I Come From China

[whoelse]

So you think Hero 100 and Wing Sung 400 are some of the better pens? Really? Good to know.

 

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But seriously, they look like very roughly made. Even the cheap Parker Vector ($8?) look much better made and likely the high cost are due to the gold nib. Don't get me wrong, I did not say this in any disrespectful way and they will likely last a long time. I have Hero 616 Doctor and I like them and have no problem with them they give a lot of value.

 

I have Duke, Kaigelu and Jinhao on the way, material wise I think they are quite quality definitely equal if not better than Hero. Maybe Hero have better reputation being the oldest pen company in China and maybe more experience in QC?

 

It is also not the first time I heard from Chinese enthusiast comment about brand like Duke or Kaigelu an preferred Hero and Wingsung. So there are likely some truth in it, my experience with Hero has been good. I have 616 Doctor, 330, 336, 339 all good writers.

Edited November 3, 2013 by whoelse

[wuhao]

Apart from the two major makers in Shanghai (Hero and Wing Sung), another major maker was Golden Star (also rendered as Jinxing or Kin Sin, but to be a hair-splitter it should really be Kim Seong). The company, if still nominally operational, has ceased to produce pens, although there was a resurgence in 2003 which produced some of the most astounding pens, even in a global standard. Unfortunately that ran out of puff as they focussed on the most exclusive and luxurious pens geared towards well-heeled collectors.

 

I am aware of dozens, perhaps more than a hundred different Chinese makers over the decades. Oddly enough one of my favourite makers is the now defunct Yongjiu based in Shaoyang city in Hunan; they never had a very extensive range but they work very well.

I don't think they wanted to focus on the luxurious pens but they have to do so.In 50s to 80s ,everybody used fountain pen,it was an amazing thing to have a nice fountain pen.Chinese people start to use the Oil pen from 80s.If a company still produces traditional fountain pen they will go bankrupt.

Maybe you will like the Luoshi fountain pen.

[Paul80]

Are there any Chinese made pens sold in China that match to top end production from pen makers around the world or are they all low cost item like we see for sale on the EvilBay. The likes of Parker produce pens for both ends of the market how about the likes of Jinhao, Hero etc.

 

Paul

[wuhao]

Is Hero Summer Color rubbish?

It's a fake. But out of the appearance .Hero Summer writes smoothly.

And this is not the Shanghai Hero but the Lishui Hero production.Shanghai Hero authorize Lishui Hero to produce Hero fountain pen ,but the quality of Lishui productions are even worse than Shanghai.

Edited November 3, 2013 by wuhao

[Seele]

I don't think they wanted to focus on the luxurious pens but they have to do so.In 50s to 80s ,everybody used fountain pen,it was an amazing thing to have a nice fountain pen.Chinese people start to use the Oil pen from 80s.If a company still produces traditional fountain pen they will go bankrupt.

Maybe you will like the Luoshi fountain pen.

 

I tend to like those made in the classic era before China "opened up", and I managed to amass a small collection featuring a fair number of long-forgotten makers, such as Jinyan from Jinan, Shandong, etc. While they tend to be quite modest they are witnesses of their times.

[Davis19942003]

It's a fake. But out of the appearance .Hero Summer writes smoothly.

And this is not the Shanghai Hero but the Lishui Hero.Shanghai Hero authorize Lishui Hero to produce Hero fountain pen ,but the quality of Lishui productions are even worse than Shanghai.

I know this pen because I watched Mr. Stephen Brown 's review. I saw the summer color on taobao, it's only 20~30 RMB and it's not expensive to ship it to Hong Kong. I am finding an inexpensive pen with fine nib. May be I should buy a Platinum Preppy instead.

[wuhao]

So you think Hero 100 and Wing Sung 400 are some of the better pens? Really? Good to know.

 

http://fountainpenergo.biz/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/-82132310528656662.jpg

http://img04.taobaocdn.com/imgextra/i4/61897483/T2xVxXXXdNXXXXXXXX_!!61897483.jpg

http://img04.taobaocdn.com/imgextra/i4/61897483/T2xVxXXXdNXXXXXXXX_!!61897483.jpg

 

But seriously, they look like very roughly made. Even the cheap Parker Vector ($8?) look much better made and likely the high cost are due to the gold nib. Don't get me wrong, I did not say this in any disrespectful way and they will likely last a long time. I have Hero 616 Doctor and I like them and have no problem with them they give a lot of value.

 

I have Duke, Kaigelu and Jinhao on the way, material wise I think they are quite quality definitely equal if not better than Hero. Maybe Hero have better reputation being the oldest pen company in China and maybe more experience in QC?

