I regret so much having bought a VAC Mini...

[Detman101]

I spent a good 6 months reading and watching other peoples mistakes before buying my first fountain pen years back.
I knew that TWSBI was a company to star far...far away from.
Their product quality is toy-level and their prices almost niche...recipe for disappointment and bankruptcy.

[marcelo]

2 hours ago, Detman101 said:

I spent a good 6 months reading and watching other peoples mistakes before buying my first fountain pen years back.
I knew that TWSBI was a company to star far...far away from.
Their product quality is toy-level and their prices almost niche...recipe for disappointment and bankruptcy.

 

Well, the TSWBI was my 7th pen, but I haven't learned about the low quality of their products. Regarding it being toy-level, there are toys much, way more reliable than TWSBI pens. 😆

[Detman101]

3 hours ago, marcelo said:

 

Well, the TSWBI was my 7th pen, but I haven't learned about the low quality of their products. Regarding it being toy-level, there are toys much, way more reliable than TWSBI pens. 😆

Hahahahaahha...I agree!!! 🤣

[sansenri]

On 2/12/2022 at 10:50 PM, 1nkulus said:

Sorry to hear your 'not uncommon' experience.

I would not have bothered with the brand unless you had decent local support.

Plenty of issues outlined on the forum and no shortage of other brands to consider.

 

I got rid of mine a while back and have no intention of ever recommending them.

IMO, it is just not worth the time/effort to sort lest it have/develop a fault.

 

IF you must have it, then treat it as a punt and spend what you can afford to lose.

Precious advise. I've never owned a TWSBI and don't wish to own one.

They are no doubt interesting pens in theory, with lots of interesting features found on much more expensive pens at a fraction of the price.

Where is the catch? Seems clear to me, so many reports confirm...

Save up with patience and move on to better pens...

[marcelo]

2 hours ago, Detman101 said:

Hahahahaahha...I agree!!! 🤣

 

👍🏻😆

[Amontillado]

I'm somewhat new to fountain pens but am captivated by the experience of writing with them.

 

It will be interesting to see how TWSBI's last with me. I ended up with two Vac 700R's, one fine and one stub, and a Vac Mini for my shirt pocket. To me, they seem fine, but I respect the fact I don't really know what I'm talking about.

 

Worrisome that all these issues crop up.

[maclink]

Mileage varies with these pens as with pens from all the various manufacturers.  I haven't had any issues with mine.  I suggest seeing how you get on with yours.  You may have a problem free experience.  If every TWSBI was cracking then they would be out of business.  Users with bad experiences will come for support and share their experiences.  If you read this forum the assumption would be that what's discussed here is the norm when there may well be far more satisfied customers simply getting on with using their TWSBI's.

 

My only suggestion would be to avoid frequent disassembling.  If you disassemble, then be very wary of over-tightening.  Avoid wide swings in temperature, i.e., cold to warm or warm to hot.  Should you have to care about these things?  Well, I do normally for all of my pens.

[marcelo]

I do believe that not all TWSBIs are bad pens, but vacuum-fillers depend on good materials, great manufacturing and tight tolerances, what TWSBIs vacuum-fillers do not have.

[awaking]

Thats such disappointing service!  I must admit I prefer to buy any pens that are over the 'experimental cheap' level from a store where I know they will replace or refund if there is an issue just in case.

 

Shame about your mini vac being such a problem - I have one and initially found it a little back heavy but it has been bulletproof for me for for about a year now and I do really like it.

[jchch1950]

On 2/17/2022 at 6:01 AM, maclink said:

 

 

My only suggestion would be to avoid frequent disassembling.  If you disassemble, then be very wary of over-tightening.  Avoid wide swings in temperature, i.e., cold to warm or warm to hot.  Should you have to care about these things?  Well, I do normally for all of my pens.

+1.

[Aysedasi]

On 2/17/2022 at 1:37 AM, marcelo said:

I do believe that not all TWSBIs are bad pens, but vacuum-fillers depend on good materials, great manufacturing and tight tolerances, what TWSBIs vacuum-fillers do not have.

 

 

Purely for balance, I own 5-6 TWSBIs, including a vac.  All write as they should and have never developed any faults.  I have never had to disassemble one.  

[Topcat666]

I have 3 Twsbi's and never experienced cracking problems or indeed any other problems.

I'll try and avoid taking them to bits again; I did that with my first just to see if I could do it and will not do it again unless I do have a problem.

For the price, they are very good value IMHO - but, as always, YMMV.

[Rymesis]

The original picture to me looks like it is a damaged nib holder inside the grip.

