Xfountainpens - Legit?

[filedog]

I ordered an X750 from them, it is clearly a Jinhao, didn't think twice about that.

Whith xfountianpen you get your order in 3 days rather than 3 weeks, so that's part

of the higher charge. There's a thread somewhere about "bulow vs jinhao" referencing

pens from this seller. The x750 i got from xfountain pen has a better converter,

and was available in a selection of German (Knox) nibs. As others have mentioned,

the Knox are pretty darn nice. For about $20 including shipping, I am happy

with them. My pen came thru fine, so I have no cust. svc. experience. I had bought

and x750 from China, and I like the platform. Bit heavy, but well balanced, nice

feeling section. What I don't like about the China seller version is the one size fits

all nib. Mine was a WET wide medium, more like a broad. Nice enough, but wider than

I want. So, getting one with a better, narrower nib (my Knox is a true medium) works

well for me. So far the pen is perfect, right out of the box. Small writing sample

included too, so there was some testing done. Overall I'm satisfied. Hope you get

your issues resolved.

[SamCapote]

I can only vouch for having done two orders for the Knox K35 nibs for use in the Noodler's Ahab pens. Went flawlessly, just placed a third order for nibs. Reading this thread, I don't think I would use them for anything else though.

[SylvainP]

I've been happy with my purchase from them. The bulow x750 I got is much better than the jinhao x750 I bought on eBay (different feed, nib, converter) and works much better. The nib kit is very nice and use one on my ahab and one on the billow x750. Delivery was fast too.

[inkstainedruth]

I too was curious about them, especially since their mailing address is local-ish for me (although apparently just a maildrop or an office with a phone person, since the street number doesn't exist as far as I could tell: there's an alley -- Terminal Way, for those familiar with Pgh's South Side -- at that point with a bunch of warehouses that had offices and such, and presumably it's in there).

Contacted a friend who had a glowing customer review on Goulet Pens and asked whether he had ever dealt with xfountainpen. Friend said that he had gotten several X450s (IIRC) from them and was of the opinion that they were fine for testing out inks; also said that he had had good customer service from them, so YMMV....

At the moment I'm not to the point of ordering inks from anyplace (been pricing stuff on a whole lot of websites, and looking at the reviews here for colors and ink properties); the one local pen shop has a bunch of inks on backorder, but I was in there today (2/10/12) to pick up a Parker piston twist converter and the pen counter guy said he had a bunch of inks due to arrive in a couple of weeks. Local may not be as good pricewise as online, but OTOH you have to consider shipping costs in the price; while I couldn't afford to get a pen there at the moment, the converter seemed to be priced on par with what I saw elsewhere (some cheaper, some more) -- and $1.50 for meter parking, while expensive, is still probably cheaper than most of the shipping rates I saw unless I was making a big order from someplace.

I do like dealing face to face if I can -- and am a firm believer in "support your local (independent, if possible) businesses". I also like being able to see stuff up close and in person, rather than depending on variable color correction on monitors; as a knitter, i want to be able to feel as well as see the yarn (the only time I actually ordered online was because my LYS couldn't get me the color I wanted (special ordering from the specific supplier is problematic, apparently, unless you're putting a HUGE order and folding that into it). They tried for me gamefully anyway, and then called me up and told me to use one of the big online sites (and recommended one). Likewise, I want to be able to see, if at all possible, how the ink behaves; yes, I know that some sites do sample vials, and will likely go that route, but if I can get what I want locally, I will.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Penman1]

XFountain pens sells Jinhao pens under their own brand name. So, to answer your question, no they are not legit. They are simply re-branding. I have owned a couple of Jinhao pens and will never own another. The nib dries out overnight on all the Jinhao pens that I have owned.

 

Dan

I hope you don't mind my offering just a thought: some inks dry faster than others, which I'm sure you already know. While I'm not necessarily recommending Jinhao pens, I find that Montverde ink works well with most pens, which of course, ought to be capped when not in use.

[Penman1]

sorry - new here and not to add to the questioning... but i recently bought a few pens and ink from xfountainpens.com. shipping is quite speedy - but their email response is notta. also many times you call - no answer and it cycles over to a hold pattern for 5-10' each for 2-3 times and hangs up. I had a bad pen and tried to rectify the issue - but no clue where we stand - and then today I see a double charge and that should never have happened. wrote 2 emails last night and will see what happens.

 

on the flip side - so to speak, I wrote goulet a few times and get a pretty speedy response overall.

 

So are they legit or a bit shady?

 

and please - I am not bashing - just enquiring. I may have to find another place...

