Woodex Pens

[BambinoFortunato]

Thanks everyone for sharing indo on a pen company I’d otherwise never have heard of. 
 

I’m thinking of getting a model 29 (in red swirl hard rubber if available). I’ve been craving a 1910s style mottled ebonite flat top medium-sized pen with hourglass section. Woodex seems the perfect way to go, especially since I can’t shell out lots of cash for something like a Waterman 52 at the moment. 

[hari317]

4 minutes ago, BambinoFortunato said:

Thanks everyone for sharing indo on a pen company I’d otherwise never have heard of. 
 

I’m thinking of getting a model 29 (in red swirl hard rubber if available). I’ve been craving a 1910s style mottled ebonite flat top medium-sized pen with hourglass section. Woodex seems the perfect way to go, especially since I can’t shell out lots of cash for something like a Waterman 52 at the moment. 

Go for it. 👍😊

[IlikeInksandIcannotlie]

Thinking of buying one of these later. Are the eyedroppers resistant to leaking/burping?

[matteob]

What sort of price ia his Shaeffer like Model 3 and 6? I found Indian pens used to be outstanding value but since interest from the West has picked up from places like here, prices have got fairly steep.

 

I much prefer the traditional ebonite feed eyedroppers to cartride converters as long as you check the barrel is always at least half full. I have never been impressed with the Jowo F nib in my Ranga as it runs dry though have had better results with Schmidt . As I have said elsewhere My Ranga with an Ambitious fine is perhaps the best fins nib pen I own. 

[K Singh]

35 minutes ago, IlikeInksandIcannotlie said:

Thinking of buying one of these later. Are the eyedroppers resistant to leaking/burping?

My model 4 starts to burp half way like some of my other pens. Model 39 doesn't burp as it has a better feed.

 

7 minutes ago, matteob said:

What sort of price ia his Shaeffer like Model 3?

I think prices are mentioned in the files shared by hari317 Sir on first page.

[matteob]

Hi K. Singh yeah I say prices but could not match them up to pen. I’ll check again. I think burping is endemic in eyedroppers when more air than ink in the barrel that gets warmed by your hand it of course expands and forces ink out. I have grown to live with it.

[matteob]

No can’t find prices: odd that they did not give these in their Catalogue by each as Ratnamson did. I am guessing with post to UK they will be in the region of 50-60 pounds as is the trend so a bit too expensive for an impulse buy. Maybe when I am a bit more flush. I’d like one with an Ambitious nib and one with a Kanwrite to compsre sometime.

[hari317]

2 minutes ago, matteob said:

No can’t find prices: odd that they did not give these in their Catalogue by each as Ratnamson did. I am guessing with post to UK they will be in the region of 50-60 pounds as is the trend so a bit too expensive for an impulse buy. Maybe when I am a bit more flush. I’d like one with an Ambitious nib and one with a Kanwrite to compsre sometime.

The dimensions excel file in the first post has prices too. 

[matteob]

Gotcha thanks  I’ll have a look at the 39 as burping is a nuisance but something I have experienced with all the eyedroppers I have.

[K Singh]

1 hour ago, matteob said:

Gotcha thanks  I’ll have a look at the 39 as burping is a nuisance but something I have experienced with all the eyedroppers I have.

Have you tried replacing them with the Sheaffer NN feed. It helps in preventing burping or should at least reduce it. Also I have several eyedroppers that don't burp - my KIM Jumbo, Woodex 39, Gama with sheaffer feed, Guider jumbo-sized pen. I think, with all else being the same, a jumbo-sized pen at least helps in reducing/preventing the burping compared to a smaller pen. Perhaps the thickness of the barrel or the greater surface area helps to absorb the heat and reduce the burping. Though only some expert here can confirm this 🙏

[matteob]

Thank you I will see what I can do with my pens but not really that keen to mess around with them. Interesting you a Woodex 39. I note that is not mentioned in the brochure and price list. I have a few pens on that list that I like. The prices seems fair. It all depends on the postage now. I am a bit lairy about placing international orders at the moment due to Covid.  wanted to order a Pilot Capless from Japan via J Subculture but they are warning of severe delays to intonational mail.