 

I would be interested to hear from people that have had similar damage, I'm curious if TWSBI is pressing the nib in with too much pressure and some nib holders can't take the pressure, or if anyone had reseated their nib and feed in the nib holder and then had these issues

[marcelo]

On 3/8/2022 at 3:55 AM, Rymesis said:

The original picture to me looks like it is a damaged nib holder inside the grip.

 

I would be interested to hear from people that have had similar damage, I'm curious if TWSBI is pressing the nib in with too much pressure and some nib holders can't take the pressure, or if anyone had reseated their nib and feed in the nib holder and then had these issues

Hi. The original picture is mine.

No. The nib was not damaged. "Just" a case of low quality materials & manufacturing.

[dipper]

On 1/31/2022 at 2:53 PM, marcelo said:

 

HI Marcelo

 

Sorry but we do not do pen exchanges for used pens (....clip.....)  The pens need to be maintained.

--

Philip Wang
www.twsbi.com

With sympathy for Marcelo, the exchange of emails quoted above is what I find the most disturbing aspect of this sad experience.

 

Scanning around in "the" TWSBI website for clues ....

 

At this page are three separate TWISBI offices:

Mainland China,

Taiwan,

and a Los Angeles/International office.

https://www.twsbi.com/pages/contact

Each office has a separate email address. Which one have you been in contact with?

I am wondering if considering "them" (TWISBI) as a single entity could be giving a bad impression. Perhaps TWISBI in USA is operated more as an "import agent" - with resulting limitations to customer care?

 

The policy "we do not do pen exchanges for used pens" is clearly stated in black and white on this page..

https://www.twsbi.com/pages/returns-exchanges

My interpretation of that page however is that it is nothing to do with pens found to be faulty when first used. (If so that page would be equivalent to saying "if you buy a pen, open the package, fill it with ink, and find it is faulty, then we will refuse to replace the pen".) Instead, surely (I think) the intention of the page is to say that a pen can be exchanged for a different model or colour (say), or a refund, if the customer changes their mind after ordering, as long as the packaging is unopened.

Again this is the sort of limitation that an "import agent" might operate under.

 

My most generous (to TWISBI) interpretation of the situation is that @marcelo has received a faulty pen, that TWISBI the parent company should have replaced without quibble, but the process got tangled with an "exchange" process? 

 

"The" TWISBI website may be an amalgam of parts from the parent company and parts from the US office. All the pages are copyright TWISBI Inc. ("Inc" generally indicates a US based company.)

On this page..

https://www.twsbi.com/pages/about-us

... is this text, copied and pasted:

To achieve our mission:

- We are dedicated to manufacturing the highest quality and precision writing instruments
- Tailoring our products according to our customer's wants and needs
- Providing sincere and dedicated customer service

 

OK... "sincere and dedicated customer service".

 ... which of the three TWISBI offices is/are making that statement?

 

If I was in the situation of @marcelo  I would consider emailing all three email addresses listed on the contact page.

Something like: Your company has not given "sincere and dedicated customer service". My TWISBI VacMini was faulty (leaking) when first received. The pen should have been replaced immediately as it was not of "merchantable quality".

However, instead of replacement I was sent some spare parts by .....(office).  Those parts failed to rectify the original fault.

I am now asking all divisions of the TWISBI company to reconsider the situation.

If your company policy is to replace a pen that is found to be faulty when first used then I will be happy to receive a replacement pen.

Or, if your policy is to NOT replace a pen that is found to be faulty when first used, please confirm to me that such is indeed your policy.

 

But that's just me, and I am feeling a wee bit angry!

 

 

 

 

[1nkulus]

On 2/16/2022 at 11:01 PM, maclink said:

Mileage varies with these pens as with pens from all the various manufacturers.  I haven't had any issues with mine.  I suggest seeing how you get on with yours.  You may have a problem free experience.  If every TWSBI was cracking then they would be out of business.  Users with bad experiences will come for support and share their experiences.  If you read this forum the assumption would be that what's discussed here is the norm when there may well be far more satisfied customers simply getting on with using their TWSBI's.

 

My only suggestion would be to avoid frequent disassembling.  If you disassemble, then be very wary of over-tightening.  Avoid wide swings in temperature, i.e., cold to warm or warm to hot.  Should you have to care about these things?  Well, I do normally for all of my pens.

I agree that dissatisfied voices tend to be louder than satisfied ones.

You are correct, that unnecessary disassembly ought to be avoided. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

 

IMO, pens without local support should be treated as a punt and you should only spend what you are prepared to lose.

IF you have plenty of time, patience and consider temperamental pens charming/quirky; then it is a different matter.