Manupropria Shibui

[BayesianPrior]

This is my first foray into the exciting and rarified world of urushi pens. It seems to me that the most financially invested collectors of fountain pens either gravitate towards beautifully handcrafted urushi pens or highly desirable vintage models. Naturally, I wanted to see what all the fuss was about!

Towards the end of May, Manupropria announced a Pentecost sale with substantial reductions on recommended retail pricing. This pen (the Shibui) caught my eye due to the apparent uninterrupted profile from barrel finial to section end, much like an Oldwin Art Deco or ASA Nauka. The sale price for the pen with an 18k gold nib was $620 compared to a recommended retail price of $1,700. This was far more than I had ever spent on a pen before, but I recognised and appreciated the many hours of labour and the high degree of skill which are required to create an urushi pen. Moreover, I purchased this pen to commemorate the birth of my first, and likely only, daughter. This pen would be a memento of this special time for my family, and would be passed on to my daughter, hopefully to be treasured after I am gone.

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Manupropria agreed to grind the 18k nib to a fine cursive italic for no additional charge. The pen was dispatched in early June from Switzerland, and arrived in Canada on 25 June, with no import duties, customs charges, or additional taxes to pay.

The cardboard box was filled with newspaper and the pen itself was contained in a charming pen case made, as I understand it, from paper and urush lacquer with a beautiful negoro pattern.

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The negoro urushi finish on the pen is beautifully executed and the lacquer application is uniformly smooth. It is a joy to hold this pen knowing the effort involved in achieving this finish. The threads between the barrel and section, and those between the section and cap, appear to be well tooled.

The pen arrived with a Schmidt K6 converter, although I do not believe the section is threaded for a screw-in converter. As can be seen in the photos, the converter is almost entirely hidden within the long section.

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Upon further inspection, I noticed that the nib collar was cracked, but I did not attempt to remove it for fear of damaging it further.

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I also noticed that there was a disparity in size between the barrel and section so that the join/seam where the two meet is not smooth or flush, leaving a small but noticeable step.

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I emailed Manupropria to enquire about the cracked nib collar and the step between the barrel and section on 26 June. I followed up by email three more times, and tried to reach out to Manupropria both on FPN and FPG. To date, I have had no acknowledgment or response, let alone any attempt at resolution. I am left with a beautifully finished pen which arrived broken.

I would rate this pen highly as a desk ornament, but as it arrived with a broken nib collar and the maker appears unwilling to engage in discussion about repair or replacement, I would not recommend it as a fountain pen. Regrettably, as of the date of posting, I would rate Manupropria’s customer service even lower.

Manupropria? I say, caveat emptor.