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Do you own a Churchill ?


goodguy

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I have a CS Churchill Black LE that I purchased from Swisher Pens back in 2002. This pen is a really big pen. The filling system on my pen is a plastic converter. Right out of the box it would not fill. I contacted Swisher and they had be send the Nib assembly back and they replaced it. It worked O.K. after that. I cleaned it up and put it away. Recently, I got it out and again the pen will not draw ink. I soaked the nib in water over night and got it so it was sucking water but it will not fill up the converter - only about 1/3rd full.

 

This pen is very comfortable to write with without the came. It is a very smooth writhing pen - I have a medium nib. The only drawback with this nib is its size. Again this is a big, big pen and it only has an average size nib.

 

If I was the head MF at Conway Steward, I would make sure this pen had a reliable filling system and not some cheap plastic converter that doesn't even screw in and I would put a much bigger nib on that baby just to make it look better.

 

Ken

 

 

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I own one of the Churchill itd Editions (117/300), in the light grass green color. I don't remember the name of the color, but it is the one that they made in the comboe fountain/bp back around 2000. I also own a few Omas Celluloids/Duofolds/amd other large pens. I love the way it feels in my hand, and the nib is fabulous. I am a big guy with big hands, and the pen is a perfect fit. The only down side is that the pen is so big, it looks a little showy if you have it your shirt pocket. Especially since the clip is lower on the cap than most. If you do not own one, I higly recomend one for your collection.

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  • 1 month later...

I own a Churchill with CC filler that I purchased about two years ago. It is a beautiful, well balanced, large pen. While the name orginally caught my eye. The pen is really nice. Only issue is the nib occationally catches a little, my conclusion was the one tine was a little higher than the other. I have considered sending it back to CS, but after listening to this thread, I think it is going to Richard. It just so happens that I ordered a lever fill Churchill from Richard last week. I prefer lever fillers... although I am a little concerned about its capacity. I am really glad I chose Richard as the vendor. While I am really think there is no excuse for fountain pens over $25 to have quality problems, if you like large pens, you must have a properly working Churchill in your collection. The overall design is wonderful. It is an instrument made for writing. Also, I must admit, I stand in awe of few, but Churchill is my idol.

 

JD

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I must admit I am confused now.

I was hoping to hear only raving comments from you guys that own the Churchill.

When considering to spend 400$+ on a pen I must feel confident the pen will be reliable.

 

I will have to give it a serious thought.

 

I have two Churchills and both had to be returned to Conway Stewart for repair. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that I have one Churchill and Conway Stewart has one, as the one that I sent off in mid-December has not been returned to me yet. My Jarvis LE had a nib misaligned so badly that it made a clicking sound, and it would stop writing after about a page and a half. The second Chuchill would begin to leak after anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 minutes of writing. The one that was repaired now works beautifully and it is one of my favorite pens.

I plan to live forever. So far, so good.

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  • 1 month later...
I must admit I am confused now.

I was hoping to hear only raving comments from you guys that own the Churchill.

When considering to spend 400$+ on a pen I must feel confident the pen will be reliable.

 

I will have to give it a serious thought.

 

I have two Churchills and both had to be returned to Conway Stewart for repair. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that I have one Churchill and Conway Stewart has one, as the one that I sent off in mid-December has not been returned to me yet. My Jarvis LE had a nib misaligned so badly that it made a clicking sound, and it would stop writing after about a page and a half. The second Chuchill would begin to leak after anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 minutes of writing. The one that was repaired now works beautifully and it is one of my favorite pens.

 

 

Goodguy,

 

You probably have already made your decision but I wanted to update my post in case you had not, or in case anyone else uses this thread for research. In my previous post I mentioned that the second Churchill that I purchased leaked out of the box and that I had to send it back to Conway Stewart for repair. Well, it has been 17 weeks now and I still do not have my pen returned. I have made four inquiries and each time asked for an approximate return date. Everyone has been perfectly nice, every response has been only that they have the pen and cannot tell me anything more.

 

I had been planning on getting another Conway Stewart but now I am not so sure. I have bought two Churcuills and neither one worked out of the box. Now, I have waited nearly four months for a very expensive pen to be repaired and can't get even an approximation on when it will be done. If you do buy a Churchill, I would recommend going to a brick and mortar store and telling them that you will only buy it on one condition: if the pen does not work out of the box, you want an immediate exchange, not a mailer back to Conway Stewart.

 

 

Bill

Edited by Bill_D

I plan to live forever. So far, so good.

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I have sent my churchill to conway stewart late January through Dick Egolf from Luxury Brands, the contact info provided here. My lever filler mechanism was replaced with converter. Instead of barrel with a lever, I have a brand new barrel fit for a concerter filler. A solid piece. I cannot tell if it were lever filler, ever.

