Sailor Repair Process

[JonnyTex]

I wasn't 100% sure if I should start this thread in the repair or Japan forum. I chose Japan because it is not about repairing a Sailor pen but sending it to Sailor for repair.

 

I thought I would post this thread to inform anyone interested of how the repair process for Sailor Pens works. I sent mine in for repair because I lost the friction-fit inner cap. This is probably a 10 cent part, but the only solution I could find was to send it to the factory for repair.

 

After consulting the forums in this thread: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/347469-sailor-inner-cap-replacement/

 

I contacted Itoya -- the US Sailor distributor -- via their website: itoya.com. From there, I emailed returns@itoya.com and received this email:

 

 

Hi Jonny,

We can help facilitate the repair with Sailor. We as the distributor is not allowed by Sailor to do any sort of repair. All repair work has to be done at the factory in Japan. It is also Sailor policy not to send just parts for replacement. The entire pen has to be sent to Japan for evaluation. Even if you are just missing the inner cap. This is to ensure that the pen is in perfect working condition once the parts are replaced and repair is completed.

Below is our repair process.

You will be shipping your pen to our facility in California. Once it arrives, we will send this to SAILOR Japan. Once the evaluation is completed, SAILOR will contact us with a cost estimate which we will forward to you through email. If you authorize us to have SAILOR proceed, you are responsible for this amount plus a $20.00 shipping & handling fee (these charges are typically handled by credit card - we accept Visa, MasterCard or Discover). The entire process typically takes 10-12 weeks. If you decide not to proceed with the repair, the pen will be return unrepaired and your cost will only be the $20.00 shipping and handling.

Please send the entire pen to ITOYA, at the address below. Reference on the outside of the package ######### for easy identification.

Itoya

800 Sandhill Avenue

Carson, CA 90746

Here's the timeline so far for repair:

Tuesday, July 9, 2019

I sent the pen to Itoya via USPS.

Friday, July 12, 2019

USPS let me know Itoya received the pen.

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

I emailed Itoya to confirm receipt since I had not heard from them.

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Itoya confirmed they had received my pen.

Tuesday, August 13, 2019

I have not received further communication from Itoya. I assume all is moving forward and my pen is somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.

I will update this thread as the process continues.

In the meantime, I sent a pen to Franklin-Christoph last week for repair and have already received confirmation that it is in the mail back to me. I have also learned that Pilot has a repair tech in Lousiana. I love my Sailor, but I may choose Pilot for my next Japanese pen since they shouldn't require 10-12 weeks for a simple repair.

[Lloyd]

Thanks for this very informative post. Best of luck in getting a rapid repair.

[Erik Dalton]

So glad to see this post. I’ve long heard of the difficulties dealing with Sailor. I love my Sailor pens, and have never had a problem needing service. Except for now. I seem to have a few ProGear pens with cap band discoloration. They have been in the case for years. I just noticed them. I’m not looking forward to dealing with this.

I’ll be watching your post with interest.

[JonnyTex]

  On 8/13/2019 at 6:01 PM, Lloyd said:

Thanks for this very informative post. Best of luck in getting a rapid repair.

 

HAHAHA. I'm happy to let you know how it goes. I think rapid is already left the building. I just hope I get my pen back someday.

[JonnyTex]

  On 8/13/2019 at 9:02 PM, Old Salt said:

So glad to see this post. I’ve long heard of the difficulties dealing with Sailor. I love my Sailor pens, and have never had a problem needing service. Except for now. I seem to have a few ProGear pens with cap band discoloration. They have been in the case for years. I just noticed them. I’m not looking forward to dealing with this.

I’ll be watching your post with interest.

 

I don't know that I would call anything difficulties yet, but I'll keep you posted. They said 10-12 weeks, so I hope to hear something by the end of them month asking for $20 to ship the pen back. So far it's been easy, and I don't mind the wait. I just wish I was getting a little more feedback from Itoya.

[JonnyTex]

Just heard back from Itoya. I got an email that said they are ready to put a new inner cap in my pen. They asked me for $35. (They are quite proud of that little inner cap. $15 + $20 handling fee that includes shipping.) I called in my credit card number. We'll see what happens next. Hope you are all enjoying this v e r y s l o w play-by-play.

 

And, again, they have been super helpful. It just takes a long time to get a pen to Japan on a boat... My only real complaint about the whole process is that they didn't just send me an inner cap to stick in the cap myself. Ultimately though, I realize it's because they want to make sure the pen is right.

 

Hopefully, this step means they will stick the inner cap in the cap tomorrow and put it back in the mail! Maybe, I'll have it in 3 weeks?

[JonnyTex]

Well, we are 6 weeks out from last contact with Itoya. USPS tells me I have a package arriving soon. My fingers are crossed it might be my pen since I can't think of anything else that package could be. That seems like reasonable travel time for a boat across the Pacific. Hoping...

[Barry Gabay]

Hello JonnyTex,

 

Hope you get your pen soon. Twice I have sent King of Pens to Itoya in CA for repair/replacement. Once for a cracked section & a different pen a few years later for a section ring which came off. Both pens were sent to Japan for new parts. The process was not fast, more than 2 months. I was told in advance by Itoya that it would take quite a while, so I expected a lengthly wait. Like yours, the cost was minimal for each replacement. I didn't hear much from Itoya during the process, but there really was nothing to report. My pens were in the hands of experts, and I knew that. I mentioned in my letter to Itoya that one of the KoPs had a custom ground nib, so I did not want the nib adjusted, since it wrote perfectly for me. I received an email saying that the nib would not be adjusted per my request, and even received a copy of the email (in translation, of course) between Itoya and Sailor instructing the repair dept not to do the standard nib adjustment when the section was replaced.

