Editing The Pen Addict 455/transcript (section)

== Pen Specifications ==


'''Brad:'''  Yeah, well, the 205 only comes with a steel nib.

'''Myke:'''Right. Like, obviously, you made an assumption, but what's this assumption based on? Like, what made you think that it was going to be a multiple hundred dollar purchase or whatever?

'''Brad:'''  No, I thought it would be like $50 or $60 or $40 or something.

'''Myke:'''I think I don't know the price of the M205. That's what I'm realizing.

'''Brad:'''  Yeah, yeah, yeah. The M205 goes from like $80 to $120, depending on where you pick one up. Okay. Yeah. So, like $125, maybe a little more for the special editions, right? You know how they do like the annual editions? Those are more like $140 to $170. Mm-hmm. So, and it's Pelican, right? Like, these nibs don't fit into anything else, right? They're very specific. Yeah, they're proprietary. They're also designed to fit a piston filler. So, like, no one's buying these nibs to build pins around, right? Because they have to have a piston system to work with these nibs. $9.83 at CultPens right now. I am dying because I had no earthly idea. I'm looking at CultPens though.

'''Myke:'''Like, you can buy replacement nibs for every Pelican. It looks like all the major Pelican models here, including gold ones and stuff. Like, it's possible. Yeah.

'''Brad:'''  Yeah, that's pretty unique. Like, I don't know that, I haven't shopped around, like, the U.S. retailers that stock Pelican to see if they have these replacement nib units. That's a pretty good deal if, you know, you want to swap around. Like, didn't you buy a gold nib for, like, your 205 or something like that?

'''Myke:'''Yeah, I have a gold nib on my 205. I really didn't like the steel nib. Sure. And I got a replacement gold nib on the only Pelican that I own, which I feel like is something I should rectify at some point.

'''Brad:'''  Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. We could do a whole show on Pelican because, like, it's one of the most interesting brands, one of the most respected brands that I have the highest respect for, that I have very few of their products.

'''Brad:'''  You know, that, like, I can't speak highly enough about the brand, and I own, like, two Pelicans, like, two big Pelicans, and I own a couple 205s. So, anyway, that's like an entire episode.

'''Myke:'''You sent a link to Cult Pens for the replacement, and I just stumbled across the Pelican Maccae Fountain Pen Kingfisher on their website, which is 4,000 pounds. Yeah. That's not the one I'll be buying.

'''Brad:'''  Mm-mm-mm-mm. Every year they do two or three high-end releases, and it's some of the best artwork you'll ever see. It is beautiful. They, like, when I think of Pelican, I just think of, like, product execution. Mm-mm-mm. They execute perfectly every time. Mm-mm-mm. You know? And so I didn't even consider the fact that you can get a steel replacement nib for less than $10. That was a failure on my part. I apologize to our Ask TPA listener last week, and therefore I would like to admit I was wrong, and I will be sending out an Apple Note tweet this afternoon to go on the full record with my apology for that.

'''Myke:'''Good.

'''Brad:'''  The second item is actually a follow-up from two weeks ago, and it's not an apology, but it's more of a realization that happens over time, and this is referring to the Pilot Custom 823. Do you remember the custom edition that we discussed? Mm-mm-mm. That the, like, the high-end Japanese store got Pilot to make 100 of them in the dark blue, and it priced out to about $500 U.S.

'''Brad:'''  And, like, I hemmed and hawed on it. I was like, you know, that's pretty expensive. Like, this is kind of crazy, you know? And then I was, I also said, you know, that said, if it was, like, a different color, like, I might consider doing it. And the more I think about it, the more things that I see in the market with the pricing of products, Sailor specifically, the more I think that $500 for a Pilot Custom 823 in an edition of 100 is a good deal. And I can't believe I'm actually saying those words. I actually have come, like, not full circle because I kind of liked it, I kind of got it, but I actually think that it's a good deal. And here's why.

'''Brad:'''  The Sailor Pro Gear has made me realize that. The new pricing of the Sailor Pro Gear, we talked about a lot on stream yesterday on Twitch, the new stock prices are going to be close to $400 for the stock pens for your 1911s and your Pro Gears, the large sizes. The large size 1911 and then the regular Pro Gear.