 

I admit it took some time, about 10 weeks. But it now fills ink with no problem. The nib was also replaced on this pen. Now it writes like a dream. I will never relinquish this pen. This is a keeper.

 

Alan

 

 

I must admit I am confused now.

I was hoping to hear only raving comments from you guys that own the Churchill.

When considering to spend 400$+ on a pen I must feel confident the pen will be reliable.

 

I will have to give it a serious thought.

 

I have two Churchills and both had to be returned to Conway Stewart for repair. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that I have one Churchill and Conway Stewart has one, as the one that I sent off in mid-December has not been returned to me yet. My Jarvis LE had a nib misaligned so badly that it made a clicking sound, and it would stop writing after about a page and a half. The second Chuchill would begin to leak after anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 minutes of writing. The one that was repaired now works beautifully and it is one of my favorite pens.

 

 

Goodguy,

 

You probably have already made your decision but I wanted to update my post in case you had not, or in case anyone else uses this thread for research. In my previous post I mentioned that the second Churchill that I purchased leaked out of the box and that I had to send it back to Conway Stewart for repair. Well, it has been 17 weeks now and I still do not have my pen returned. I have made four inquiries and each time asked for an approximate return date. Everyone has been perfectly nice, every response has been only that they have the pen and cannot tell me anything more.

 

I had been planning on getting another Conway Stewart but now I am not so sure. I have bought two Churcuills and neither one worked out of the box. Now, I have waited nearly four months for a very expensive pen to be repaired and can't get even an approximation on when it will be done. If you do buy a Churchill, I would recommend going to a brick and mortar store and telling them that you will only buy it on one condition: if the pen does not work out of the box, you want an immediate exchange, not a mailer back to Conway Stewart.

 

 

Bill

 

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From the first moment I heard about the Churchil I was sold.

I knew I want this pen.I am a huge fan of BIG pens and I heard that this is a BIG pen.

I also think its a beautiful pen.

 

So I think this is the right place to ask how is this pen ?

How does it feels in real life and how does it makes you feel.

 

For me its not a question of if to buy it or not.Its more a question of when.

 

I bought a Churchill also because I like having a nice size pen. I liked it enough to later go ahead and get a Duro. In all honesty though I did have to return both pens for issues quoted elsewhere in the forum but they returned good to go and I use them a lot. Eons ago as young buck I had Triumph Spitfire sports car, it was lovely but maddeningly eccentric at times. You do have to realize that with hand made, hand crafted items, you sometimes get some variances. Perhaps they had some issues but they were prompt at addressing them and satisfied me completely.

The Churchill has always been my favorite writer because of the size, the look and the feel.

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From the first moment I heard about the Churchil I was sold.

I knew I want this pen.I am a huge fan of BIG pens and I heard that this is a BIG pen.

I also think its a beautiful pen.

 

So I think this is the right place to ask how is this pen ?

How does it feels in real life and how does it makes you feel.

 

For me its not a question of if to buy it or not.Its more a question of when.

 

I bought a Churchill also because I like having a nice size pen. I liked it enough to later go ahead and get a Duro. In all honesty though I did have to return both pens for issues quoted elsewhere in the forum but they returned good to go and I use them a lot. Eons ago as young buck I had Triumph Spitfire sports car, it was lovely but maddeningly eccentric at times. You do have to realize that with hand made, hand crafted items, you sometimes get some variances. Perhaps they had some issues but they were prompt at addressing them and satisfied me completely.

The Churchill has always been my favorite writer because of the size, the look and the feel.

I have a soft top Triumph GT6! (Spitfire with a 6 cylinder engine) - I agree very like some FPs - it skips about and leaks regularly! :rolleyes:

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  • 2 weeks later...
I must admit I am confused now.

I was hoping to hear only raving comments from you guys that own the Churchill.

When considering to spend 400$+ on a pen I must feel confident the pen will be reliable.

 

I will have to give it a serious thought.

 

I have two Churchills and both had to be returned to Conway Stewart for repair. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that I have one Churchill and Conway Stewart has one, as the one that I sent off in mid-December has not been returned to me yet. My Jarvis LE had a nib misaligned so badly that it made a clicking sound, and it would stop writing after about a page and a half. The second Chuchill would begin to leak after anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 minutes of writing. The one that was repaired now works beautifully and it is one of my favorite pens.

 

 

Goodguy,

 

You probably have already made your decision but I wanted to update my post in case you had not, or in case anyone else uses this thread for research. In my previous post I mentioned that the second Churchill that I purchased leaked out of the box and that I had to send it back to Conway Stewart for repair. Well, it has been 17 weeks now and I still do not have my pen returned. I have made four inquiries and each time asked for an approximate return date. Everyone has been perfectly nice, every response has been only that they have the pen and cannot tell me anything more.

