Found problem with Big Ben B/T

[sandking]

Well I posted once or twice about the rattle I had in the tip of all the Big Ben Black Titanium pens I had and finally figured out what was wrong.

The new ink cartridges they use (or at least the ones I got with my kits) have different springs from the Platinum and Satin kits I bought. After 4 phone calls without anyone returning them I finally got someone on the phone after I found out what the problems were:

• The springs have fewer coils. Meaning they are spaced out much further (so the mfg could save on material costs) 9 vs. 13 plus the top and bottom of the springs have half the coils as well
• The new springs are 1/8" shorter therefore the don't rest at the bottome of the nose and just rattle when you shake the pen

I am just posting this to see if others have this issue or not. According to Penn State the good ink cartridges and springs I have that say Dayacom and mfg in Germany the new cartridges have nothing written on them and shorter spings. I guess my supplier had old stock and thats why I got the kits with Dayacom cartridges. I was told they have received no complaints on these kits or springs (although since they don't return calls I guess it would be hard to get complaints).

I fixed the issue by streching the spring, but honestly I don't understand why I need to do that. They should be making sure this stuff works.

Has anyone else had this problem with the kits?

 

[sandking]

Ok so I guess maybe I'm the only one with this problem???? Does anyone know where I can get better springs to replace the junk that came with my kits?

 

[ed4copies]

Hardware, Big Box both have "spring displays". May have to cut to length.

 

[ctEaglesc]

I ahve never found it too big a hassle to stretch a spring.
That being said I guess you could buy your kits somewhere else.
The thing that bothers me is when I have to remove that bit of plastic from the end of the refill.Someone should DO Something about the unneeded wastefulness the mfgrs use when coating the refill with unnecessary plastic.
It's about time we should take up arms and boycott those compamnoies.
Another thing.
Is it reall necesssary to use so many stupid plastic bags for all those parts?
We are in a crisi with landfill rapidly becoming oeverfilled each day.Do you have any idea how much valuable landfill spce we could save if they cut down the the number of little drug dealer bags in half?
And you are worried about a little spring.
I have bigger fish to fry.

 

[Rojo22]

Well either complain about how many plastic bags are in there, or complain about the kit being scratched up when you get it in one "hefty" bag....The bags make nice CA applicators for finishes, so recycle them...then give them to the drug dealers....

 

[Rojo22]

Originally posted by sandking
<br />Well I posted once or twice about the rattle I had in the tip of all the Big Ben Black Titanium pens I had and finally figured out what was wrong.

The new ink cartridges they use (or at least the ones I got with my kits) have different springs from the Platinum and Satin kits I bought. After 4 phone calls without anyone returning them I finally got someone on the phone after I found out what the problems were:

• The springs have fewer coils. Meaning they are spaced out much further (so the mfg could save on material costs) 9 vs. 13 plus the top and bottom of the springs have half the coils as well <br />
• The new springs are 1/8" shorter therefore the don't rest at the bottome of the nose and just rattle when you shake the pen

I am just posting this to see if others have this issue or not. According to Penn State the good ink cartridges and springs I have that say Dayacom and mfg in Germany the new cartridges have nothing written on them and shorter spings. I guess my supplier had old stock and thats why I got the kits with Dayacom cartridges. I was told they have received no complaints on these kits or springs (although since they don't return calls I guess it would be hard to get complaints).

I fixed the issue by streching the spring, but honestly I don't understand why I need to do that. They should be making sure this stuff works.

Has anyone else had this problem with the kits?

I am very dissapointed in the new ink cartridges as well. They dont write as smoothly in my humble opinion, and one of my selling points was how well the cartridge wrote....

 

[sandking]

I like the bags, and agree it prevents scratches. I also I think more people buy drugs in those little bags vs. the number of us that buy pen kits. I guess we could also drink coffee from our cupped hands or carry a mug with us everywhere. Plus I'm not paying for a bag, I'm paying for a spring that works properly. I have moved on from Penn State now (after their customer service issues and lack of interest) but I do find it ridiculous that when someone who receives a pen goes to replace the ink the spring looks crappy. It makes it seem like I’m the one that cut corners.

 

[herbwhiz]

Hi ,
I'm new this forum and have jumped into the middle of the topic. Can anyone tell me where I can purchase Dayacom pen refills from or a suitable substitute,

Thanks
Ivor

 

[DCBluesman]

Ivor - I've never seen Dayacom refills. If you are looking for rollerball or ballpoint refills (Cross-style or Parker-style), one of our members sells them at a good price on his site. www.woodchips.com

 

[Rmartin]

I've used a lot of cigar pens, and have had a problem with the twist mechanism. Mainly on the gold titanium. It makes an audible sound when twisted. There is a noticable difference with the Black titanium kits I have. No noise, which is nice. I think it's because the gold titanium ones I received were from a reseller of PSI kits, and weren't the really good 24K gold titanium kits from Bereahardwood.