New maker 气泡 air-bubble with a modified snorkel mechanism

[hssqq]

I haven't purchased because the stock was sold out in seconds. 

Is it sold out because it good or worth it? No one knows.
The item was released, advertised, but stock is maybe 20 or 50, over hundreds of people who know about it.
The brand feels happy, and the people who successfully placed order feel happy. But more people are unhappy.

 

[VillersCotterets]

I’m curious what you’re hoping to share with this post. It would be great to see the pen or learn a bit more about this new brand—maybe even a link so we can check it out ourselves. You mentioned you haven’t had the chance to buy one yet, but I’d really like to know what caught your attention about it.

[inkstainedruth]

Honestly?  My opinion of Chinese brands has gone done since I started out.  Because they tend to either be knockoffs of better brands, or outright fakes of those better brands.  Even the Hero 616 someone gave me?  I think it's a fake of a Hero 616.  (The guy bought a 10 or 12 pack of the pens to try them out, and was giving them away at a pen club meeting a few years ago to whoever was interested.)  And while it writes?  It writes like the $1 pen it probably cost him.  And someone else gave me a Jinhao 599, a knockoff of a Lamy Safari or al-Star.  And that writes like the $5 pen it is.  The only good thing was that it taught me that I could get used to the triangular grip on a real Safari or al-Star.

Heck, I paid less for the vintage Parker 41 I found in a shoebox full of mostly ballpoints at an estate sale a number of years ago than the guy paid for the "Hero 616" he gave me.  

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[hssqq]

15 minutes ago, VillersCotterets said:

I’m curious what you’re hoping to share with this post. It would be great to see the pen or learn a bit more about this new brand—maybe even a link so we can check it out ourselves. You mentioned you haven’t had the chance to buy one yet, but I’d really like to know what caught your attention about it.

I am sharing the info about a new brand. 气泡 is the keyword, the name of the brand. Combine it with translation of fountain pen/snorkel, and you can see there is already some stuff on bilibili, taobao and Baidu.
I want to share the news, but I don't want the brand to benefit from my post becasue I am an angry wanna-be customer, that's the point. So I share my disappointment about the marketing and PR of this new brand.
 

[VillersCotterets]

When I don’t feel like promoting a brand, I just leave it out and move on. Maybe your boycott would have more impact if you did the same, and shared your feedback directly with them—it might actually help them improve.

[hssqq]

15 minutes ago, inkstainedruth said:

Honestly?  My opinion of Chinese brands has gone done since I started out.  Because they tend to either be knockoffs of better brands, or outright fakes of those better brands.  Even the Hero 616 someone gave me?  I think it's a fake of a Hero 616.  (The guy bought a 10 or 12 pack of the pens to try them out, and was giving them away at a pen club meeting a few years ago to whoever was interested.)  And while it writes?  It writes like the $1 pen it probably cost him.  And someone else gave me a Jinhao 599, a knockoff of a Lamy Safari or al-Star.  And that writes like the $5 pen it is.  The only good thing was that it taught me that I could get used to the triangular grip on a real Safari or al-Star.

Heck, I paid less for the vintage Parker 41 I found in a shoebox full of mostly ballpoints at an estate sale a number of years ago than the guy paid for the "Hero 616" he gave me.  

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

IMHO at this moment, year of 2025, a decent Chinese pen that writes well out of box costs 50-100RMB.
This is the price range that you expect a good writer, and replacement can be guaranteed if it doesn't write. 

[hssqq]

1 minute ago, VillersCotterets said:

When I don’t feel like promoting a brand, I just leave it out and move on. Maybe your boycott would have more impact if you did the same, and shared your feedback directly with them—it might actually help them improve.

Internet surfing is just different in China. Thank you anyway.

[inkstainedruth]

I don't know what "RMB" stands for.  I was trying to look it up on a website that does instantaneous exchange rates for different currencies, to see what "50-100 RMB would be in US dollars, but couldn't find it listed.

As for the replacement guarantees?  I'm a little dubious about that.  Especially given the current brouhaha here  in the US about tariffs.  So, I'll pass.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Dan Carmell]

Someone—maybe you?—posted about this coming up, I think. It was right about when news started coming out the PenBBS snorkel pen. I feel your disappointment but you’ve scored a lot of nice pens lately, this one got away! I hope there’s a second round and you get one. 
 

Have you seen photos of the PenBBS snorkel? I saw some on FB. 

[inkstainedruth]

No.  Don't think it was me talking about this pen (I never heard of it until seeing this thread this morning).   As for the PenBBS snorkel?  I have plenty of vintage (and REAL) Snorkels already....  Don't need a knockoff one.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Dan Carmell]

59 minutes ago, inkstainedruth said:

No.  Don't think it was me talking about this pen (I never heard of it until seeing this thread this morning).   As for the PenBBS snorkel?  I have plenty of vintage (and REAL) Snorkels already....  Don't need a knockoff one.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

Sorry, Ruth that was intended for another commenter. And given your take on Chinese pens, I wouldn’t me asking you!

[inkstainedruth]

Yeah, I've had that happen -- responding to someone and before I hit the "send" button someone else has posted....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[drakolord]

10 hours ago, hssqq said:

I haven't purchased because the stock was sold out in seconds. 

Is it sold out because it good or worth it? No one knows.
The item was released, advertised, but stock is maybe 20 or 50, over hundreds of people who know about it.
The brand feels happy, and the people who successfully placed order feel happy. But more people are unhappy.

 

Penbbs 555 looks better. But that is my 2 cent.

[hssqq]

12 hours ago, Dan Carmell said:

Someone—maybe you?—posted about this coming up, I think. It was right about when news started coming out the PenBBS snorkel pen. I feel your disappointment but you’ve scored a lot of nice pens lately, this one got away! I hope there’s a second round and you get one. 
 

Have you seen photos of the PenBBS snorkel? I saw some on FB. 

Yes I seen photos. PenBBS runs more exclusively. Many models and nib options only for their little core group.

[Dan Carmell]

On 11/5/2025 at 9:41 PM, hssqq said:

Yes I seen photos. PenBBS runs more exclusively. Many models and nib options only for their little core group.

Yes, that’s why I didn’t look into their 559, it was just too difficult to figure out what was available and what was exclusive. 

[hssqq]

The maker actually posted on Reddit about this pen like 4 months ago. Somehow they chose to sell this first batch to domestic market.
I managed to get one after all. It is not a beautiful one but the mechanism really works.

Search "A new snorkel fountain pen" and check out my video on YTB.