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Cool Pen Website


Mike S.

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Here's the new website for my favorite Minneapolis new pen shop, called Ink. I think it's really cool. I like the pen quotes.

 

http://www.penstore.biz/index.htm

 

Mike

 

Yes, it is cool. But the links for the pens lead to the pen companies' web sites and do not let you know what the store has in stock. Can you tell us what's going on there? What kind of selection does Ink have and at what prices?

 

Thanks!

 

Erick

Using right now:

Visconti Voyager 30 "M" nib running Birmingham Streetcar

Jinhao 9019 "EF" nib running Birmingham Railroad Spike

Stipula Adagio "F" nib running Birmingham Violet Sea Snail

Sailor Profit "B" nib running Van Dieman's Night - Shooting Star

 

 

 

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Erick --

 

Barry has a very broad range of new pens in all price ranges in stock. For example, he has the latest models from Montblanc, Cartier, Pelikan, Dupont, Delta, Caran D'Ache, Aurora, Omas, Visconti, Waterman, Parker, Montegrappa, Pilot Vanishing Points (including at least one orange LE), Monteverde, Krone, Think, Retro 51, Marlen, and many others, in all price ranges. His best sellers are probably Montblanc, Montegrappa, Visconti, and Retro 51. He does not have Lamy, Faber Castell, Conway Stewart, Pilot, Sailor, or Platinum in stock, but he can get them easily, and usually the next day by Fed Ex. He can get anything on the list of manufacturers shown on his website -- he just doesn't have them all in stock. His prices are very reasonable -- just ask him for his best price. Though he has a lot of FPs, he also has a fair number of rollerballs and ballpoints (that's what a lot of casual pen users actually use and you have to carry what people will buy, not just what you think they should buy).

 

Barry also has a huge selection of Ink (go figure), including just about every color you can get from Private Reserve, Noodlers, and Diamine, as well as Montblanc black and my favorite Aurora Blue. He doesn't carry Waterman, Pelikan, or Herbin inks because there are other places in town where you can get them. No one else carries P.R., Noodlers, or Diamine that I am aware of. In addition to bottles, he has a lot of cartridges (P.R. and Diamine make many of their colors in cartridges).

 

Although I love the new pens he carries (and have bought more than my fair share of them), what blows my mind about Ink is the stock of limited editions and other rare and unusual pens he has on hand. Anything you can think of, he probably has at least one of. He has every one of the Delta Indigenous Peoples pens in the same case -- in FP, RB, and BP. He also has a set of all of the limited edition Waterman Serenites. He has at least 6 Pilot maki-e pens with beautiful drawings on them in one case and many more in boxes in the back. He also has a $45,000 pen made of hand-carved green jade by Loiminchay next to a Graphyscaph and a set of Montegrappa Ferrari pens. In another case, he has every color combination of the David Oscarson pens, including some very rare ones. He has a stunning set of air-brushed Visconti Van Goghs. He has pretty much any Montblanc limited edition you can think of -- and many multiple times over. He has more Jules Verne sets, for example, than anyone. Montblanc sometimes calls him looking for things if they don't have them and have a customer who's looking for something. He has many rare Duponts, and lots of classic collector pens from Pelikan, Visconti, Omas, and Loiminchay. His prices for these collector pens are at market rates -- and Barry knows the market very well (or knows who to call to find out the market). If you like high-end collector pens and have something you've been looking for but can't find, call him and see if he has one. Chances are good he will. (Don't bother asking him about a green Omas Arco. He doesn't have one -- I've asked many times. If he ever gets one, it's mine.) His goal is to sell his collection, not to keep it, and he sets his prices accordingly.

 

I am extremely grateful to Barry for spending so much time showing me his collection and giving me a behind-the-scenes look at the retail pen business (I doubt I would have received such an education at Paradise Pens at the Mall of America). For me, going to Ink is more like going to a museum or a nice restaurant or a good theater than going to a store -- it's not just a place to buy pens, it's a place to experience the world of pens.

 

If you haven't already guessed, I really like Ink.

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I wish I lived within a couple hundred miles of the place. I'd make an appointment.

 

 

RAPT

Pens:Sailor Mini, Pelikan Grand Place, Stipula Ventidue with Ti Stub nib, Pelikan M605 with Binder Cursive Italic, Stipula Ventidue with Ti M nib, Vintage Pilot Semi-flex, Lamy Vista, Pilot Prera

For Sale:

Saving for: Edison Pearl

In my dreams: Nakaya Piccolo, custom colour/pattern

In transit:

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Thank you, Mike and rrossinck, for the lowdown on Ink. If I'm in the area, I will make sure to visit the store!

 

Erick

Using right now:

Visconti Voyager 30 "M" nib running Birmingham Streetcar

Jinhao 9019 "EF" nib running Birmingham Railroad Spike

Stipula Adagio "F" nib running Birmingham Violet Sea Snail

Sailor Profit "B" nib running Van Dieman's Night - Shooting Star

 

 

 

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