Sailor Pen & Message Cigar

[haruka337]

[...]

 

The P&M web-site would never work for a forwarding company like Zenmarket or White Rabbit Express, because it is almost always out of stock. Even when the ink comes in, they are all bought within a very short time. So there is no possibility of involving either Zenmarket or White Rabbit Express, because by the time you have asked them to buy it on your behalf, it's out of stock again."

 

[...]

Contact the store's owner concerning inventory directly, not through a forwarding service--the owner speaks English. If you happen to catch them with ink in stock, place the order using your forwarding address at the forwarding company (White Rabbit or which ever you use).

 

I used White Rabbit's package forwarding service this time around (for the first time), ordering the items myself, which is a bit cheaper than having the company order for you. However, not all shops speak English, in which case, the forwarding service will have to order on your behalf.

 

----

 

In case there is any confusion, it should be noted that White Rabbit Express Buying Service and White Rabbit Package Forwarding are two different services provided by the same company. The first is employed when one needs the forwarding company to handle the entire ordering process, the latter is when one can order and pay the shop directly, only requiring the package to be forwarded when the shop does not mail outside of Japan.

[jmccarty3]

It should be noted that White Rabbit Express Buying Service and White Rabbit Package Forwarding are two different services provided by the same company. The first is employed when one needs the forwarding company to handle the entire ordering process, the latter is when one can order and pay the shop directly, only requiring the package to be forwarded when the shop does not mail outside of Japan.

 

 

Good to know. White Rabbit Express is fairly expensive. I bought the R&K SE Efeublatt Green Ink through them, and the service fees and shipping costs were quite high.

[Chrissy]

Contact the store's owner concerning inventory directly, not through a forwarding service--the owner speaks English. If you happen to catch them with ink in stock, place the order using your forwarding address at the forwarding company (White Rabbit or which ever you use).

 

I used White Rabbit's package forwarding service this time around (for the first time), ordering the items myself, which is a bit cheaper than having the company order for you. However, not all shops speak English, in which case, the forwarding service will have to order on your behalf.

 

----

 

In case there is any confusion, it should be noted that White Rabbit Express Buying Service and White Rabbit Package Forwarding are two different services provided by the same company. The first is employed when one needs the forwarding company to handle the entire ordering process, the latter is when one can order and pay the shop directly, only requiring the package to be forwarded when the shop does not mail outside of Japan.

 

 

I have tried the email address you gave several times. It's even in my contacts. No-one has ever replied. I have tried looking on the Pen & Message web-site every day, and Cigar has never been in stock.

 

If I could have found someone in Japan to have them shipped to, who might then ship them to me, I would even have been prepared to buy 5 or 6 bottles of different inks, as I know that gets free shipping from Pen & Message. However, I haven't found anyone.

 

I'm not sure that giving out the Zenmarket or White Rabbit Express shipping address would necessarily work if there is a one bottle restriction. Also, it sounds like White Rabbit would be quite expensive. This ink works out at just over £12 per bottle at the normal conversion rate. Plus shipping. I'm not prepared to pay £50 per bottle.

 

I'm not sure it's worth all of the hassle. If I find someone in Japan who I could ship them to, I may think again.

 

I'm not prepared to upload the personal documents required by WRE forwarding service, so I won't use that.

[haruka337]

 

 

I have tried the email address you gave several times. It's even in my contacts. No-one has ever replied. I have tried looking on the Pen & Message web-site every day, and Cigar has never been in stock.

 

If I could have found someone in Japan to have them shipped to, who might then ship them to me, I would even have been prepared to buy 5 or 6 bottles of different inks, as I know that gets free shipping from Pen & Message. However, I haven't found anyone.

 

I'm not sure that giving out the Zenmarket or White Rabbit Express shipping address would necessarily work if there is a one bottle restriction. Also, it sounds like White Rabbit would be quite expensive. This ink works out at just over £12 per bottle at the normal conversion rate. Plus shipping. I'm not prepared to pay £50 per bottle.

