Pilot Custom 823 Design Flaw?

[ateebtk]

Hi,

I'm interested in buying an amber Pilot Custom 823 but have heard from a reputable online retailer that it has a design flaw; apparently many pens have been returned b/c cracks have developed in the barrel near the threads.

 

Q) Have any Custom 823 user's experienced such problems?

 

Also,

 

Q) How long do you think it will take for the seals to wear off affecting the filling mechanism of the pen?

 

Thanking in advance,

ATK

[enricof]

Hi,

    I'm interested in buying an amber Pilot Custom 823 but have heard from a reputable online retailer that it has a design flaw; apparently many pens have been returned b/c cracks have developed in the barrel near the threads.

 

Q) Have any Custom 823 user's experienced such problems?

 

You may find this post (and all the thread) useful, the only reference I found about such a problem.

 

 

 

Also,

 

 

 

Q) How long do you think it will take for the seals to wear off affecting the filling mechanism of the pen?

 

Thanking in advance,

ATK

 

No idea, but I would not be particularly worried.

[MadAmos]

I have been using mine daily for 8 months or so, usually fill and flush it every two weeks. I have also disassembled the pen twice for a more thourough cleaning, and so far all is as new... that is to say perfect . I have used a variety of inks during this time most often various Iroshizuku, and there has been no staining or flow problems at all.

[PinarelloOnly]

Three things need to be said and so that people understand:

 

If you want a reliable Custom 823, do not take apart your Custom 823. So what if some have done it...it wasn't meant to be taken apart.

More often than not, the ones complaining about stress cracks are also the ones who tore down their pens.

 

The pen is not for clean freaks, it is a real users pen not a pen for using different color inks under the sun.

You pick your favorite ink and you stick with it and really use your pen.

 

Pilot is more than helpful when fixing these pens. They also know you took it apart. It's not a design flaw.

[PatientType]

I've had no cracking on either of mine. They look and function like new pens.

 

I change ink colors when I like and my pens have rinsed out cleanly each time with just tap water (and many repetitions of flushing). I've never taken my pens apart or had reason to.

 

I've only had my 823s for a year or so, so I can't report on how long the piston seals last. Hopefully, for many many years.

[nvbrennan]

I would imagine certainly if stripped down (which I've done) it would be easy to overtighten the threads and crack the barrel. Whether this is our problem or Pilot's is debatable but IMHO I'd wonder about how much force it would take. Considering on mine I can get it snug with no advere affects I'd wonder if there was user error. But there may also be batch variability.

[langere]

I've had my 823 for over two years now and no problems whatsoever.

 

Erick

[Ron Z]

More often than not, the ones complaining about stress cracks are also the ones who tore down their pens.

 

I would be interested in the basis for your assertion - and the source of the information.

 

The one in the shop right now, with a crack at the back end AND one that developed at the section end straight down from the first crack, was not taken apart by it's owner for cleaning. The problem is that the 0 ring in the back end puts outward pressure on the barrel. The crack appears to have developed along a seam in the barrel - the cracks are perfectly in line with each other.

Edited March 20, 2010 by Ron Z

[ateebtk]

so i guess there is a design flaw.... thats the 2nd repair center story ive heard... its a shame b/c i liked the pen .

atk

[gregamckinney]

so i guess there is a design flaw.... thats the 2nd repair center story ive heard... its a shame b/c i liked the pen .

atk

 

Two examples does not a design flaw make.

Besides, if you like the pen, are two problems from the the hundreds (thousands?) of pens out there going to keep you from getting one?

Seems a shame.

 

Regards, greg

[Dan Carmell]

The one in the shop right now, with a crack at the back end AND one that developed at the section end straight down from the first crack, was not taken apart by it's owner for cleaning. The problem is that the 0 ring in the back end puts outward pressure on the barrel. The crack appears to have developed along a seam in the barrel - the cracks are perfectly in line with each other.

 

Okay, this plays to my pet peeve, but I wonder about excess flushing? I'll grant you that the pen should stand up to thousands of fills over its lifetime, but I wonder if over-vigorous flushings to get every last trace of ink out of this pen may have been at least partly responsible for the cracks?

 

My apologies if I am accusing the pen's owner unfairly!

