Phileas Phever

[Left FPN]

and look at Gibson when they first had the Epiphone range produced out east....yes they had a factory but the boss had his own factory right next door manufacturing the fakes....lets call them copies.

 

This said, I suspect your pens are from different years.

[amk]

What *would* be nice is if we could get Chinese 'phileases' but in crazy colours. Capuccino swirl? Neon pink like the latest Edison Nouveau seasonal at Goulet's?

[TwelveDrawings]

You aren't allowed to spread conspiracy theories unless you post at least one photo showing the pens. It could be just a bad run at the factory.

Posting a photo was my first thought. But my drawings have maxed out the upload space that FPN permits. If someone knows a workaround for that, please message me. In the photo I have taken, the difference is not as dramatic as in person. But it's there.

[Left FPN]

Posting a photo was my first thought. But my drawings have maxed out the upload space that FPN permits. If someone knows a workaround for that, please message me. In the photo I have taken, the difference is not as dramatic as in person. But it's there.

Go to My Settings, Manage Attachments. There you can remove your uploads.

 

Or if you are not bothered about loosing the ability to remove pictures, use the Upload method at the top of each page. Go to the top of this page and you will see a number of tabs. Select Upload. Browse to your picture, Add Image, copy the BBCode and paste it into your post. Pictures uploaded this way can only be removed by Admin.

Edited April 4, 2014 by Force

[TwelveDrawings]

Here is a photo of the 2 shades of Indus gray. (Thank you, Force). The difference is obvious in person, but it appears quite subdued here. One pen is a noticeably pink gray while the other simply a flat gray. In the photo, they merely appear to be a light and dark gray.

 

Color printing is part of my profession, so I understand colors can vary. But a print operator would have to be blind, drunk, or blindly drunk to allow as much color variance as the pens show. Bear in mind that the cap and barrel are manufactured separately and must be uniform enough in color to match whatever part they happen to be paired with.

 

No great matter. Force has already answered my question about Indus being the only gray.

 

Edited April 4, 2014 by TwelveDrawings

[LindaM]

Well, my green marble set is on eBay, if anyone is interested: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=231197250268

 

I called Waterman to see if any replacement sections were still available - they are (with nib and feed), for $27 plus shipping, if anyone is interested. Although I won't say their customer service is pleasant to deal with.

 

Now to see how my first-ever auction goes.

[Left FPN]

Well, my green marble set is on eBay, if anyone is interested: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=231197250268

 

I called Waterman to see if any replacement sections were still available - they are (with nib and feed), for $27 plus shipping, if anyone is interested. Although I won't say their customer service is pleasant to deal with.

 

Now to see how my first-ever auction goes.

This is the reply from Waterman Service to my question ref Phileas spare parts,

 

Good afternoon,

 

We thank you very much for your email and photograph attached.

We do try to provide repair, service and accessories as long as we can for all our Parker and Waterman models. Unfortunately, the manufacture of your pen and corresponding spare parts stopped several years ago and they are no longer parts available in our stocks.

[LindaM]

That's interesting. I sent an email to their main office and was told to call 800-237-8736. The woman I talked to there gave me that price quote for the section/nib/feed and said it was in stock.

[Left FPN]

That's interesting. I sent an email to their main office and was told to call 800-237-8736. The woman I talked to there gave me that price quote for the section/nib/feed and said it was in stock.

My email was from Waterman France. Just perhaps offices in other countries have stock. If that is the case I would buy one and fit it to the pen. That price sounds cheap...unless shipping is $30. Leave the original section as an added insentive to any buyer to do with it what they wish. You have included in your description that they are available...what if they are not.

Edited April 4, 2014 by Force

[LindaM]

I took the phone rep at her word, which may have been a bad thing to do. So I removed the mention from the eBay ad. As to buying one myself, I thought about it but was worried that the set would sell for less than hoped for, and with the cost of the new section would basically come out to not much. The shipping she mentioned was cheap, either $3 or $6, depending on method.

 

Having something posted on eBay is making me rather nervous. Already I made a mistake. Gah.

