Bad experience with nibs.com

[tarheel1]

Back in 2010 I ordered a custom stand from Nakaya through nibs.com. It was a 2 pen sword stand with custom Kanji on it. Somehow it got lost in the mix and I received it today and the Kanji is incorrect. Nibs said sorry nothing we can do. Now with a 150.00 stand I am quite disappointed and the wife is pissed. I dont feel I will ever do business with this company. Its a shame as there are several pens I was going to order and now have to find a new source. Here is the stand as well as what the Kanji should have been.

[caribbean_skye]

In 2010 and you're just getting it now? Surprised you didn't cancel the transaction or ask for a refund (unless you were told of a specific waiting time).

[tarheel1]

A lot has happened between 2010 and now and I was just waiting patiently. I am sure it was ready before now, but communication was dropped somehow in the mix, but email address never changed. I am not worried about how long it took to finally get the product just that it is incorrect.

[tandaina]

If your original emails show the correct kanji then it seems completely out of line that they wouldn't take it back and have the issue corrected. Custom stuff not being returnable makes sense ONLY if it was produced correctly. If it isn't correct it isn't custom, how can you be bound to keep it? I'm just flabbergasted!

[Jon Szanto]

As always, I'd be curious to hear the other side of the story. Classic Fountain Pens is not some cheesy, fly-by-night operation, but rather one that has a very good reputation. Something certainly isn't right in all of this.

[dr.grace]

It is strange. But you'd think that Nakaya would know Japanese characters as well as anyone! So I'd check to see if this is a Japanese variant, maybe an older form. I only know the standard Chinese character, which is the same as the one you pictured at the top. However, when I write the character they carved into the character-recognition module of Pleco, it spits out the character at the top.

OTOH, you could just chalk it up to fate (one of the meanings of that character)… jk

[dr.grace]

Actually, now that I look at the character in your stand, it looks like hand-drawn calligraphy, and there is a lot of latitude in that style of writing. So it may not be wrong.

[dannzeman]

Jon, I agree. I'm going to close this thread until Nibs.com decides to comment.

Update 7:31pm: John responded and said he's currently on vacation and unaware of the situation. He doesn't want an unhappy customer and will take care of it as soon as he returns.

[tarheel1]

David from Nibs.com contacted me today and apologized for the experience over the phone and that I was unhappy. He offered me an acceptable solution and has renewed my faith in the company. I thank Dan for being able to contact John and for this to be resolved pretty quick after a bad experience. I will be shopping more with them.

[Jon Szanto]

"I'm sorry that I hadn't explored every avenue before coming on a public forum and painting them as asshats. I've learned a good lesson."

[tarheel1]

"I'm sorry that I hadn't explored every avenue before coming on a public forum and painting them as asshats. I've learned a good lesson."

No as me coming on here is what got the situation resolved. I explored my options and attempted to get the situation resolved before I came on here and posted. Not everyone jumps to conclusion before acting on a public forum. I am not new to forums nor new to fountain pens or to customer service issues. The market feedback is for use to share our experiences with vendors. It should not be censored just because others have not had the same result.

[Sailor Kenshin]

So what DO the kanji mean?

[tarheel1]

Best translation would be life. Can also mean fate or part of Destiny.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Best translation would be life. Can also mean fate or part of Destiny.

Inochi, ka?

The handwritten one looks different-y.

[Flounder]

Is there some sort of filter for mind-reading condescension posts from alternate timelines?

[dr.grace]

In certain calligraphic styles of Kanji or Chinese characters, parts of the character can look a little abbreviated, to make them flow more. It's something like the difference between printed and cursive script in Western writing, where often there are lines connecting words and the pen doesn't lift as much from the paper. I suspect that's what happened here. They probably thought this was more elegant than the formal character.

[I like mango pudding]

What is supposed to be the square for the bottom left portion of the original turned into a W. Even a stylized fast flowing writing of a square will not turn into a W. It may turn into a 12, but not a W

[dr.grace]

Still within the range of possible variations, I think. A squiggle is sometimes what is written in the "grass" or "running" styles. (I don't know what they're called in Japanese.)

[reprieve]

I'm glad the issue will be resolved.

I have had nothing but good experiences with John and Nibs.com, even when things have gone wrong. Overwhelmingly, things go perfectly right, but I did have an experience in which a nib was not ground as I had specified--it was fixed immediately and without question and John graciously apologized. That earned my loyalty.

For what it's worth, I appreciate this thread because I value the ability to inform others of one's experiences even when they are less than perfect. I appreciate FPG's relative lack of censorship. And if this particular feedback forum can sometimes facilitate satisfactory resolutions, it is all the more valuable.

[Tony Rex]

This is like asking a professional calligrapher to write like a schoolchild. And could potentially affect future orders for English speaking world to get dictionary kanji rather than masterful brushwork.

Sigh.