Visionnaire Fountain Pen

[mikehodgman]

I wanted to like this pen, but this guy is a hack. You can tell after about 5 minutes of reading his KickStarter page that this guy doesn't know a thing about pens. Ah well, maybe Karas Kustoms will make a fountain pen some day.

[XiaoMG]

I kind of like it...nice and simple without being chunky. Don't like the way it's adverised but the basic boring design is refreshing.

 

I think I'm going to start carrying an FP in my pants pocket now that I know it's taboo.

[coyotewhisper]

Like many have said he knows very little about the fp culture. Do we need another generic looking pen?

[bigd]

I kind of like it...nice and simple without being chunky. Don't like the way it's adverised but the basic boring design is refreshing.

 

I think I'm going to start carrying an FP in my pants pocket now that I know it's taboo.

I carry my safari in my pocket everyday.. i might get burned but until then..

[RMN]

I think I'm going to start carrying an FP in my pants pocket now that I know it's taboo.

It's not taboo, just remove the pen when you're sitting in my chairs, or be prepared to pay damages for inkstains.

 

I don't really mind if you want to ruin your own clothes or furniture.

 

And I would not think it comfortable. I have put a plastic comb in my back pocket before, but is was uncomfy. I don't do that any more.

 

D.ick

[Anabasis]

This looks like the most generic pen design one could think of, being passed off as the product of a hard bit of designing. As was brought up on the last Pen Addict podcast, this could very well be simply put together from a catalog of already-existing parts from the manufacturer. Doesn't make it bad, just not as original as we are being led to believe.

 

I agree with the question "what can it do that a $15 dollar Pilot Metropolitan can't?", adding that Pilot is also a quality, established brand while this unknown pen of mysterious Chinese manufacture costs more than twice as much.

[dragondazd]

Like many have said he knows very little about the fp culture. Do we need another generic looking pen?

Not sure why it's important to know the culture... an outsider may do said culture some good. One should know the market, including potential customers and product line though.

[heymatthew]

I backed it. Mostly out of curiosity. I've spent way more money on pens that totally sucked and I've spent much less on pens that totally rocked. It's manufactured in China, yes. But so are TVs, Cellphones, iPads, iPods, Computers, Cars, Can Openers, Pocket Knives, Bookbags, Jeans, Socks, Underwear, Shampoo, Soap, Bottled Water...

 

I find it slightly amusing that all this talk of "Chinese Manufacture" has come up around this Kickstarter project when there are literally thousands of posts on this forum about Chinese-made pens that are perfectly fine.

 

I think if we all had such a big issue with Chinese-made, we'd be living in hand-built log cabins with no modern electronics or vehicles. Or is it okay to pay $700 for a Chinese-made iPhone that costs $123 to make, but it's not okay to pay $37 for a Chinese-made fountain pen that cost $7 to make?

[heymatthew]

Oh, also, I've got a bottle of Parker Quink that I bought in about 2006 or 2007 when I got my first fountain pen. Still half-full. So I guess a bottle of ink could last 10 years... Especially if you're rotating inks quite frequently, as I do.

Edited September 5, 2013 by heymatthew

[kauloltran]

Where did those 5803+ backers come from?

[OnePenGuy]

So, (in your opinion), was this ks project so popular because it was average enough to appeal to the "lay" ks backer?

 

Or, for instance, the Pen Type-A, any pen from Chadwick and Joe, or any from Karas Kustoms seem to be popular (in terms of the amount funded) because they seem to be "new" to the general public, and also because the pledges levels are at a price point which folks can easily back without thinking too much about the "investment". Is that the same with this fp? It's basic enough to appeal to a bunch of folks, and not be too pricey to back?

 

Because, for a few different types of projects, I've seen some items which seem to be more original, or have more thought into the design and build quality, but they have a higher price point, and, though they may be better products or worth the extra $$$, fewer folks (and dollars) seem to be attracted to them. That doesn't make sense to me - it seems that the better quality (and sometimes therefore more expensive) projects should get more backers, just because they're worth it. Though "worth" or "value" or "quality" is all subjective, huh?