 

Dan

[michael_s]

Hi Ron,

 

Out of curiosity, are these cracks in the 823 repairable? Can you solvent weld them?

 

Is it possible some barrels were formed improperly, with micro-cracks that developed into visible cracks over time?

 

BTW I haven't experienced this issue on my 823, but I haven't inked it that much.

 

-Mike

 

More often than not, the ones complaining about stress cracks are also the ones who tore down their pens.

 

I would be interested in the basis for your assertion - and the source of the information.

 

The one in the shop right now, with a crack at the back end AND one that developed at the section end straight down from the first crack, was not taken apart by it's owner for cleaning. The problem is that the 0 ring in the back end puts outward pressure on the barrel. The crack appears to have developed along a seam in the barrel - the cracks are perfectly in line with each other.

Edited March 21, 2010 by michael_s

[Siv]

Two examples does not a design flaw make.

Bravo that man.

 

I can't believe that people are even talking about this. If the majority of pens have cracks then it's a design flaw - here we're talking about a tiny minority.

 

If any of you are concerned about this, don't buy it. I really have no problem with you missing out on a great pen from Pilot.

[Blade Runner]

More often than not, the ones complaining about stress cracks are also the ones who tore down their pens.

 

I would be interested in the basis for your assertion - and the source of the information.

 

The one in the shop right now, with a crack at the back end AND one that developed at the section end straight down from the first crack, was not taken apart by it's owner for cleaning. The problem is that the 0 ring in the back end puts outward pressure on the barrel. The crack appears to have developed along a seam in the barrel - the cracks are perfectly in line with each other.

Do you know why the owner didn't send the pen to Pilot? Do they repair 823s in the US or Japan?

[pay]

I have the brown (ok, amber) 823. I pre-ordered it from CFP/nibs.com and took delivery as soon as it came in (a year ago ... maybe more?).

 

It has been inked ever since, with different colors, and in on-and-off use ever since the day it arrived.

 

I have flushed it several times.

 

I have disassembled and re-assembled it, I think at least twice.

 

It has been on several trans-Atlantic flights and domestic flights, usually clipped inside a backpack, sometimes (not often) in a pen case. The backpack often gets shoved under the seat in front of me or, even worse, in the overhead bin.

 

It is on my desk right now and, even under magnification, shows no sign of any cracks of any kind anywhere.

 

In my opinion, this pen is great in every way.

[Blade Runner]

Where do you send the 823, 743, 742, etc to Pilot for service in the US? Or do you send them to Japan?

Does somebody have an address?

[hari317]

Where do you send the 823, 743, 742, etc to Pilot for service in the US? Or do you send them to Japan?

Does somebody have an address?

 

 

Pilot website USA: http://www.pilotpen.us/contactus/

 

Mailing Address:

 

Pilot Pen

Attn.: Consumer Service

3855 Regent Blvd.

Jacksonville, FL 32224

Tel. 904-645-9999

Fax 904-996-2974

 

Presently I have one American bought Pilot with the US service centre through the help of an American friend.

 

Regards,

Hari

[enricof]

Where do you send the 823, 743, 742, etc to Pilot for service in the US? Or do you send them to Japan?

Does somebody have an address?

 

 

Pilot website USA: http://www.pilotpen.us/contactus/

 

Mailing Address:

 

Pilot Pen

Attn.: Consumer Service

3855 Regent Blvd.

Jacksonville, FL 32224

Tel. 904-645-9999

Fax 904-996-2974

 

Presently I have one American bought Pilot with the US service centre through the help of an American friend.

 

Regards,

Hari

 

Hari, what's the matter with your 823?

 

Cracked barrel's ends or something else?

[hari317]

Hari, what's the matter with your 823?

 

Cracked barrel's ends or something else?

 

Hi it is not the 823, my 823 is fighting fit! It is a leaking inset nib unit on a Pilot Silvern Dragon. It is in for warranty replacement.

 

Best,

Hari

[teeitup418holes]

In my opinion, Pilot is a large enough company to where they wouldn't even put a pen on the market if it had a flaw in the design. I echo what other owners are saying about this pen. It is a wonderful, excellent, incredible pen! But hey, if two cases turn you away from this magnificent pen, just don't get it. I can say that you are really missing out though! It's a fantastic pen and does not have a design flaw.