First, the pen is AWESOME!
Second, quit beating yourself up about price! If you focus everything on price, you'll never make another pen as great as this one.
Third, learn about value! Sometimes, the more expensive blank is the better blank. The goal you should be working toward is making the BEST pen you can make from the materials available. Focus more on "adding value" to the best materials available. Focusing on costs makes you a "cheap" pen maker, not a quality pen maker.
One more than one occasion, I have paid OVER $100 for blanks. I immediately sold those pens for OVER $500. I saw similar blanks for much less money, so I bought many. Those, unfortunately, are still in inventory.
I realize these are harsh words, and no disrespect is intended. Sell the pen knowing that you paid a premium for permium materails and made the product to the best of your abilities and move on...the past is the past. If you find quality as good as this for a lessor price, then buy those and adjust your price accordingly (if necessary, I wouldn't).
I sell a LOT of $100 bill pens, I found a blank (from the same producer) for less than I was paying here from a distributor. The blanks, even though the same guy made them, are not the same. I'll never make that mistake AGAIN!
Lastly, don't forget the ink! My experience is that "standard" refills write like those from Staples. Do everything that you can to put the very best ink in the pens you make, before they leave the nest. In my case, that means Heritance nibs on FP, along with PR cartridges. I Replace Hauser refills (I don't even buy components that use Hauser as "standard" anymore), and I EVEN replace Schmidt 888 roller balls with PR or Schmidt 5888 refills, because it makes me feel like I have made the very best pen that I can make.
Respectfully submitted.