[Left FPN]

While listening to the radio (Man C 3 v 1 Sts) and monitoring the bay, this popped up, described as VGC with broad nib..........£21 BIN with free delivery

 

Edited April 5, 2014 by Force

[pajaro]

Presumably you bought it.

[Left FPN]

Presumably you bought it.

I thought about it then after about 5 nanoseconds hit the BIN.

[pajaro]

I thought about it then after about 5 nanoseconds hit the BIN.

 

That long? You must have a mega-collection of Phileas by now! They are an outstanding pen.

[Left FPN]

I could have £21 sitting in the bank earning 0.1% or buy a pen that I could maybe sell and make 50%. The choice is not to difficult.

[pajaro]

Phileas Phever might just help you to retire early.

[TwelveDrawings]

Fair warning: The following is written by a bored person with little to do at the moment. If you are looking for substance, keep scrolling until you reach another post.

 

In general, items which are both rare and desired by moneyed buyers make a good investment. There is timing involved (buy low, sell high), but with Phileas out of production, rarity is sure to increase with time. As for desirability by a moneyed buyers. The Phileas delivers a very good writing experience. Not a perfect or unsurpassed experience, but a very good one.

 

This means when someone pays $50, $100, or $150 for the pen, they will probably be satisfied with their purchase. Sure, if they try a Mont Blanc, they might discover they are missing something wonderful But a high-end Mont Blanc is like a movie star home.... a spectacular purchase with a spectacular pricetag. I'm guessing that most of us buy a comfortable house for a comfortable price.

 

My point is, buying a Phileas as an investment is a gamble like buying anything on speculation. But as I see it, the increasing rarity is in the favor of Phileas.

 

As for a moneyed market? Those inexpensive HERO pens from China will satisfy a lot of first-time buyers. Unfortunately, I see fewer and fewer opportunities for new buyers to "test drive" a Phileas, since they are fast becoming an online-only purchase. That's pity, because it is that intangible "IT" experience which most Phileas lovers appreciate. I hope this does not shrink the pool of Phileas fans into a small group of enthusiasts (like myself) who are already owners of the pen.

 

The comparitively large crop of colorful Kulturs may eventually trigger an influx of new Phileas buyers. Assuming they are pleased with their Kultur, the enhanced look and feel of the Phileas should tempt them up the price range. (Like in the old days, when Ford buyers moved up to Mercuries, and Mercury buyers moved up to Lincolns.) Only such an influx of new buyers in the market would satisfy my notion of a "moneyed market" desiring a rare item.

 

At that point, Force and Jon and pajaro can finally sell a few pens and retire in luxury. Right?

[pajaro]

I only have three Phileas pens, having come late to this party. I appreciate them for how long they stay moist and writing during work. After August I might not need them anymore. A lot of modern pens can't stand up to the Phileas or compare with its carefree writing performance. After your modern BrandX Elegy has dried up and you need a filling or soak to remoisten the nib and feed, and after you have repeated the process several times in a day, you will understand the loveliness of pens like the Phileas and Carene with their ability to keep the nib moist.

 

I am on my way to retirement though, being a City of Pensacola, Florida, pensioner from the IT department the last ten years. Just working for health insurance, a familiar experience in our times. I doubt Phileas sales will impact this.

Edited April 5, 2014 by pajaro

[TwelveDrawings]

pajaro, I always appreciate your perspective. If Waterman ever needed a testimonial on the abuse that a Phileas can endure, they need to look me up. Carry them constantly, drop them often, overheat them, freeze them, put them through the washing machine, etc. etc. etc. Still cruising! -- TwelveDrawings

[pajaro]

Yes, TD, they made a far better pen than even they thought. If the Phileas had a gold nib, it would be priced with the Montblancs and Pelikans of similar size. It would certainly be worth it. The nibs in the Phileas are superb. Every once in a while a manufacturer produces a pen that is a home run. The Parker 51 is one. I think the Carene and the Phileas are others. The filling system in the Phileas is perfection, where so many other products are not so good. It could give you a phever to get every color and nib size. I find the fine and extra fine very sweet indeed. Too bad the price is skyrocketing. It'll settle out somewhere.