[K Singh]

11 hours ago, matteob said:

Thank you I will see what I can do with my pens but not really that keen to mess around with them. Interesting you a Woodex 39. I note that is not mentioned in the brochure and price list. I have a few pens on that list that I like. The prices seems fair. It all depends on the postage now. I am a bit lairy about placing international orders at the moment due to Covid.  wanted to order a Pilot Capless from Japan via J Subculture but they are warning of severe delays to intonational mail.

They have few more models that are not on the list. If you can whatsapp them on their number they will share the pics of those models as well.

 

Yes shipping can be an issue because of Covid. 

[matteob]

Well I have whatsapped their sales guy asking for colour samples and shipping costs. Not heard anything back yet but if he does get back I might be interested. I have not got the will power to chase unless it is for something really special like a 14k nib Ratnamson. It all depends on their English ability. I did try to buy a pen from Deccan but it was always “we’ll get back to you Sir” lol. Definitely a “Manana” laid back attitude in India lol. I can say the best Indian makers for customer service and response are Guider and Ranga in my experience. 

[K Singh]

3 hours ago, matteob said:

Well I have whatsapped their sales guy asking for colour samples and shipping costs. Not heard anything back yet but if he does get back I might be interested. I have not got the will power to chase unless it is for something really special like a 14k nib Ratnamson. It all depends on their English ability. I did try to buy a pen from Deccan but it was always “we’ll get back to you Sir” lol. Definitely a “Manana” laid back attitude in India lol. I can say the best Indian makers for customer service and response are Guider and Ranga in my experience. 

Hope you get a reply soon. They are usually prompt in their service. Also it helps if you try to use as simple words in English as possible when communicating with some of the Indian sellers.

Give a try to Lotus too. I have good experience with them.

[matteob]

OK I am going to order a 39 in black as you assure me it doesn’t burp  It is more expensive than nearly all his other pens though. He sent me some samples of other which are new pens but I really want an eyedropper that does not gush when running low. Lotus look nice but beyond my budget sadly. I refuse to pay hundreds for a pen. I think in the West pens have silly mark ups. I hope this doesn’t happen in India.  I like a bargain my best being a genuine Platinum 3776 with gold nib for £50 direct from Japan!

[matteob]

P.S only negative thing is he is only offering Kanwrite nibs though I asked him about Ambitious as several of the pens displayed here have them fitted.

[Aravind_A_2310]

3 hours ago, matteob said:

P.S only negative thing is he is only offering Kanwrite nibs though I asked him about Ambitious as several of the pens displayed here have them fitted.

It's not particularly a negative aas kanwrite nibs are pretty good right out of the box just like ambitious, But I guess the difficulty in availability of ambitious (even inside India) makes it more desirable...

[K Singh]

4 hours ago, matteob said:

OK I am going to order a 39 in black as you assure me it doesn’t burp  It is more expensive than nearly all his other pens though. He sent me some samples of other which are new pens but I really want an eyedropper that does not gush when running low. Lotus look nice but beyond my budget sadly. I refuse to pay hundreds for a pen. I think in the West pens have silly mark ups. I hope this doesn’t happen in India.  I like a bargain my best being a genuine Platinum 3776 with gold nib for £50 direct from Japan!

I can only share my own experience. But if you really need burp-free eyedroppers the best thing would be to use a Sheaffer NN feed. Sheaffer feeds offer the best buffering as the ink level gets low. But fitting them yourself can be hard sometimes.

 

Nice deal on the platinum 👍 When I browse through earlier posts on Indian pens here, I am surprised by how much the prices have increased for some of the Indian pens. Woodex is among the best ones when it comes to value-for-money. I'd suggest get a Model 4 as well. It's an excellent pen for the price. I will probably replace mine with a Sheaffer feed some day.

 

Kanwrite nibs are good and there is nothing negative about using them in my opinion. They may have run out of Ambitious nibs.

[matteob]

Thanks i’ll try a 4 at some point. As I have written elsewhere I have an Ambitious nib on a Ranga and it is the nicest writer out of all my pens but as you say supply seems an issue. Have they folded?

[K Singh]

19 minutes ago, matteob said:

Thanks i’ll try a 4 at some point. As I have written elsewhere I have an Ambitious nib on a Ranga and it is the nicest writer out of all my pens but as you say supply seems an issue. Have they folded?

No, not at all. Perhaps kanwrite is becoming the popular choice for many, that's why.