Duke Pens

[OldGriz]

What can anyone tell me about these pens...

 

My wife saw the BRIGHT PEARL IN DARK GREEN SEA and really liked the looks of it.. especially with the gift box it comes in....

 

Is it a quality writing instrument, or just bling bling...

[Sidney]

I have heard that the Mako is a good pen. I don't know about the others. I would expect their nibs to be the same, but then I wonder if the decorative pens are hiding poorer nib quality.

 

Here is the

Duke Mako review.

[TMann]

Griz,

 

Hey there! I'm the guy that wrote that Duke Mako review, so I can share with you my experience with that one pen.

 

As I understand it, there are a LOT of Chinese companies out there that make pens for the Chinese market. Some of them, such as Duke and Hero have been imported to other countries by pen enthusiasts such as Norman Haase at HisNibs.com.While it is true that some of the Chinese pens are of very poor quality, others, such as Duke are made to standards that rival other pen companies from Japan, Germany and the U.S.

 

My Duke Mako **was a good solid pen that wrote very smoothly. The nib supposedly came from Germany, and seemed to be very well constructed.

 

I haven't used any other Duke pens, but from what I've read, other people have found them to be very enjoyable writing instruments.

 

Hope that's helpful!

 

TMann

 

(** - I no longer own the Mako, as it was traded away for a very nice Parker FP.)

[Larry T]

Hi Griz. I have four Duke pens, not a bright pearl though. All of mine are excellent writers and very well made. I would say that they are better finished than the Hero pens, and maybe a little more consistant pen to pen. Hope this helps, if you get a Bright Pearl let us know how you like it.

 

Larry

[TheNobleSavage]

I own 2 of them and I think they are a fantastic pen for the Money!!! My gold medal has a 2 tone 14kt gold nib that is super smooth. The other one is a 10kt gold nib (I never seen a 10kt gold nib before) The nibs are made in Germany if I remember correctly. The Duke Pen company is a joint Chinese & German venture. These pens are very well constructed and durable in comparison to the medium to low end Hero pens.

 

Here are the reviews on the Duke Gold Medal

Duke Gold Medal Review

 

The Noble Savage Fountain Pen Review Page

 

The pen you are talking about, Is the pen I would really love to get and www.Isellpens.com has it for the cheapest price anywhere on the net. It comes in a beautiful wood laquer box. Eventually I will get one of these pens, the Mother of Pearl is really fantastic looking and also it has the same 14kt gold two tone nib. One thing I do not like is that the pen is a slip cap. I much rather have a threaded screw on cap instead. Regardless, this pen is on my "to buy list" unfortunatly it is further down my list.

Duke BRIGHT PEARL DARK SEA Fountain Pen

 

I think you will like the pens, well constructed, heavy (good or bad) reliable and nice writers. Most importantly they are very affordable!!!

 

Hope that helps

 

TNS

[antoniosz]

I own one, the "Great Shanghai" which is a rather heavy pen with a nib that required some minor tuning to behave. The tines touching at the tip, so it was a dry writer - this is common in many modern pens because the companies design them for the ball pen user - with pressure the flow become better. Anyway the pen looks nice and writes nicely (now). My only problem is that the cap is help magnetically to the body. I left my coat once over a heating unit and the magnet got partially demagnitized and is relatively loose now.

[Apollo]

I'm the proud owner of a Duke Mako (courtesy of TMann) and it a fantastic pen. Believe me when I tell you that I could not believe this fountain pen was made in China. Compared to other pens in it's class from Europe and the US, I found the Mako's quality to be equal to them.