'''Myke:'''Yeah.

'''Brad:'''  That's way overpriced, I think. And then the one we've always talked about in those same words is the King of Pens, which is, like, one of the most overpriced pens in my book. I still love Sailors. I still love King of Pens. So then I look back at this 823, and I'm like, wow, that's actually comparatively a really great price for what this pen is. If you break it down that way, like, the Sailor, I mean, excuse me, the Platinum Shiyun was, like, $480, right? And we had, like, a, I just thought this was getting to a level that was just, like, unsustainable. So I just wanted to bring that up that I've had, like, these differing thoughts. Because the 823 is about a $300 pen on its own, and you look at something like the Lamy when they did the dark blue ones, well, those were also a $500 pen, but the base pen for that was, like, $150, $160. Right. So, like, I don't know that, like, we were saying that that was outrageous, and maybe it's not that outrageous. Like, I get it. But there was also a lot more units of that. I think there was, those were in the thousands, right? Was there 5,000? I could be wrong with that number. So 100 units of this Pilot 823 for $500, I'm, like, reversing course and saying that's actually a good deal when you put it in perspective of what the overall high-end limited edition market is doing right now. So I just wanted to kind of clear that up now that I've had some more time to think of it and kind of line it up with what I'm seeing from other brands, Sailor especially.

'''Myke:'''I guess it's one of those things where value a lot of the time is relative, and every now and then you have to adjust relative value. Like, you know, this is the kind of thing that I feel like I come across quite a lot when it comes to software, you know, on some of my other shows. What is software worth and what kind of amounts do we attribute it to? And people pay so little or want to pay nothing for apps, and that's just because that is the market. Like, the value has just driven down.

'''Brad:'''  Yep. So there's, like, this always, there's this baseline reset, right, that happens frequently, and that was one of those pens that I wasn't really keen on in the beginning, and I'm still, like, I have no interest in ordering that. I have no interest in paying that money for that pen, but if the situation, like, hit perfectly, I, like, I think I would do it, right? Like, if it really spoke to me and I really wanted it, and, you know, maybe sold off some other pens to afford it and things like that, but, yeah, I just, it's just one of those things that kind of comes over time and kind of understanding the market as a whole, so I would like to see that pen in person one day. Hopefully I'll get to. I mean, only 100 of them exist, so I doubt I will, but it'll be cool. I just hope we see more of it.

'''Myke:'''Yeah, but there's clearly a, for multiple reasons, even if it's just an opportunity reason, a change in some of the economics in fountain pens. Maybe we're going to realize we were getting off easy for a while.

'''Brad:'''  Yeah, we're going to talk about that later as part of a different conversation, the economics. Okay. You know, I don't have all the answers, but I have some commentary I'd like to share.

'''Myke:'''All right, let's take a break and thank Kenro Industries, who are introducing the new Otto Hut Design 04 Wave and are giving us a chance to talk about it while sponsoring the show today. This is something that Otto Hut Germany and Kenro Industries are super excited about, so we're pleased to be able to tell you about it. As you know, frequent listeners will remember, Brad recently got an Otto Hut Design 03, which he was a big fan of. So when we heard that they were back of a new design, this is something we wanted to get our hands on, something we wanted to check out. And I know Brad has one. I'm going to ask him about it in a minute. Otto Hut has been making pens for other brands for over 100 years. So while you may not be that familiar by name, although I expect most listeners of this show are by now, you would definitely know their pens from other places. If you've had a jewelry quality metal pen in your collection, there is a strong possibility that Otto Hut had a hand in making it. And while they're still making pens for other companies, they've also introduced their eponymous line, Otto Hut line. So now we get to have pens with their high standard of quality, but with their own design sensibilities. And that's why we're excited to tell you about the new Design 04 Wave. The Wave combines the classic stateliness of the 04 with an intricate, futuristic, three-dimensional wave pattern, which is made by coating the metal of the pen and then engraving it using the giloch method. Through many stages of varnishing and polishing, what emerges is a pattern adds movement and depth to the pen as you write with it. It comes in several different finishes of a choice of nib sizes. And like all other Otto Hut pens, the quality of how it writes is just as beautiful as it looks. Brad, I believe you have one of these, right?