 

The pens returned to me on the east coast of the US in perfect condition with their new parts. It was definitely worth the wait both times.

Enjoy your weekend.

Best wishes,

Barry

[JonnyTex]

I received my pen back from Itoya this Wednesday, October 23rd. It's in great shape. It came via UPS. I think it is interesting the original inner cap was clear and the new one is black, but it looks great, so who cares. I was pleasantly surprised when I received the UPS tracking information last week. I would have really preferred a little more communication, but yes, everything ended well!

 

So, I would definitely encourage you to contact Itoya for Sailor repairs. And, apparently, they do a great job of taking care of you. Just be patient. Even though it feels like your pen has disappeared into a black hole, they can be trusted. Your pen will come home eventually.

 

Itoya received my pen July 12th. I received it back on October 23rd. The total time my pen was gone was (except for being shipped to Itoya) was 14 1/2 weeks. Considering they told me to expect 10-12 weeks, I should have expected 14-16 -- nothing against Itoya or Sailor, I would just assume repairs would take a little longer than I am told they should take. So, I guess the turnaround was fine.

 

 

If anyone from Sailor is listening, I have a couple suggestions:

 

Communicate a little more. A simple confirmation when they received my pen, shipped it to Japan, it arrived in Japan, was shipped back to the US, arrived in the US and, finally, shipped home would have been nice.

 

Offer an expedited repair option -- I would have been interested in the option of paying more shipping to fly it across the Pacific rather than sending it by boat. I might have decided against it, but it would have been a nice option.

 

 

All in all, I'm pretty happy with everything because it was a nice pen that is not readily available, but I will definitely think pretty hard about it before I send another pen.

[vetsin]

@JonnyTex, Thank you very much for sharing the process. It's good to hear that Itoya helps facilitate the repair. Looks like I will eventually have to do this as my Realo is showing some stress marks on the section. I have never disassembled the pen so I don't know what caused this.

 

@Barry can you share how much it cost you to have the cracked section fixed? I'm curious because I am also considering just having a custom pen made that can take my Sailor nib if the cost of repair+shipping is too high. Thanks!

[Barry Gabay]

Hello vetsin,

 

My memory is fading more each day. The cracked section replacement on a red & black ebonite KoP was maybe 6 or 8 years ago. Can't find the paperwork, but I recall the charge being appropriate for the part. I just found the invoice for the section ring replacement on a KoP PG rhodium, Oct 2017. The total cost, including shipping charges, was a very reasonable $38.

 

Sorry that I can't answer your question about the section replacement. Maybe you could call Itoya in CA and ask for a ballpark estimate, or what such a replacement has cost in the past. That could give you an idea. Are you considering one of Shawn Newton's custom sections for a KoP? Those are really pretty. Good luck with your decision & the section replacement.

 

Enjoy your weekend.

Best wishes,

Barry

[vetsin]

Thanks so much Barry. That response was quick! I don't have a KoP but a Realo. I'm considering a nib swap or putting it in a Flexible Nib housing unit: https://flexiblenib.com/store/product/js21ke-jowo-housing-for-sailor-21k/.

I haven't explored my options for a custom pen yet but the idea excites me. 😁

[tinta]

This is a very useful thread, thank you.

 

I must have lived a charmed life, as there has been no issues with any mid-price, 14K-nib, Sailor (Profit, 1911S, Pro-Gear Slim/Sapporo) pens, in the last decade & a half. These are quality writing instruments with excellent nibs, but I have wondered where & how to send one out for "official" repair/warranty work, particularly here in Canada. I know where to send my Sailors if I want competent nib customization. To date I've had at least a dozen nibs modified. Never had any part broken, lost or damaged.

 

Though my Sailors are primarily tools, not collector's items, I try to take good care of them, in both use & in storage. My Sailors have been winnowed down to five pens, with perhaps another Pro-Gear Slim to be added later this year or next.

[Intensity]

Highly useful thread, thank you! My Sailors are all limited editions that I love and treasure, and I do worry about their longevity, especially the thin plastic threads on the section. Both for the cap and where the section attaches to the barrel. I hope I dont have to send a pen in, but if I do, its great to know what to expect.

[minddance]

just a quick question: will Sailor handle/accept pens that are modified? e.g. modified nibs, reground, reshaped nibs.

[Barry Gabay]

Good morning minddance,

 

Sailor accepted my red & black ebonite King of Pen with a re-ground nib for a section replacement. I was told by Itoya in CA that when a section (or feed) is replaced, the repairperson does a nib adjustment to test writing performance. I asked that the nib not be adjusted because it had a Mike Masuyama custom-ground XXF nib which wrote perfectly for me. My request was passed on to Sailor in Japan. The nib was not adjusted, but screwed into the new section in its original collar.

 

Don't know if this is still Sailor's policy, but when my section replacement was done perhaps 6-8 years ago, both Itoya in CA and Sailor in Japan accepted the re-ground nib.

 

Enjoy your weekend.

Best wishes,

Barry

[Intensity]

  On 8/22/2020 at 7:47 AM, minddance said:

just a quick question: will Sailor handle/accept pens that are modified? e.g. modified nibs, reground, reshaped nibs.

 

Per post #8 in this thread, those pens should be accepted for repair.

[tinta]

  On 8/22/2020 at 4:40 PM, Intensity said:

 

Per post #8 in this thread, those pens should be accepted for repair.

Good to know, as all my Sailor nibs but one are modified.

[minddance]

Thank you, pleased to know.