Which Indian pen wouldn't you buy again or recommend to anybody?

[Savit]

There is a similar thread for all pens here:

This thread will be only for Indian pens, specific models or brands...

Do let us know what you disliked in the pen that you wouldn't recommend to anybody..

 

 

[sgphototn]

I have about 15 Indian-made pens (not including the free pens often given when buying a regular pen).

 

Ranga, Lotus, ASA, FPR, and Guider. Eyedroppers and converters. Other than replacing Indian nibs with JoWo nibs, I would buy them all again.

 

While aesthetically I prefer some over the others, there's nothing wrong with any I've bought.

 

No doubt if I buy enough Indian pens I'll find one I don't like, but it hasn't happened yet.

[BayesianPrior]

I have three (fourth on the way).  Ranga 3C, 8B, and 3, with an ASA Nauka in the mail.  The only I wouldn't buy again is the Ranga 3, simply because I don't love the shape as much as the others. But there is nothing wrong with the pen.

[hari317]

8 hours ago, bestillmysoul said:

There is a similar thread for all pens here:

This thread will be only for Indian pens, specific models or brands...

Do let us know what you disliked in the pen that you wouldn't recommend to anybody..

 

 

Since you started this thread, probably you have an opinion or anecdote to share. What’s your list? 

[Yohaanrods]

Nothing that I don't like so far. You pay for what you get. Indian pens may not have the best finish. But their build quality is good. I generally stay away from the super cheap ones (20rs). They have a tendency to leak and their nibs are like nails

[knightars]

Bril pens.

 

Confession, bought a few of them them to round off online purchase cart (consisting mainly of colored inks) to Rs. 500. obviously the pens were super cheap, but thoroughly unreliable and scratchy to boot. 

[Savit]

10 hours ago, hari317 said:

Since you started this thread, probably you have an opinion or anecdote to share. What’s your list? 

 

 

Actually I do not have any pen that I wouldn't recommend from the ones I have used so far.

 

Pens I have used and liked:

• Pens from Kanwrite, Click, Beena/V'Sign, Airmail/Wality - and I found all of them (at least the models I have used) to be really good.
• Hand-made pens (ebonite eyedroppers with Indian nibs) from Deccan, Ranga, Guider, Gama and ASA.
• Camlin pens - Trinity, Elegante, Presa, 47, 36.
• Parker Frontier (Steel)

 

 

 

[sgphototn]

As an aside, I've been surprised at how good some of the 'free' pens that are included with pens like Ranga, ASA, and others. All are clear plastic and whatever smell they may have doesn't bother me.

 

Some are eyedroppers while others have a piston. While the nibs often need some smoothing, some are nice out of the box.

 

As to their longevity, I have no idea as I don't use them. But I have enjoyed giving some away to first-time pen users who like seeing the ink. It's also good to show someone new how a pen works.

 

 

 

 

[Savit]

1 minute ago, sgphototn said:

As an aside, I've been surprised at how good some of the 'free' pens that are included with pens like Ranga, ASA, and others. All are clear plastic and whatever smell they may have doesn't bother me.

 

Some are eyedroppers while others have a piston. While the nibs often need some smoothing, some are nice out of the box.

 

As to their longevity, I have no idea as I don't use them. But I have enjoyed giving some away to first-time pen users who like seeing the ink. It's also good to show someone new how a pen works.

 

 

 

 

 

I got a fellowship eyedropper fountain pen free with a Ranga pen. I was pleasantly surprised, because it was a pen I had previously used for several years until I misplaced it.

 

[amk]

I was pleasantly surprised even by real cheapies (15 rupee pens in the market in Chanderi!) except for Montex. Ugh what a nasty pen. I would rather write with a Bic Crystal. Other cheap brands like Camay were nice writers, robustly built and pleasant to use.

 

From the serious pen manufacturers, I have my favourites, but every pen I've bought has been good. Deccan, ASA, Ranga, Ratnam and Ratnamson, Guider - Guider Zimbo and ASA Nauka probably my favourites, and the big black matte Deccan.