 

I had been planning on getting another Conway Stewart but now I am not so sure. I have bought two Churcuills and neither one worked out of the box. Now, I have waited nearly four months for a very expensive pen to be repaired and can't get even an approximation on when it will be done. If you do buy a Churchill, I would recommend going to a brick and mortar store and telling them that you will only buy it on one condition: if the pen does not work out of the box, you want an immediate exchange, not a mailer back to Conway Stewart.

 

 

Bill

 

Another update: I finally received my Churchill back from the UK and it doesn't work. It writes fine for five minutes or so then just stops. So over four months later and I still have a very expensive stick of ebonite and metal.

 

I plan to live forever. So far, so good.

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I must admit I am confused now.

I was hoping to hear only raving comments from you guys that own the Churchill.

When considering to spend 400$+ on a pen I must feel confident the pen will be reliable.

 

I will have to give it a serious thought.

 

I have two Churchills and both had to be returned to Conway Stewart for repair. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that I have one Churchill and Conway Stewart has one, as the one that I sent off in mid-December has not been returned to me yet. My Jarvis LE had a nib misaligned so badly that it made a clicking sound, and it would stop writing after about a page and a half. The second Chuchill would begin to leak after anywhere from 30 seconds to 5 minutes of writing. The one that was repaired now works beautifully and it is one of my favorite pens.

 

 

Goodguy,

 

You probably have already made your decision but I wanted to update my post in case you had not, or in case anyone else uses this thread for research. In my previous post I mentioned that the second Churchill that I purchased leaked out of the box and that I had to send it back to Conway Stewart for repair. Well, it has been 17 weeks now and I still do not have my pen returned. I have made four inquiries and each time asked for an approximate return date. Everyone has been perfectly nice, every response has been only that they have the pen and cannot tell me anything more.

 

I had been planning on getting another Conway Stewart but now I am not so sure. I have bought two Churcuills and neither one worked out of the box. Now, I have waited nearly four months for a very expensive pen to be repaired and can't get even an approximation on when it will be done. If you do buy a Churchill, I would recommend going to a brick and mortar store and telling them that you will only buy it on one condition: if the pen does not work out of the box, you want an immediate exchange, not a mailer back to Conway Stewart.

 

 

Bill

 

Another update: I finally received my Churchill back from the UK and it doesn't work. It writes fine for five minutes or so then just stops. So over four months later and I still have a very expensive stick of ebonite and metal.

 

 

 

That's a great shame. I had a Waterman Carene that wrote quite dryly so I sent it to Waterman so they could increase the flow. Came back just the same, so now I always send pens to Richard Binder despite them being brand new. I know you shouldn't have to do this but I have more confidence in the pen coming back from Richard writing properly first time than I do with the manufacturers. I am not talking about Conway Stewart specifically because I have no experience with their repair department but it seems that repair departments generally seem to replace nibs/sections etc and throw the old ones in recycle bins. People like Richard can tweak the original ink feeds and nibs so the pens write wonderfully. I have a new Yard O Led Standard Viceroy and CS 100 that I don't feel are up to scratch, they won't be going back to their respective repair departments they will be going to Richard. You face the choice of sending it back to the UK for another 4 months already suffering a loss of confidence or sending it to a nibmeister. I know what I would do.

 

 

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adyf, you're not alone and that's why, if I can, I buy my pens from Richard Binder or John Mottishaw. You may not get a rock bottom price but you sure get a pen that writes as it should and you save a lot of aggravation. I think the manufacturers these two represent should give them a bonus because, thanks to their meticulous attention to detail, any pen they sell works as it should.

Bryan

 

"The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes." Winston S. Churchill

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To be perfectly honest I've never bought a pen directly from Richard, but most of my pens have been sent to him for tuning etc. Taking into account his turnround time I wished I bought the pen from him in the first place. The only problem for me is that he only sells certain brands. What would be perfect for me would be the opportunity to ask Richard to get you any pen you like and then tune it and send it on, then I would buy everything from him. What a service that would be.

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To Bill D

 

Out of your experience I learned not to buy the Churchill new.

I will defenetly buy a Churchill but I will get it either from the marketplace or from eBay.

If it will not work right I will probably send it streight to Richard and let him fix it.

Respect to all

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Hi,

 

There have been many posts about purchasing a Churchill with feedback from the buyers and writer's experience. I have met and correspond with consumers who have sent back their pen for repair and have either had a new feed fitted or have had a conversion from lever fill to c/c (which actually involves a brand new barrel) and the feedback has been very positive indeed.

 

My response to this thread is to reinforce Conway Stewart's guarantee to make good any problems that may have been inherited and we go one step further to set up a system whereby you send your pen to Luxury Brands rather than incurring expenses in o/seas shipping and customs duties which does amount to a considerable $ value.