[heymatthew]

So, (in your opinion), was this ks project so popular because it was average enough to appeal to the "lay" ks backer?

 

Or, for instance, the Pen Type-A, any pen from Chadwick and Joe, or any from Karas Kustoms seem to be popular (in terms of the amount funded) because they seem to be "new" to the general public, and also because the pledges levels are at a price point which folks can easily back without thinking too much about the "investment". Is that the same with this fp? It's basic enough to appeal to a bunch of folks, and not be too pricey to back?

 

Because, for a few different types of projects, I've seen some items which seem to be more original, or have more thought into the design and build quality, but they have a higher price point, and, though they may be better products or worth the extra $$$, fewer folks (and dollars) seem to be attracted to them. That doesn't make sense to me - it seems that the better quality (and sometimes therefore more expensive) projects should get more backers, just because they're worth it. Though "worth" or "value" or "quality" is all subjective, huh?

 

Well, if I'm half as impressed with the Visionnaire as I was with the Pen Type A, then it'll be a win. After waiting just over a year for the Pen Type A, listening to the manufacturing horror stories, seeing the stolen concept poorly integrated into a pen on Fab (then seeing that pen removed from Fab) and receiving my pen, I was less than impressed. Sure, it's precise and came in a pretty box (essentially a square peg in a round hole with a round peg in a square with a round hole...), but it ruins cartridges. I've gone through at least a handful of perfectly good Hi Tec C cartridges that just failed due to the tip being seated against the metal innards of the Pen Type A's "sleeve" and they just have a tendency to dry out and get messed up from the vacuum created by removing the pen from the "sleeve".

 

They're selling the Pen Type A for $150 now (I think I paid like half of that for the KS). I'd value it at maybe $35 to $50 because it's really just a novelty. Shoot, at least the Visionnaire seems to write.

 

I think part of the fun of Kickstarter is not in getting a $500 item for the early bird price of $25, but in watching something being made. Sure, I'm disappointed with the Pen Type A, but it was a hell of a lot of fun watching it be made... Right up until they decided to switch manufacturers. Then it got frustrating.

Edited September 5, 2013 by heymatthew

[BT-7274]

Since this actually retails after the kickstarter for $80, the question is now, 'what can this pen do that a Targa/51/Vacumatic/Balance/Imperial/45 can't?'. I mean, one could, without doubt, source the above pens, in restored condition for under the $80 mark. With some luck, perhaps, but still a doable thing.

 

...And let's not get started with the modern stuff it would be competing with, like the Parker Sonnet, Sheaffer Prelude, Lamy Studio, Pelikan M150(pushing it, but it's there), TWSBI 580/Vac, Hero 100/200, and so on.

[heymatthew]

Since this actually retails after the kickstarter for $80, the question is now, 'what can this pen do that a Targa/51/Vacumatic/Balance/Imperial/45 can't?'. I mean, one could, without doubt, source the above pens, in restored condition for under the $80 mark. With some luck, perhaps, but still a doable thing.

 

...And let's not get started with the modern stuff it would be competing with, like the Parker Sonnet, Sheaffer Prelude, Lamy Studio, Pelikan M150(pushing it, but it's there), TWSBI 580/Vac, Hero 100/200, and so on.

 

I think this is a problem with a lot of Kickstarter products. The Pen Type A retails now for $150. It doesn't perform like a $150 object, though. The Pebble Smart watch retails now for $150, but I think that's a drop from where it was originally supposed to be. Does it perform like a $150 item? Nope. Early adopters were largely disappointed and the product was ultimately a flop. I've seen a lot of stuff on Kickstarter that is an okay value at the "early bird" pricepoint, but the retail price is significantly out of touch with reality.

 

I don't think the Visionnaire will be worth anywhere near $80. But for $35, I figured I might give it a shot. Shoot... I'll burn through a lot more money than that at the shooting range this weekend.