[Shyahi]

I wouldn't recommend the entire Click pens to anyone.

Horrible experience as a first timer buying Click Aristocrat.

The maker Harsh Gagwani shouting is not at all tolerable.

Youe pens are faulty and even after replacing the nib its same (bleep) quality.

 

Instead of accepting it you don't shout 

 

Until and unless you don't say it openly as (bleep) pen quality they won't even respond.

 

Groups in fb are just for marketing thats it with only select few members respond.

 

After finally getting the entire pen replaced and tested before sending the pen writes

 

But the experience offered is bhi maf karo ehsan bahut karliye.

[Addertooth]

I cannot speak for his pens.  But my hard rubber orders from Ranga have been nothing but a waste of time. I bought some on ebay, then he sent a notice long after they should have shipped, claiming he needed more money for shipping (due to India Post being in shutdown, he needed to use a different shipper).  I complied and sent him a copy of the Paypal transfer.  All of this was back in October of 2020.  I have continued to reach out to Ranga, but for the past couple months, he does not reply.  He stalled and delayed past the window to leave a negative review, or get a refund.  However, others who didn't get what they ordered from him complained of the exact SAME behavior in their "feedback".  

 

He is on my "do not recommend EVER for any sort of purchase, not even one of his pens".

 

[Yohaanrods]

As for me, Ranga has been excellent. The responded to my mail on time and my pen was delivered within the promised time frame. With covid, deliveries have been a major issue

[jchch1950]

To buy pens without trying them before is always a risk. The new pen can be too big or too small with a different balance that you are not use or the nib is soft enough ,etc. There is always a possibility that a certain pen is not what you expected that has nothing to do with the pen itself. There are many pens that I will not buy again of any origen but most of them is because is not what I want and not  a problem of the pen by itself. Collecting and using fountain pens can be long term search for the perfect pen.

[sansenri]

On 7/28/2021 at 4:25 AM, Addertooth said:

I cannot speak for his pens.  But my hard rubber orders from Ranga have been nothing but a waste of time. I bought some on ebay, then he sent a notice long after they should have shipped, claiming he needed more money for shipping (due to India Post being in shutdown, he needed to use a different shipper).  I complied and sent him a copy of the Paypal transfer.  All of this was back in October of 2020.  I have continued to reach out to Ranga, but for the past couple months, he does not reply.  He stalled and delayed past the window to leave a negative review, or get a refund.  However, others who didn't get what they ordered from him complained of the exact SAME behavior in their "feedback".  

 

He is on my "do not recommend EVER for any sort of purchase, not even one of his pens".

 

This sounds rather odd to me...

I've had only good service from Ranga and whenever there was a problem, may happen, it has always been easy to get in touch to solve it.

What pen did you order? I'm wondering if there is any reason for such delay (material stock out?)

Mr. Kandan of Ranga is a FPN member, have you tried sending a PM to remind the issue, perhaps for some reason your pending issue has slipped past the to do list...

[sansenri]

My opinion reflects that of many here.

Most Indian pens are good performers and I cannot find one that I would recommend to avoid. Even the freebies can be a positive surprise, with normal warning that eyedroppers need some caution in use, and the cheaper nibs may need a touch of micromesh.

If you accept the possible small imperfections in the finish that are consequent of handcraft (but some brands are surprisingly perfect), and the good performance, value is usually solid, despite prices are somewhat on the rise.

[mhguda]

1 hour ago, sansenri said:

My opinion reflects that of many here.

Most Indian pens are good performers and I cannot find one that I would recommend to avoid. Even the freebies can be a positive surprise, with normal warning that eyedroppers need some caution in use, and the cheaper nibs may need a touch of micromesh.

If you accept the possible small imperfections in the finish that are consequent of handcraft (but some brands are surprisingly perfect), and the good performance, value is usually solid, despite prices are somewhat on the rise.

Seconded. wholeheartedly.

