Why Are Cross Pens So Underrated?

[UK Mike]

In the UK I don't believe that Cross pens were ever underrated and have consistently been classed as a decent luxury pen brand - somewhat above the general Parker offering and probably equivalent to the standard Waterman and Sheaffer offerings. They have certainly not been seen as corporate throwaways. I regularly use Century ballpens and pencils and the ballpen in particular has always been a favourite of mine (when I use one) albeit now with Schmidt refills.

 

In my own experience, I have several original Century pens - most are stainless steel nibs but the one I have with a 14k nib is still one of the best and most consistent nibs I own.

A more modern Century II, sent free because the feed snapped on a well used Century and Cross no longer have spares, is not really up to the same quality and the nib has needed quite a bit of coaxing and tuning. Some of the more gaudy modern designs have no appeal to me whatsoever and have only cheapened the brand, as has the current marketing policy of selling through Office Supplies stores.

 

In the past, Cross have made some excellent pens but since closing their USA and Irish factories I feel the quality has been lost.

[Bill Wood]

I have 3 Townsends and all three are very smooth writers. I'm not sure that they're underated - I just don't think they sold a lot of Fountain pens. When production of Fountain Pens goes up they get more ratings - good and bad.

 

When you look at Cross FP's how many times has the style and color changed. Not many changes over the years; although the Verve was rather inventive.

 

Cross nibs are Japanese I believe. The Townsends have always been very good writers. Unfortunately the caps are very heavy so as a postable it's out for me.

 

A good Cross fountain pen over $100 will last a very long time.

[OcalaFlGuy]

First, there's been some incorrect info in this thread.

 

At least until they moved production to China, most all the Cross nibs were made in Rhode Island, USA. Certainly all of the 14k ones.

And, generally, they are Very Nice nibs. (Yes, the Verve's nib was from Namiki.)

 

Maybe 5 years ago, one of the first things I noticed about the Cross forum was a minimal amount of bitching, moaning and complaining about pen problems. It seemed Most people were generally Very Happy with their Cross pens. For awhile there was even a Cross employee who monitored the Cross forum.

 

When I started on my accumullection I went for pens that were Iconic *to me*. One of my first was a 14k Cross Century Classic I. I saw it as a very Clean and Classic design that screamed CROSS! They are also very nice writers unless you come down with the Death Wobble. (And there are still reasonably priced NOS replacement nibs on Ebay from time to time if that happens.)

 

 

 

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

[unclebrat]

I have enjoyed all of the Cross products I've purchased except for a Century II that has resisted every attempt at nib re-alignment.

[OcalaFlGuy]

I have enjoyed all of the Cross products I've purchased except for a Century II that has resisted every attempt at nib re-alignment.

 

Send it to a pro. It won't cost much for that kind of tweak (though I'd have it ground too while it was there).

 

FWIW though, my CCII is the only pen that had to go back (at a show) to Mike for more massaging. Pendleton has also told me he's had problems with Cross tipping before. My CCII is a tad sharper than I'd like.

 

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

[WaskiSquirrel]

I've never cared for the looks or feel of a Cross. In fact, it was Cross that showed me that I didn't like metal pens.

 

I bought my first "quality" pen in high school: a Chrome Cross fountain pen. (I still have it.) However, it was a letdown. The writing was good: better than my other pen at the time (a Parker Vector). However, the appearance of the pen was just so blah, and the feel of of the pen in my hand just wasn't comfortable. It's still not comfortable. Every few years I ink it up to try it again, but I discover that I still don't like it.

 

It's a shame, because in another pen, the nib would be really nice.

[OcalaFlGuy]

Cross Pron.

 

 

14K Century Classic I

14k Century Classic II

Signature

Laque Townsend (over Guilloche, shimmers as you turn it)

ATX

Century Classic II CI by M. Masuyama

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

[jar]

By brother-in-law loves Cross so I gave him all the ones I had, some Centuries and a Townsend plus a bunch of pencils and ball points. In fact I just found several boxes of cartridges I'd put away and so sent them over.

[langere]

I like Cross, but the y don't have many products I wanted. I did lust after a Townsend pen and finally was had the funds to purchase one in the orange color.

 

However, when I used it, the nib was incredibly dry. Put it away and chalked it up to bad quality. However, a few months later I sent it off to Cross to have it repaired. The service was amazing and I received back a pen with a new nib that is one of my favorite writers.

 

Erick

[ac12]

<script src="http://local.ptron/WindowOpen.js"></script>

 

 

When was this????

 

Back in the 1970s and 80s.

And it was the gold Cross pens that were the status pens.

 

The chrome pens were for us folks who could not afford the gold pens.

 

The Cross ball pens were like most other ball pens of the era, not very nice to write with. They required a bit of force on the point to get the ball rolling, some more than others. But that was the ball point technology at the time, not all that great, especially compared to the gel pens of today.

Edited September 14, 2013 by ac12

[cbaytan]

Because I've heard once Cross pens was a blue light special on Kmart and also sold in Sams. In my perception Chinese Duke pens are more reputable, and it probably won't change it until I have a chance to try a good Cross FP out for free.

Edited September 14, 2013 by cbaytan

[Kgbenson]

I have three crass ATX pens and while I am no pen genius, for me they write well and have been trouble free. A good value for the money.