 

I'm not sure it's worth all of the hassle. If I find someone in Japan who I could ship them to, I may think again.

 

I'm not prepared to upload the personal documents required by WRE forwarding service, so I won't use that.

 

 

Do what's within your comfort level but I do want members to keep the following in mind:

 

Pen & Message emails go straight to junk for Google, Outlook and other well known email providers. Do check the Junk folders frequently when contacting the shop or, as the site advises, add their email to your "safe" list.

 

Unless one goes to the shops personally, one will not get the bottles for the price sold in Japan. Even so, if I don't ask friends or family in Japan to forward packages, White Rabbit Package Forwarding is still $10 cheaper per bottle than what Atsu will charge (he hasn't been responding to emails lately). This may not be appealing enough to others, but it works for me.

 

Had I known all that sooner, I'd have more ink today.

[Mew]

 

 

OK thank you.

 

So do they mail out inks from the store as well as the online site? I thought I was trying to find someone who could walk into the store and buy a bottle, then mail it to me, because the web-site is always out of stock. I gave up on that idea because such a person doesn't exist.

 

The P&M web-site would never work for a forwarding company like Zenmarket or White Rabbit Express, because it is almost always out of stock. Even when the ink comes in, they are all bought within a very short time. So there is no possibility of involving either Zenmarket or White Rabbit Express, because by the time you have asked them to buy it on your behalf, it's out of stock again.

 

I have decided that the only possible way I could buy a bottle is if I went to Kobe myself and they happened to have one in the store that I could pick up and buy. As I'm not going to do that, I'm going to have to stick with Stipula Musk Green and my own copy of Cigar.

I apologize for not replying to you earlier.

Flight is late, so I have nothing to do except to wait at the airport.

 

Yoshimune San replies to the online queries and sells the inks in the shop. So essentially, mailing out from the store and online website is the same thing.

All the inks are kept together, and everyone is given inks from the same stock.

Eg. There are 50 bottles in the stock, numbered 1-50 (no actual numbering is done). If buyer A walks into shop and purchases 1 ink, he will be given ink numbered 1. Just after that, if B buyer purchases from online, yoshimune San will pick up bottle numbered 2 and proceed to pack and dispatch it to him. No distinction is made in stock for shop sales and online sales. Only shop that does this is Joyful Honda.

 

However, this time, since the reservation system was in place, everything that came in stock was already sold before being put online. Those sales (reserved) happened both online and to those 'brick & mortar store' customers who had reserved. Both are given equal importance. Just that reservation was allowed online that it seems as if both are different.

 

You can ask both parties (or service providers) in advance to procure inks for you whenever they are in stock. You don't have to do anything then. You just have to wait and they will let you know when the inks are in stock and ready to be purchased. Just be sure that you reply to their email (regarding the inks being back in stock) as soon as possible.

 

Somebody (I think it was Haruka) suggested me some eBay seller who ships these inks overseas to buyers. I do not recall his name but if you don't like dealing with the service providers you mentioned, please contact the eBay seller. He sells it for $40 including shipping. I cannot comment if that is reasonable or not. I am just too used purchasing these inks at $20. There is no need to go to kobe, it can be obtained much easily than that.

 

I hope that helped.

[Mew]

You tease.

They look wonderful, don't they?

[Mew]

WRE simply orders from the web site, afaik. So basically the new system, if that's what you want to call it, works only for those living in Japan who can quickly respond to the situation. It doesn't even make sense for someone outside Japan to travel to Japan to visit a store since you'd never know whether the store would have what you'd want.

I know that this message wasn't meant for me, but I hope you don't mind if I reply to it.

I don't know if that is true. I think they call the store via phone and confirm stock availability. An ink which currently isn't in stock was informed to me as in stock by White Rabbit express. I received those inks today before leaving. Close call.

[Mew]

 

 

I have tried the email address you gave several times. It's even in my contacts. No-one has ever replied. I have tried looking on the Pen & Message web-site every day, and Cigar has never been in stock.

