morning.

    I'm a total sucker for a "good deal" and thus have several some many okay, a lot of cheap pens. Some of which are actually quite expensive pens acquired cheaply, but that's by the by. Chinese pens didn't appeal at all when they were all brass barrelled monsters and I was quite safe, but now? I'm in so much trouble. Currently really impressed with a Wing Sung 3013. They get mixed reviews, but all I can say is after six months knocking around the kitchen it has never yet dried out, failed to write, leaked, cracked, and I can't, as yet, see any corrosion. Lovely smooth writer; it's a purple one, and Waterman Tender Purple is such a good match you get that lovely pen-dissolving-onto-the-page illusion as you write. Yum.
    In the words of Paul Simon, you can call me Al.

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    Quote Originally Posted by top pen View Post
    Even though I have the pens I need and I find myself buying cheap pens just to play around with. Pens I don't really need. I guess it's just the fun of getting something shiny and new. For many the latest chinese pens are pens of choice.

    Does anyone else find this? Sometimes I guess a good deal is hard to pass.

    If anyone's interested (this is by no means this is an ad). Currently on amazon UK one of the higher end Parker Urbans is at £12. I'm not expecting much but for £12 it's hard to pass. Normally this finish retails around £65 with it's street price around £40

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Parker-URBA...TTQSXYDN70GV13

    I have lots of cheap 'n' cheerful pens. They're fun to play with and give away, too, if they write well.
    My other pen is a Montblanc.

    And my other blog is a tumblr!


    And my latest ebook, for spooky wintery reading:

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CM2NGSSD

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    To me the "allure" is not just the price, but the utilitarian aspect. A pen costing $200 or more may be beautiful, but it's just not practical. You have to treat it like jewellery and take special care of it. That's fine, but to me it takes the focus off plain writing.

    That said, I think a $40 pen is about right in price for practical purposes, but then why did I just buy 3 new $5 pens on Ebay? I have no idea!

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    I like the cheap pens. They can be fun to play with, put those "naughty" inks into, and right now, some of them are experimenting with different filling mechanisms. And a number of those pens can be greatly improved with a new nib.

    I love my vintage pens and my expensive pens. But there is also something to be said for a pen that I am not worried about or which I might even give away to someone who wants to try it. I'm actually thinking this fall that I might have a "work" set of pens, assuming in-person school resumes this fall.

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    I must be choosing the wrong cheap pen. Out of the dozens I’ve tried, I’ve kept 4 : a Moonman, a Hero, a GAMA, and a desk style Pen BBS.

    Nowadays I get my “New Stuff in the Mail” buzz from inexpensive new mechanical pencils from JetPens.
    Last edited by VertOlive; July 8th, 2020 at 06:18 PM.
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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    I don't have a big thing about whether a pen is cheap or expensive, I want it to be a good pen, worth it's price. When I first started into this, around a dozen years ago, there were cheap pens from China. For the most part, they were junk. I tried a few different models and brands and they were just crappy pens, a waste of money no matter how inexpensive. Fast forward a number of years and the broad spectrum of those pens has changed, in types of pens, price ranges, and quality. I've recently added pens from Moonman and PenBBS to my batch of users, and with few exceptions they are well made and use good materials. Even in this market, if you pay a little more, you (often) get a better pen. The last hurdle for these brands are really excellent nibs, but that will come in time.

    Latest to enter the fold is shown below, a PenBBS 355 with a 2nd version bulk-filler system. Most of their nibs are ok but they are able to take a variety of other nibs, and this 1920s Sheaffer nib makes the pen into as good a writing instrument as one can get at most any price. I also have a Moonman M100 that really sat up and played right when I put a nib that our own dneal had ground for me a few years back. None of these would ever replace my favored modern and/or vintage pens, but they are certainly good examples of a significant part of the contemporary pen market.

    Last edited by Jon Szanto; July 8th, 2020 at 06:54 PM.
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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    Quote Originally Posted by VertOlive View Post
    I must be choosing the wrong cheap pen. Out of the dozens I’ve tried, I’ve kept 4 ...
    Wow, 4/12 sounds good to me.

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    From eBay UK, "This item cannot be shipped to your selected delivery location. Please choose a different delivery location" My delivery location is the United States. Pity.

    On a whim, I just bought two cheap Sheaffer cartridge filled fountain pens on eBay, for about $10. each. Both are new; I guess NOS. One is a "School," reviewed at https://unsharpen.com/pen/sheaffer-school-fountain-pen/. It was made 1954 - 1963. I typically like to try out pens before considering purchase, but I used a similar pen as recently as 1976. It is small, but writes well. The other is a red Sagaris, reviewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDwFMeiwNEw. It's a little bigger and writes well. It's available at Goldspot for about $40.00. It came with a converter, which sells for $10.00! I think it's a steal. I love it.
    Dan Kalish

    Fountain Pens: Pelikan Souveran M805, Pelikan Petrol-Marbled M205, Santini Libra Cumberland Gold ebonite, Waterman Expert II, Waterman Phileas, Waterman Kultur, Stipula Splash, Sheaffer Sagaris, Sheaffer Prelude, Osmiroid 65

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    All my pens are inexpensive and I use them indiscriminately...LOL!!

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    Wink Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    Quote Originally Posted by Deb View Post
    I frequently swear that I will buy no more Chinese pens. And then something comes along that is irresistible. Last week a Wing Sung 699 plunger filler arrived... Usually I pass them along but there has been the occasional keeper, like the Moonman 600S. Chinese pens are improving all the time which makes them even more addictive. Curse them and their attractiveness!
    I read your blog post and guess what? I ordered one too!
    My other writing instrument is a pencil.

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    Rui! I haven't heard from you in ages. Still in Germany, I see. I hope you like the 699. It seems to be well made and mine worked out of the bo... plastic bag.
    Regards,
    Deb
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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    I was into buying Chinese pens when I started into pens a few years ago. I've seen these new pens, purchased a couple and just don't have the desire to purchase any more. I think I'm over buying Chinese pens.

    Sent from my SM-N970U using Tapatalk

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    Default Re: The Allure of Cheap pens

    It arrived today really not a bad pen. If the deal persists for much longer it probably is one of the best starter pen deals available at the moment. It even came with a converter.

    It does say made in China on the packaging (I knew these were before hand). But for an everyday pen that writes well and looks pretty nice I don't think it can be beaten

    DSC_0155.JPG

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