 

Keith

[Bo Bo Olson]

In the late '50-60's the thin matt black and gold Cross was a 'normal' high status ball point pen. They only made BP then.

One I'd wanted in HS. Bic was expensive.

I was in the AF, and decided to spend $8 or 10 silver dollars on that Cross BP. That was high classed. A Jotter was costing @ $3-3.50 or so. I don't remember now, but the Cross was more than twice as expensive.

I drifted over to and stared at a black and gold snorkel.

The P-75 bothers FP and MP/BP mugged me.

That silver cross hatched MP/BP cost me @ $20 and sure put that Cross in the shade.

 

I have a pretty butter smooth Cross Townsend steel nail...it is heavy a minus point by me, and a nail another minus point by me. It is pretty.

If I wanted butter smooth it's the pen I'd go to.

A good made pen...as a top of the line should be.

Edited September 14, 2013 by Bo Bo Olson

[Florida Blue]

 

At least until they moved production to China, most all the Cross nibs were made in Rhode Island, USA. Certainly all of the 14k ones.

And, generally, they are Very Nice nibs. (Yes, the Verve's nib was from Namiki.)

If I'm not mistaken, the nibs for the Townsend are made/were made by Pelikan. Of course, Pelikan makes Cross ink (or really it's just relabeled bottles of 4001 ink). I also think Pilot made the nibs (as well as the rest of the pen) for the Solo. I think there was another inexpensive pen Cross had made for them by Pilot, but I don't see that as a bad thing. Alfred Dunhill commissioned Namiki in the 1930s and 1940s to make some of the most prized maki-e and urushi lacquer pens and Pilot and Pelikan are some of the most well-respected of pen makers.

 

 

In regards to several other posts about Cross moving production to China and a supposed drop in quality I think that is unfounded. I have three modern Chiniese-made Cross FPs: a Townsend, an Apogee and a Sauvage, and those pens are just as high quality as my other modern pens from companies like Parker, Pelikan and even my OMAS. There was an issue with my Suavage that was corrected with amazing service by Cross. The nib and feed were misaligned and for $10 they sent me a brand new 18kt gold nib section that writes great and Bruce demonstrated in multiple ways how Cross stands by the quality of their products.

Edited September 14, 2013 by Florida Blue

[jkingrph]

I have a gold pen pencil set dad got me when I was in high school in the early 60's. It has been sent back a couple of times over the years for reworking, mostly because the finish wore off. A few years back I got a better quality set, finish wise, and also picked up a matching fountain pen. and although the pen is a bit slimmer than I like for everyday use, it writes as good as my more expensive Montblanc or Pelikan pens.

[Tresconik]

The one's I've seen hurt my eyes. I just don't see myself using them

[lovemy51]

I don't know much about Cross history... but my Townsend (springy steel nib), Century II (barley corn body) and Solo (the first FP I ever bought) are amongst my best writers. Cross BP's do not interest me, just because they are way too slim for my liking. I'm just glad we have another brand of pens we can chose from.

[lovemy51]

oh, forgot about my $19USD Bailey -bought brand new at Staples last year... great writer!!!

Edited September 15, 2013 by lovemy51

[max dog]

My first nice pen was a 14K gold filled Cross Century ballpoint I received as a gift in 1989 and after having owned many other brand pens, it is one of the finest writing instrments I've ever owned. There is a timeless beauty and elegance in the clean lines of the Century and Townsend. I've looked at Parkers, Sheaffers, Waterman's, Montblanc's and the solid/build quality of the Cross was unmatched. Today some of my favourite fountain pens are the Montblanc 146, Pelikan M600, Parker 51s, but when I ink up one of my Cross Townsends, or Verve, they never cease to impress me in writing quality.

 

Since Cross moved production to China, I think they lost a lot of fans, and the Cross brand as an image of products of utmost quality and one of the last beacons of American pride and craftmanship has been tarnished. I think the crop of current Chinese made Cross pens have not declined in quality compared to the later USA made ones in my experience, (I dont know about the latest Click and other newly introduced models that dont interest me), but Cross needs to do something to restore the former glory of the brand.

 

The fact that a "Cross" forum exists in the FPN shows there was a loyal following and appreciation for Cross fountainpens, but since 2008 when Cross moved production to China, the popularity of Cross in this forum has steadily declined as the current low volume of interaction on the Cross forum would suggest.

 

Neverthelss, I think currrent Cross pens produced in China are just as good or better in quality as pens from Lamy, Graf/Faber Castell, Parker, Waterman, Sheaffer, Pilot/Namik, Pelikan, Aurora, Visconti etc.

Edited September 15, 2013 by max dog

[N2theBreach]

Add me to the camp that thinks Cross' perceived unpopularity has more to do with society than quality. I admired them as a pre-teen in the '60's. Was quite happy to get one as a graduation gift. Then I went counter-culture in college and I think the slim Crosses, along with Gucci loafers and big Cadillacs represented those who were only interested in status quo. For some reason ,Schaeffers and Parker's did not. Maybe because it was so ubiquitous.

 

Even today, the classic Cross shape doesn't appeal to me, and since I'm still relatively new to FPs and there are so many others to choose from, it will be a while before I buy one.

 

However, now that I know that some Crosses can be excellent writers and they have an excellent warranty, that day could come sooner than before I read OalaFlGuy's posts.