 

If I could have found someone in Japan to have them shipped to, who might then ship them to me, I would even have been prepared to buy 5 or 6 bottles of different inks, as I know that gets free shipping from Pen & Message. However, I haven't found anyone.

 

I'm not sure that giving out the Zenmarket or White Rabbit Express shipping address would necessarily work if there is a one bottle restriction. Also, it sounds like White Rabbit would be quite expensive. This ink works out at just over £12 per bottle at the normal conversion rate. Plus shipping. I'm not prepared to pay £50 per bottle.

 

I'm not sure it's worth all of the hassle. If I find someone in Japan who I could ship them to, I may think again.

 

I'm not prepared to upload the personal documents required by WRE forwarding service, so I won't use that.

Did you write Japanese while sending him a mail? I asked him about English replies and he said that it takes time for him to reply in English, a lot of effort is required in understanding English mails, so most of the time they get missed because he forgets.

Some lucky people get replies.

He only sells in Japan and not outside Japan, so cannot blame him for not replying.

 

White white rabbit express, I think you can purchase as many inks you like. You can purchase 5 bottles of cigar only and they won't refuse. I don't know what they do. So if you decide to purchase 5 bottles of cigar

 

Ink cost: $20 x 5 = $100

Shop charges: $4

Per product charges: $2

Service charges: $13.25 (12.5%)

Some shipping maybe

Total assumed to be $125 within Japan.

 

Shipping to England: assume at $50.

Total $175

 

$175/5= $35 per bottle.

Much less than £50.

 

All calculations have been made assuming that you will take "white rabbit express buying service"

I am not affiliated to pen & message shop.

Edited February 5, 2016 by Mew

[white_lotus]

I know that this message wasn't meant for me, but I hope you don't mind if I reply to it.

I don't know if that is true. I think they call the store via phone and confirm stock availability. An ink which currently isn't in stock was informed to me as in stock by White Rabbit express. I received those inks today before leaving. Close call.

 

Wasn't directed "at" anyone, just my understanding of how they worked. If the store is out of stock, will they accept a pre-order? If the answer is no, then it's back to constantly checking. Most of us simply can not do that. Very few of us speak or write Japanese. We don't buy Sailor inks because they are Japanese, but they have wonderful qualities that we like in inks, whether that be shading, sheen, color saturation, and/or handling. If MB or Noodler's made inks like this the interest would be just as great.

 

I'm happy for you, and I hope you enjoy your inks.

[Chrissy]

Did you write Japanese while sending him a mail? I asked him about English replies and he said that it takes time for him to reply in English, a lot of effort is required in understanding English mails, so most of the time they get missed because he forgets.

Some lucky people get replies.

He only sells in Japan and not outside Japan, so cannot blame him for not replying.

 

White white rabbit express, I think you can purchase as many inks you like. You can purchase 5 bottles of cigar only and they won't refuse. I don't know what they do. So if you decide to purchase 5 bottles of cigar

 

Ink cost: $20 x 5 = $100

Shop charges: $4

Per product charges: $2

Service charges: $13.25 (12.5%)

Some shipping maybe

Total assumed to be $125 within Japan.

 

Shipping to England: assume at $50.

Total $175

 

$175/5= $35 per bottle.

Much less than £50.

 

All calculations have been made assuming that you will take "white rabbit express buying service"

I am not affiliated to pen & message shop.

 

I don't write Japanese, and I did find a reply from them in my Junk mail folder, confirming that they only ship to a Japan address. I don't know if WRE can buy a bottle when it comes into stock. There may be too long a delay.

Thank you for your calculation. I don't think there is currently a possibility of anyone buying 5 bottles of Cigar ink.

Anyway, at least you have the inks. Well done you, and I hope that you enjoy them.

I have plenty of other inks.

[Mew]

 

I don't write Japanese, and I did find a reply from them in my Junk mail folder, confirming that they only ship to a Japan address. I don't know if WRE can buy a bottle when it comes into stock. There may be too long a delay.

Thank you for your calculation. I don't think there is currently a possibility of anyone buying 5 bottles of Cigar ink.