I've had a different experience with xFountainpens. I've always got quick response to my email queries. Now, while I rarely use my $600.00 Mont Blanc pens for daily use on regular paper, I find that xFountainpens' Nemosine Fission pens are absolutely without question the best pens you can buy for the money. EF nibs are touchy, but Fine nibs do the job. I use Monte Verde ink. Flow problems are extremely rare, and easily remedied by a quick cleaning with distilled water. As for named brands (the usual suspects, I would tend to purchase them via Fahrney's. Just fyi.

[Sasha Royale]

xFountainpens is in the business of selling fountain pens. Much of its line consists of "low-budget", Chinese pens, which

they sell at an inflated price. Nothing wrong with that.. There are better sources. They also buy bulk volumes of Diamine

ink, and repackage under the Chesterfield label. I think it is a good deal.

 

"Mail Order only" sellers are seldom well-staffed. Poor response is not unusual, though annoying, especially in case of error.

Contact your credit card provider and dispute the erroneous charge. Reconsider whether the savings are worthwhile.

 

Keep this in mind >>> A "mom and pop" business, in which "mom" quits, can become very difficult to operate smoothly.

 

All of my Jinhao fountain pens, with shipping, cost under $7 total. The range is "acceptable" to %&)(#$@! . Paying $15.95

is unlikely to improve the quality.

 

That said, I don't think anything "shady" is going on. I know a brick and mortar shop that sells $125 fountain pens at $149.

xFountainpens sells $10 pens at $15. Our local high school band sells $0.45 chocolate for $1 .

 

Welcome to capitalism..

[Oldtimer]

i order inks from them and they have a great deals this week. Always on great time to delivery and well packaged. I have no qualms about buying once in a while when i need things.

[LamyOne]

Hello Everyone,

 

Living only around an hour's drive away from Pittsburgh; I thought it my civic duty to purchase stuff from Xfountainpens.

 

My experiences have been hit and miss, e.g., I purchased a Nemosine Fission and couldn't get any ink out of it; I complained and the following day I had a free replacement! I couldn't get much more ink out that one though. After doing some tweeking, I was able to turn one of them into a fairly decent writer, but the Fission is too heavy for my tastes.

 

Then, being the glutton for punishment that I am, I purchased a couple of Nemosine Singularities from them, but this time, I specifically asked them to tune the pens to be wet writers. A couple of days later, I received the pens and they are both nice, wet writers, (both were tuned by "SS").

 

I have also purchased De Armentis inks from them in the past; one time, they didn't have the color I ordered, so they gave me a bottle of the closest match to it, PLUS a free bottle of my choice.

 

Bottom line, I would buy from them again if I wanted another Singularity or something, but I think you are best off if you buy from them directly, (skip Amazon), and then tell them exactly what you want - don't leave it to "pot-luck."

 

Best regards,

 

Chris

Edited September 18, 2014 by LamyOne

[them700project]

I still have yet to figure out how they can sell a pen from China for 1.49 us and package and ship them to the US granted they are Epackets so they take about a month to get. But ebay and paypal get a cut out of that 1.49 too :Scratches Head:

 

When it comes to the cheep I like Some of the hero.s with C/C I think the 399e is the one i got that worked fairly well

[ajcoleman]

Generally I have been very pleased with the service from xfountain. I have not had any issues with shipping, or any service calls. That said, when I order a cheap pen I shouldn't be surprised when I get a cheap pen. The pen I had from them was a good writer, but the nipple on the feed that pierces the ink cartridge broke off when I tried to insert a cartridge, so that pen was ruined. I have ordered two bottles of Chesterfield ink and love it. I will definitely order from then again.

[Christi0469]

My one order from them was flawless. While I don't have a reason to order from them often I would not hesitate to use them again. It's a shame that you are having issues with their customer service, but I think it is due to the proprietor being overwhelmed rather than the proprietor being shady. Still it is no way to run a business.

[RNHC]

I still have yet to figure out how they can sell a pen from China for 1.49 us and package and ship them to the US granted they are Epackets so they take about a month to get. But ebay and paypal get a cut out of that 1.49 too :Scratches Head:

 

When it comes to the cheep I like Some of the hero.s with C/C I think the 399e is the one i got that worked fairly well

 

Time is money. Think of it as paying extra to save a month of waiting.

 

That being said, I concur with others on xfountainpen's customer service (or lack thereof). As for my experience, I was sent a wrong pen. Despite multiple emails and phone calls, I had to wait quite a bit to get a response. Needless to say, the lack of response was very frustrating. However, once I got hold of them, the problem was resolved very quickly.

 

I agree with the previous poster that I don't think it's intentional. I think xfountainpen customer service is simply overwhelmed. I have a nagging suspicion that it's a part time side gig that's operated out of someone's garage or a cheap office space somewhere.