 

Conway Stewart is committed to offering a quality customer service after-care and if you wish to contact me, please do not hesitate to send me an email maryburke@conwaystewart.co.uk or call: 1.425.432.0816.

 

With kind regards,

 

Mary Burke

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  • 1 month later...

Another Update: After I got my woodgrain ebonite pen back from repair and found that it still did not work, I contacted Mary Burke. I told her that I wanted a replacement pen rather than another attempt to repair the one that I had. She told me that the Woodgrain Ebonite Limited Edition sold out, but offered me a number of other choices, including making a Churchill out of the ebonite that CS used for the woodgrain ebonite Nelson, which was a little darker than the ebonite used for the Churchill. I chose that option and asked for a c/c fill rather than the lever fill, because I think the lever fill system was part of the problem with the pen's performance.

 

I received my pen back today, about 2 months after sending my other one back. I think someone at CS found one of the original Churchill Woodgrain Ebonite LEs, which is fine by me, because the woodgrain ebonite looks like my previous pen rather than the Nelson, and it has the LE 419/500 stamp on the side. It's a beautiful pen; there are large swaths of black through the orange that I really like, and it feels great in the hand. Unfortunately, the pen starts skipping horribly shortly after I begin writing. I hope it just needs a good flushing, but, given my experience so far, I doubt it. If it doesn't clear up with a flushing and being loaded with Private Reserve Tanzanite, I am going to send it off to Richard Binder. I guess I will have to repeat my original recommendation, which is to buy a Churchill at a brick and mortar, or through a highly reputable online dealer, who will confirm that you can exchange the pen -- from that store, not Conway Stewart -- or get a refund if it doesn't work.

Edited by Bill_D

I plan to live forever. So far, so good.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hello,

 

I have had a CS Churchill (Steinway) for a few years. it is a level fill. it's my favourite FP. it's a fine italic nib. but not as "italic" as some other.s

although i wish the nib to be bigger to match with the big pen.

 

then my husband saw it & also wanted one. so he got a black Churchill from the same dealer. it didn't work & skipped a lot. took 2 returns to fix the feed.

now it works very well. although the 2nd one seems pickier about ink tho.

 

regards,

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  • 3 weeks later...

Final Update: As described in the posts above, I finally sent my woodgrain ebonite Churchill to Richard Binder. Mary Burke, on her own initiative, arranged for Conway Stewart to pay for the repairs, to pay for the shipping, and to get it bumped up to the front of Richard's queue. I got an e-mail from Richard last week saying the repairs were done, and his e-mail also said "I had lots of fun with the Churchill: new feed, modify it for better flow, realign the nib, reshape the tip. :-)." Well, talk about getting someone fired up to receive their pen.

 

I received it today and it writes about how you would expect after Richard Binder "had lots of fun" with it. It has perfect flow and the nib writes as smooth as butter (Full disclosure: I have never actually written with butter). As I said in my previous posts, the pen itself is stunning to look at and the ebonite feels great in the hand.

 

When I explained the history of the pen to Richard, he said that my experience was atypical and that the Churchills are well made and seldom have problems. Richard sells Conway Stewart pens himself, and carefully selects the brands he offers, so I guess I have just had bad luck.

 

From what I have read here and elsewhere, Mary Burke's service was not atypical. She was great, and others have frequently complimented her. After the woodgrain ebonite failed to work properly the second time, I had sworn I would never buy another Conway Stewart. Now, after using the ebonite Churchill after Richard Binder worked with it, I think I should have just bought it from Richard in the first place, and contacted him or Mary at the first sign of trouble. In fact, maybe I should test that plan with a bespoke CS 58 . . .

 

 

I plan to live forever. So far, so good.

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Bill,

 

Glad your pen is working, but your story and CS having to pay Richard Binder to fix one for them

frankly gives me pause about CS service.

 

And Mary Burke got your pen bumped to the front of Richard Binder's queue? I didn't think he allowed that.

How much extra do you have to pay to get bumped up?

 

Edit to add: What happened to the other faulty Churchill?

Edited by jeen
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Bill,

 

Glad your pen is working, but your story and CS having to pay Richard Binder to fix one for them

frankly gives me pause about CS service.

 

And Mary Burke got your pen bumped to the front of Richard Binder's queue? I didn't think he allowed that.

How much extra do you have to pay to get bumped up?

 

Edit to add: What happened to the other faulty Churchill?

 

Jeen,

 

I didn't have to pay anything extra to get it bumped up to the front of Richard's queue, which was better than getting the pen fixed for free. The other Churchill was a Jarvis LE that stopped writing after a page or so. Apparently, it was a pretty common fault with the feed that CS has since remedied. I sent it back to CS, they replaced the feed and now it writes wonderfully with great flow.

 

Bill

I plan to live forever. So far, so good.

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