Brands You Will Never Buy From

[proton007]

 

Really? They send you a free fountain pen and you are disappointed because thirty years later they cannot or would not fix it? Talk about looking in the mouth of the gift horse!

 

According to the post the second pen they sent cannot be fixed as well, because its also out of production.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Sounds like a plan. I didn't buy my Konrad (Or should I say Konrads perhaps, as I am waiting for another one now) because of his politics, and I do agree that it seem a little bit strange to incorporate your political views on the product labels, but on the other end it's a bit extreme to refuse the brand just because your political views differ.

 

Politics are all over products everywhere. Every time you see the words 'sustainable,' 'ethical' or 'green,' that too is a political stance.

[nicholasyeo]

I would give every brand a chance, but for now it appears Sheaffer and Waterman are on the list.

[nicholasyeo]

I would give every brand a chance, but for now it appears Sheaffer and Waterman are on the list.

[pompa]

 

Politics are all over products everywhere. Every time you see the words 'sustainable,' 'ethical' or 'green,' that too is a political stance.

It should be, but I think that's more a marketing ploy than making a political point.

[wspohn]

 

Really? They send you a free fountain pen and you are disappointed because thirty years later they cannot or would not fix it? Talk about looking in the mouth of the gift horse!

 

Presumably that poster would also write off any of the auto manufacturers that couldn't supply some trim item he happened to break on a car he'd bought 30 years before as well (the auto manufacturers normally stock parts for 10 model years and some thing, like small trim specific to the cars aren't kept even that long).

 

I doubt that the poster would like the option of having to pay double or triple the freight for a new pen so the maker could afford to give, in essence, a warranty that they'd hold parts for 30 years after it was made.

 

Good luck with that sort of thing on any 30 year old consumer product - your 30 year old camera, fridge, computer (!) etc.

[79spitfire]

It should be, but I think that's more a marketing ploy than making a political point.

It's using a political point as a marketing ploy.

[79spitfire]

 

Presumably that poster would also write off any of the auto manufacturers that couldn't supply some trim item he happened to break on a car he'd bought 30 years before as well (the auto manufacturers normally stock parts for 10 model years and some thing, like small trim specific to the cars aren't kept even that long).

 

I doubt that the poster would like the option of having to pay double or triple the freight for a new pen so the maker could afford to give, in essence, a warranty that they'd hold parts for 30 years after it was made.

 

Good luck with that sort of thing on any 30 year old consumer product - your 30 year old camera, fridge, computer (!) etc.

 

I know auto manufactures (in this country) are obligated to maintain parts stores 5 years, 10 for some emissions parts. There are no regulations (that I'm aware of) for other manufactures with their products. In either event, products change, and eventually service parts run out.

 

I can't help but wonder if the poster expects another free pen, 60 years after the original purchase? All Parker did was sell his dad a pen! (how dare they!) Most 'lifetime' warranties only apply to the original purchaser.

[jar]

I am really disappointed with Parker since Sanford bought them out. In the '80's, I sent a FP that my grandfather gave me and while they could not fix it, they did send me a free FP along with my grandfathers pen for sentimental reasons. Now that the pen they sent needs service, they just say that that model is no longer in production and can't help. So now, Parker is off my list. I am interested in TWsBI piston filler but $60 USD?

 

Too freaking funny.

 

I imagine Parker is thrilled to be off your list.

[dontheo]

The only pen I will try to avoid is a counterfeit pen. I have found that most nibs on any modern pen are basically manufactured the same way. I would not exclude a pen on the manufacturer because I have had problems with a 5 dollar pen just as I have with a 300 dollar pen.

 

I think iam with JAR on this one. There is just nothing new that excites me or I want.

[proton007]

After giving it some more thought, I do feel some brands may be out of my list because of their image and target segment.

Some pens have been made for everyday people for everyday use.

Others are made as luxury items for showing off.

 

Oh, and pens with dual tone nibs. The Pelikan Souveran comes to mind. I like the pen, but the nib seems too flashy. I prefer their vintage nibs.