[Centopar]

I agree: dude is a hack (did you see the video where he fills the thing with what appears to be airbrushing ink?) - but he appears to have found a market for the pen if the funds he's raised are anything to go by. And if that's the case, I'm all for it: if more people are exposed to fountain pens, and, after playing with the Visionnaire, decide to explore a little deeper, that can only be a good thing. Right?

 

(Still sticks in my craw a little, just because he seems to know and care so little about the matter in hand. But I still think the results for the community could be good.)

Edited September 5, 2013 by Centopar

[OnePenGuy]

I don't think the Visionnaire will be worth anywhere near $80. But for $35, I figured I might give it a shot. Shoot... I'll burn through a lot more money than that at the shooting range this weekend.

So, to you (and/or others) - how do you think the pens from this ks project compares to offerings from Rosetta? Does it bring anything new?

Edited September 9, 2013 by OnePenGuy

[heymatthew]

So, to you (and/or others) - how do you think the pens from this ks project compares to offerings from Rosetta? Does it bring anything new?

 

I've never used a Rosetta or the Visionnaire so I can't say for sure, but I do like the looks of the Rosetta pens better than the Visionnaire. If I were going to spend $80 on a pen, I wouldn't look twice at the Visionnaire. But I'd definitely consider the Rosetta (or a TWSBI or Lamy or a whole host of other pens).

 

I think the Visionnaire is a $35 product. I think the Rosetta is worth the asking price from what I can tell.

 

Honestly though, you could take a Schmidt or Bock nib and feed and shove it into the end of a stick and it would write the same as if you put it in a solid gold rod. Pens are weird things. Some people wouldn't give a half-eaten sandwich for a TWSBI, but I wouldn't trade my TWSBI's for anything. Others are infatuated with Mont Blanc, but I couldn't really care less about them. I think the beauty of pens, much like other things, is in the eye of the beholder.

 

I feel like the Visionnaire is worth $35. I feel that it's nowhere near an $80 product. And I see nothing new that it brings that hasn't been brought 10,000 times before. So no. It brings nothing new. It's just shiny and I'm kin to a raccoon and have a tendency to be drawn to shiny things.

 

OOH! What's that over there!?

[Wheatflower]

I find it slightly amusing that all this talk of "Chinese Manufacture" has come up around this Kickstarter project when there are literally thousands of posts on this forum about Chinese-made pens that are perfectly fine.

 

I myself don't have a problem with Chinese-made pens; I have a few and they are decent writers. I am quite certain that someone who knew what they were doing could give a Chinese factory a spec sheet for a pen of a given quality and that factory would faithfully turn out pens that matched that spec. However. This is a KS run by someone who thought that "Iridium Point Germany" nibs were made in Germany, and I think this is a bad omen.

 

I understand your logic in backing it; I just wanted to point out there are reasons not to back it that are more than Chinese=bad.

[WirsPlm]

Hey, I thought I just bought one of these, it should be here next week. Oh wait, that was a Pilot Metropolitan. That I got for about 60% of what this guy is asking backers for.

 

The first thing that a wanna-be producer needs to do is research the market they're trying to break into. This guy doesn't even look like he's done that, so I'm not betting that he'll come out with a useable product, let alone one worth what he's asking.

 

Of all the kickstarters I've backed, the making-new-product ones are almost always over time, over budget, and have massive manufacturing problems. Especially the ones that relied on even semi-intricate machining or small parts. He doesn't look like he's contributing anything new. Pass.

Edited September 10, 2013 by WirsPlm

[ele]

There is absolutely nothing this pen brings to any fountain pen market, aside catering from the hipsters who think it is cool to use and are convinced by the apple-esque advertising of this kick-starter project. The design is fine, but nothing that hasn't been done before; the clip and shape are both very similar to the TWSBI 580 and the upcoming new Montessa. This is classic Kickstarter exploitation.

Edited September 10, 2013 by ele