 

It is also not the first time I heard from Chinese enthusiast comment about brand like Duke or Kaigelu an preferred Hero and Wingsung. So there are likely some truth in it, my experience with Hero has been good. I have 616 Doctor, 330, 336, 339 all good writers.

The meaning of Hero 100（even the old Chinese pen） is not just a pen but a kind of spirit .Hero 100 means 100% beyond the Parker 51.Although everybody know 51 is much better than Hero ,but Hero 100 is also a nice production.Hero gave Chinese people a hope,we can produce something like American's.It's important for a new founding country.

A lot of Chinese people don't like Duke because Duke calls himself German Duke in China.Unless this ，i think they are equal.

Hero never make progress in quality since the first Hero 100 was born in 1963 . Chinese enthusiast refuse to buy the Hero 100 being produced after 1997.

Chinese enthusiasts think after 1997 the Hero was not the hero anymore.

[whoelse]

The meaning of Hero 100（even the old Chinese pen） is not just a pen but a kind of spirit .Hero 100 means 100% beyond the Parker 51.Although everybody know 51 is much better than Hero ,but Hero 100 is also a nice production.Hero gave Chinese people a hope,we can produce something like American's.It's important for a new founding country.

A lot of Chinese people don't like Duke because Duke calls himself German Duke in China.Unless this ，i think they are equal.

Hero never make progress in quality since the first Hero 100 was born in 1963 . Chinese enthusiast refuse to buy the Hero 100 being produced after 1997.

Chinese enthusiasts think after 1997 the Hero was not the hero anymore.

 

 

"Chinese enthusiasts think after 1997 the Hero was not the hero anymore." - What are the diff? Any review/comparison?

[Aramchek]

Chinese enthusiast refuse to buy the Hero 100 being produced after 1997.

Was there some specific change in 1997 that is the reason for this? How do I determine when mine was made? The paper with the serial number seems to have vanished, but I still have the pen and the rest of the packaging.

 

Thank you for the response about Wing Sung. Do you know if the factory kept making pens under the Hero name afterwards?

 

I have a pen from a company called "Lan bi tou" which is really nice, but the brand seems rare. Do you know anything about them?

 

As for Jin Hao, I have four pens from them, and don't care for any. One has a good nib but dries out very quickly.

[wuhao]

Is the hero 850 or 849 still available in China?

I hear of hero 850 and 849.Maybe it is not selling in Chinese market ,i can not find any information about both pen in Chinese internet.

[wuhao]

 

"Chinese enthusiasts think after 1997 the Hero was not the hero anymore." - What are the diff? Any review/comparison?

 

 

 

"Chinese enthusiasts think after 1997 the Hero was not the hero anymore." - What are the diff? Any review/comparison?

 

 

Was there some specific change in 1997 that is the reason for this? How do I determine when mine was made? The paper with the serial number seems to have vanished, but I still have the pen and the rest of the packaging.

 

Thank you for the response about Wing Sung. Do you know if the factory kept making pens under the Hero name afterwards?

 

I have a pen from a company called "Lan bi tou" which is really nice, but the brand seems rare. Do you know anything about them?

 

As for Jin Hao, I have four pens from them, and don't care for any. One has a good nib but dries out very quickly.

 

 

Was there some specific change in 1997 that is the reason for this? How do I determine when mine was made? The paper with the serial number seems to have vanished, but I still have the pen and the rest of the packaging.

 

Thank you for the response about Wing Sung. Do you know if the factory kept making pens under the Hero name afterwards?

 

I have a pen from a company called "Lan bi tou" which is really nice, but the brand seems rare. Do you know anything about them?

 

As for Jin Hao, I have four pens from them, and don't care for any. One has a good nib but dries out very quickly.

1.There is a lot of difference between the old hero 100 and new hero 100 like the nib 、ink sac and so on

 

The material of nib is different .The old one is made of platinum group metals 617,and the new one made of 601.Sorry i can't translate all the difference.

2There are 2 letter on the nib (.b、p、m、f、d、t、n、l、g、h） in place of（1、2、3、4、5、6、7、8、9、0）for exp g b means produced in 1993

i have to sleep, i will answer you tomorrow

[wuhao]

Was there some specific change in 1997 that is the reason for this? How do I determine when mine was made? The paper with the serial number seems to have vanished, but I still have the pen and the rest of the packaging.

 

Thank you for the response about Wing Sung. Do you know if the factory kept making pens under the Hero name afterwards?

 

I have a pen from a company called "Lan bi tou" which is really nice, but the brand seems rare. Do you know anything about them?