Edited July 31, 2013 by proton007

[heymatthew]

Right now, Levenger is at the top of my "Do Not Buy" list. I recently won an eBay auction for a Levenger L-Tech in Matte Black. It arrived without a cartridge or converter (which I knew going into it). I tried putting in a standard international cartridge and it wouldn't seat. I tried a converter and it wouldn't seat either. I called Levenger to see if I could buy a converter to fit and the girl that I spoke to said that the L-Tech series was known to have some issues accepting cartridges and converters and that they could send out a replacement part (the section, I guess). She asked my name and I told her and she said I wasn't in their system. I explained how I got the pen and she wouldn't honor any type of replacement parts because I didn't buy it directly from Levenger. Even though they acknowledge that the pens went out with an issue and that they had a replacement part for affected pens. It's no different than if Ford sold a car with faulty seat belts and issued a recall. If I was the 458th owner of the car and it had 4 million miles on the odometer, they would still honor the recall.

 

I finally talked to someone at Levenger who said she would send me a converter that she thought might work, but she charged me $5 shipping.

 

If they willingly acknowledge an issue with the pen, but won't honor their warranty because of where I purchased it, then I have no use for them. I should get my converter tomorrow. If it doesn't work, I'll have a useless Levenger in the classifieds. Free to a good home.

[de_pen_dent]

 

Politics are all over products everywhere. Every time you see the words 'sustainable,' 'ethical' or 'green,' that too is a political stance.

 

I cannot possibly imagine how "ethical", "green" or "sustainable" become reduced to a political stance, to be honest.

 

Back to the topic at hand, I cannot really think of a single brand I will never buy from. As of now, ST Dupont doesnt make anything I find particularly interesting, and while I want a Caran d'Ache LeMan, I find it too expensive for what it is. So at present, neither of these brands has anything I want, but that might change.

[UK Mike]

Right now, Levenger is at the top of my "Do Not Buy" list. I recently won an eBay auction for a Levenger L-Tech in Matte Black. It arrived without a cartridge or converter (which I knew going into it). I tried putting in a standard international cartridge and it wouldn't seat. I tried a converter and it wouldn't seat either. I called Levenger to see if I could buy a converter to fit and the girl that I spoke to said that the L-Tech series was known to have some issues accepting cartridges and converters and that they could send out a replacement part (the section, I guess). She asked my name and I told her and she said I wasn't in their system. I explained how I got the pen and she wouldn't honor any type of replacement parts because I didn't buy it directly from Levenger. Even though they acknowledge that the pens went out with an issue and that they had a replacement part for affected pens. It's no different than if Ford sold a car with faulty seat belts and issued a recall. If I was the 458th owner of the car and it had 4 million miles on the odometer, they would still honor the recall.

 

I finally talked to someone at Levenger who said she would send me a converter that she thought might work, but she charged me $5 shipping.

 

If they willingly acknowledge an issue with the pen, but won't honor their warranty because of where I purchased it, then I have no use for them. I should get my converter tomorrow. If it doesn't work, I'll have a useless Levenger in the classifieds. Free to a good home.

 

I'm guessing that there was a good chance that the Levenger pen was from someone who had used it, or at least not a full retailer to whom you could have requested a suitable converter as part of the deal?

 

If you bought your mythical Ford from a previous user and that user had removed the seat belts - would you seriously have expected Ford to send you new seat belts for FREE?

 

There is no saying where or how the eBay seller got the pen and Levenger seem to have been very fair in their resolution. In any purchasing contract, the obligation for service lies with the seller not the manufacturer. Thats how it works.

Edited July 31, 2013 by UK Mike

[orfew]

After giving it some more thought, I do feel some brands may be out of my list because of their image and target segment.

Some pens have been made for everyday people for everyday use.

Others are made as luxury items for showing off.