Anyway, at least you have the inks. Well done you, and I hope that you enjoy them.

I have plenty of other inks.

Yes, it's mentioned on their website. Not expressly but implicitly. They have only given the rate for shipping inside Japan.

If you have already waited long enough, I don't see the harm in waiting for another 2-3 months for another bottle. Plus, you don't have to pay unless they get ink in stock.

Can you do a group buy for England? I think if you ask around, there may be enough interest for 5 bottles I.e. 5 buyers unless someone decides to take 2.

I'm from Japan, so it is comparatively easier for me to get the inks.

Thank you.

[Chrissy]

Yes, it's mentioned on their website. Not expressly but implicitly. They have only given the rate for shipping inside Japan.

If you have already waited long enough, I don't see the harm in waiting for another 2-3 months for another bottle. Plus, you don't have to pay unless they get ink in stock.

Can you do a group buy for England? I think if you ask around, there may be enough interest for 5 bottles I.e. 5 buyers unless someone decides to take 2.

I'm from Japan, so it is comparatively easier for me to get the inks.

Thank you.

 

 

I can't do a group buy for England. I don't really want the hassle, then there is UK Customs to worry about. I might be able to find someone who will let me ship a bottle to their Japanese address. Fingers crossed. So that's a start.

 

Can you tell me if the P&M web-site says that you have to set up an account with them before you can purchase?

[Mew]

 

 

I can't do a group buy for England. I don't really want the hassle, then there is UK Customs to worry about. I might be able to find someone who will let me ship a bottle to their Japanese address. Fingers crossed. So that's a start.

 

Can you tell me if the P&M web-site says that you have to set up an account with them before you can purchase?

Cost of bottle: ¥2,160

Shipping from shop to the Japanese address: ¥900

Shipping to England/UK: ¥1,500 (EMS)

Total: ¥4,560 (hopefully there may be a maximum limit to value of parcel not chargeable to customs, and this value will be lower than that)

 

I would suggest that you rely on the eBay seller (I do not know his name, I hope others can help with that). He is cheaper than this with hopefully less hassles.

 

There is an option to create an account, but you can still checkout and make payment without that. I choose to make an account.

They accept international credit cards, I asked today to help you out in case you decide to take that route.

 

I hope that helped.

[AndyYNWA]

I would suggest that you rely on the eBay seller (I do not know his name, I hope others can help with that). He is cheaper than this with hopefully less hassles.

 

 

I think you mean cool-japan. His real name is Atsu.

[TheLonelyInkwell]

If anyone has a sample please send one to me! I'd love to try this ink!

 

jakepelleman@icloud.com

[TheLonelyInkwell]

I need this ink! Does anyone have a sample they can send my way?

jakepelleman@icloud.com

[Chrissy]

I need this ink! Does anyone have a sample they can send my way?

jakepelleman@icloud.com

 

The new set of Sailor inks that are officially issued in October include Rikyu cha that is very similar, or may even be identical, to Cigar, depending on your point of view. So if I was you I would get one of those bottles.

[mongrelnomad]

The new set of Sailor inks that are officially issued in October include Rikyu cha that is very similar, or may even be identical, to Cigar, depending on your point of view. So if I was you I would get one of those bottles.

 

I only have one bottle of Cigar (love love love it - it lives in my demo kingsize Conid Bulkfiller). Just bought two bottles of Rikyu chia to supplement it...

[Mew]

I only have one bottle of Cigar (love love love it - it lives in my demo kingsize Conid Bulkfiller). Just bought two bottles of Rikyu chia to supplement it...

Goodluck for filling from those horrible bottles.

I almost damaged my nakaya nib with that conical torture apparatus given by sailor inside those bottles.

[mongrelnomad]

Goodluck for filling from those horrible bottles.

I almost damaged my nakaya nib with that conical torture apparatus given by sailor inside those bottles.

I chuck the funnel away immediately and have a little tilting implement that helps me get some (occasionally most) of the ink out of those infuriatingly appalling bottles...