I have been buying Ranga pens via FPN for many years now, and not one has been a disappointment - to the contrary, I find that many of my favorites tend to be Rangas. Most are large, but the recent addition, Abhimanyu, is relatively small. I have two and absolutely love them. Both are inked and in regular use, even though they are recent arrivals...

[Addertooth]

16 hours ago, sansenri said:

This sounds rather odd to me...

I've had only good service from Ranga and whenever there was a problem, may happen, it has always been easy to get in touch to solve it.

What pen did you order? I'm wondering if there is any reason for such delay (material stock out?)

Mr. Kandan of Ranga is a FPN member, have you tried sending a PM to remind the issue, perhaps for some reason your pending issue has slipped past the to do list...

A couple days after my posting here, he sent me an E-Mail that he would refund the money I spent for some of his Hard Rubber Rods he was selling on eBay.  He followed through and refunded the money I had paid in October of 2020.  

 

I really did like the way his hard rubber rods looked (truly beautiful stock), I had intended to use some of it for pen repairs (I own a lathe and a milling machine).  I was even dabbling with the idea of making an entire pen from scratch.  Ultimately, he told me he had no way to ship it.  I ordered hard Rubber rods from an American seller instead.  I only note he advertises hard rubber rods through Amazon listings which can be seen today.  I provide the link below.  I would wonder why he is still advertising them on Amazon, if he cannot ship them. There appears to be no "exclusion for American purchasers" on that listing.

 

Amazon.com : EBONITE RODS-HARD RUBBER- RIPPLE DESIGN RARE 16mm-4 COLORS(BROWN, GREEN, OLIVE, BLACK) 10 RODS LOT : Other Products : Everything Else

[Jamerelbe]

@Addertooth, thanks for the follow-up post. I'm sorry you've had so much trouble getting things sorted with Ranga, but glad you did so.  It truly is a bit of a head-scratcher that he couldn't ship your rods - unless there's some weight restriction your order would have exceeded?

 

I have 10 Ranga pens, 8 of which I've ordered directly from them (via FPN group buys), and have never had any issues with them. The last two pens *did* have to be sent by courier, though, subsequent to the onset of COVID - which added about US$15 to the price I had to pay, but they got here in near-record time.

 

Of all the Indian pens I've bought, Ranga would be at the top of the list - not to mention some of the higher-end pens Fountain Pen Revolution sells (which I believe they design or co-design with a few different Indian companies, who then carry out the manufacturing work).  I don't love my Wality or Camlin pens as much - but that's more a matter of personal preference (I'm not a huge fan of piston filler pens, and found their nibs often needed realigning and/or a bit of smoothing).

[Addertooth]

7 hours ago, Jamerelbe said:

@Addertooth, thanks for the follow-up post. I'm sorry you've had so much trouble getting things sorted with Ranga, but glad you did so.  It truly is a bit of a head-scratcher that he couldn't ship your rods - unless there's some weight restriction your order would have exceeded?

 

I have 10 Ranga pens, 8 of which I've ordered directly from them (via FPN group buys), and have never had any issues with them. The last two pens *did* have to be sent by courier, though, subsequent to the onset of COVID - which added about US$15 to the price I had to pay, but they got here in near-record time.

 

Of all the Indian pens I've bought, Ranga would be at the top of the list - not to mention some of the higher-end pens Fountain Pen Revolution sells (which I believe they design or co-design with a few different Indian companies, who then carry out the manufacturing work).  I don't love my Wality or Camlin pens as much - but that's more a matter of personal preference (I'm not a huge fan of piston filler pens, and found their nibs often needed realigning and/or a bit of smoothing).

I am not shocked when pens arrive that need some nib "tuning".  I have bought new premium European pens which gained benefit from some nib work.  I will also throw in that each person is a bit different on how they expect a nib to feel (glassy versus feedback), as well as the angle they hold the pen at. I tend to like my nibs wetter than a lot of people as well. There is always a bit of a lottery factor whether a pen will come from the factory with a feel which is perfect for you.