 

Oh, and pens with dual tone nibs. The Pelikan Souveran comes to mind. I like the pen, but the nib seems too flashy. I prefer their vintage nibs.

MBs are a luxury brand. I have a number of them and use them everyday. I do not think luxury pens and everyday pens are mutually exclusive. Also, you are implying that I am not an everyday person (whatever that means) because I use luxury pens. You do not know me well enough to make that assumption.

Best regards,

Orfew

[heymatthew]

 

I'm guessing that there was a good chance that the Levenger pen was from someone who had used it, or at least not a full retailer to whom you could have requested a suitable converter as part of the deal?

 

If you bought your mythical Ford from a previous user and that user had removed the seat belts - would you seriously have expected Ford to send you new seat belts for FREE?

 

There is no saying where or how the eBay seller got the pen and Levenger seem to have been very fair in their resolution. In any purchasing contract, the obligation for service lies with the seller not the manufacturer. Thats how it works.

 

In this case, since they acknowledged that there was a KNOWN issue with this particular model of pen, I think it should be repaired. It wasn't that I needed to get a converter and didn't want to buy one. The converter that is supposed to fit in the pen (a standard international size converter... the same as many fountain pens use) doesn't fit because of a manufacturing defect in that particular model.

 

No, I wouldn't expect Ford to give me new seatbelts, but if I had seatbelts and there was a known issue with said seatbelts, I would expect Ford to repair them regardless of owner history.

 

A good example of this would be the Canon EOS 5D camera released about 7 years ago. I had one from the early days. My wife got one used (we were the third owners) about 4 years ago. The mirror in the camera fell out. Canon knew that this was an issue with this particular camera. It didn't matter if you were the first or the twenty-first owner. They repaired it.

 

Levenger knows this particular pen has a defect, yet they refused to do anything about it because I didn't buy it from them. I offered to buy the necessary parts and they even refused to sell me the parts I needed. In my opinion, that's terrible customer service.

[proton007]

MBs are a luxury brand. I have a number of them and use them everyday. I do not think luxury pens and everyday pens are mutually exclusive. Also, you are implying that I am not an everyday person (whatever that means) because I use luxury pens. You do not know me well enough to make that assumption.

Best regards,

Orfew

 

Well, you can use a luxury pen everyday, as much as you want. Using expensive items in public carries a certain risk with it, and as long as you're willing to take that risk, I don't have anything against it.

 

Yes, I'm implying that you're not an everyday person because you're able to spend the premium on luxury brands, and that doesn't require me knowing you.

 

A lot of pens when launched in their day were made to be affordable and durable at the same time. Everyday pens for everyday people.

Edited August 1, 2013 by proton007

[79spitfire]

Levenger knows this particular pen has a defect, yet they refused to do anything about it because I didn't buy it from them. I offered to buy the necessary parts and they even refused to sell me the parts I needed. In my opinion, that's terrible customer service.

You didn't state in your first post that you had offered to purchase the parts. Many manufactures do not extend warranty coverage to second owners.

 

Personally I don't see why the would refuse to sell you the affected parts, but they are under no obligation to give them to you.

[Moynihan]

 

Do you have any brand you flat out refuse to buy from, or to buy from again? What's the story behind it?

Yes. A pen with the Levenger label on it. I got the original Levenger "True Writer" ones (faux marbling in green, black, white, orange, red...) bad writers, (write nice, soon skip a lot than stop... that is before running out of ink).

Once or so...bitten, twice shy

[Strombomboli]

Pens I'll never buy? Ballpoints. I rarely use the ones I have and there is a lifetime supply of unused, giveaway ballpoints in various drawers.

+1

I was astonished when I realized that you can actually BUY a ballpoint pen.

 

Had I not purchased my MB 149 nearly 25 years ago I might never have had one.

That's how my sister got her MB in 1990, when they were still producing normal pens for everybody. Still, it was an expensive pen for her at the time, but she's quite happy with it.

 

Yafa and Lamy because the customer service was so terrible.

In Germany, the customer service is splendid.