 

As for Jin Hao, I have four pens from them, and don't care for any. One has a good nib but dries out very quickly.

about Lan bi tou

Lan bi tou means broken nib.There is a Chinese proverb：broken nib is better than good memory.Maybe "The palest ink is better than the best memory" is a better translation ,but you can't comprehend Lan bi tou in this translation.This proverb means if you want to recite a passage ,you'd better copy this passage until your nib is broken.

About 3 years ago,my friend found that i was using the Pelikan m400.He like this pen very much.After i told him it was about 1000rmb(100 €)He said:are you mad？my Lan bi tou is just 10rmb(1€) and it works well.

You would never see any ad about Lan bi tou.About 10 years ago, a lot of students choice Lan bi tou just because it works.

Edited November 4, 2013 by wuhao

[wuhao]

 

I tend to like those made in the classic era before China "opened up", and I managed to amass a small collection featuring a fair number of long-forgotten makers, such as Jinyan from Jinan, Shandong, etc. While they tend to be quite modest they are witnesses of their times.

About 40 years ago,my grandpa bought a Pressure-cooker（double happiness brand） and a blower（diamond brand），Both of them are still working.

Some classic nos pen are still selling on taobao.com

[henkm]

I just received a Hero 1021 as a gift from visitors. Tried looking in the pen reviews but it doesn't seem to be there. While waiting for to get home so I can rinse it out and ink it up, can someone fill me in? Anyone know this model? What's it like? It sure is the heaviest pen I have!

EDIT: Also, is there a way to check the nib size (other than just looking at the width of a written line)

Edited November 4, 2013 by henkm

[wuhao]

I just received a Hero 1021 as a gift from visitors. Tried looking in the pen reviews but it doesn't seem to be there. While waiting for to get home so I can rinse it out and ink it up, can someone fill me in? Anyone know this model? What's it like? It sure is the heaviest pen I have!

EDIT: Also, is there a way to check the nib size (other than just looking at the width of a written line)

maybe Hero 1021 only has the f size

[Aramchek]

about Lan bi tou

Lan bi tou means broken nib.There is a Chinese proverb：broken nib is better than good memory.Maybe "The palest ink is better than the best memory" is a better translation ,but you can't comprehend Lan bi tou in this translation.This proverb means if you want to recite a passage ,you'd better copy this passage until your nib is broken.

About 3 years ago,my friend found that i was using the Pelikan m400.He like this pen very much.After i told him it was about 1000rmb(100 €)He said:are you mad？my Lan bi tou is just 10rmb(1€) and it works well.

You would never see any ad about Lan bi tou.About 10 years ago, a lot of students choice Lan bi tou just because it works.

Yes, the translated name does sound quite peculiar, until you find out the reason behind it.

I was talking to a professor at my university (as far as I can recall, while waiting for my labpartner who had a tendency to oversleep). I complained about people buying things that where heavily marketed instead of products that where good. His response was "Some companies have good engineers, some have good marketing people, but few have both".

One thing worries me regarding getting more Lan bi tou pens in the future - I'm quite pleased with the only one I have, what if they're not normally that good.

[henkm]

maybe Hero 1021 only has the f size

 

Thanks Wuhao

[HITY]

I don't know why so many people discuss Duke in this bbs。Duke is rubbish.If you go to the Specialty Store Retailer ，the seller would tell Duke is a German brand not a Chinese brand.Duke never focus on fountain pen writing quality.

Duke really given to VIP during APEC in 2001 Shanhai but it just because this company is rich.It is impossible for Duke to compete with Sailor etc .

A famous fountain pen BBS in Chinese forbid Duke and Picasoo discussing because both of them are frauds.

 

 

Hi Friend ，

 

Hero Yongsung ...are our Classical brand in China ，but nowadays Pisscaso Duke Parker .......are more and more popular in local market ，Duke brand also have a good reputation aboard . And since i have joind in the trade fair ，much people from home and aboard gave good feedback to their product ！What does this mean ？Duke as newborn has become a competitor for other brands ！This is the really truch ！

 

HITY

[hari317]

what do you want to know about Chinese fountain pen

 

Can you tell me if Wing Sung / Lucky models 300 and 301 with 14K solid gold nibs are worth the money? good pens?

[wuhao]

Hi Friend ，

 

Hero Yongsung ...are our Classical brand in China ，but nowadays Pisscaso Duke Parker .......are more and more popular in local market ，Duke brand also have a good reputation aboard . And since i have joind in the trade fair ，much people from home and aboard gave good feedback to their product ！What does this mean ？Duke as newborn has become a competitor for other brands ！This is the really truch ！

 

HITY

I agree with you about the popularity of Duke and Pisscaso.But i can't accept the way Duke and Pisscaso promote.Duke always call himself German Duke and Pisscaso declares that he is a French company.