Parson
Member
I think "high end" is $20 or more for a pen kit.
What is high end
- Thread starter Smitty37
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Phunky_2003
Member
I was actually thinking about you when I said that! Thanks for the clarification. LOL:tongue:
jttheclockman
Member
I am curious if there are those that call slimlines highend kits then what do they call the Majestics and the $40 and $45 kits. Probably "outrageous" We have to come up with a name for them:biggrin:
Russianwolf
Member
There's the root of another problem.
You can have high-end ballpoints that cost more than low-end fountains. There is a low-end and high-end in each kit available (usually based on plating/quality). Then there are the low-end group of kits (ballpoints) and the high-end group of kits (fountains/rollerballs).
Generally, I would call the High-end of low-end kits the better platings (Ti, platinum and chrome) of ballpoints, while the low-end of high-end kits would be the 24k gold fountains for example.
That's why I used the Cigar in my original post. It's not usually considered a high-end kit for the most part, but can be one of the high-end ballpoints depending on platings.
I like to think that I only offer high-end kit pens. I only make the two-tone cigar, Aero/EB, and long click now in Ballpoint and only use the better platings in my RB/Fountains and they are usually the Jr. series which have had good quality.
fine
If you read the original question I was asking what each and every individual considered it to be....nothing more.
I don't know how to make that any clearer than it is in the original post.
This was not a test. There is no right price and there is no wrong price.
If for you the answer is $15.00 than that is your answer. If for someone else is is $50 then that is his/her answer
I did not ask anyone to justify or explaiin their answer. Just what price kit they considered high end. If they use chriteria other than price to make that determination they could say that. Several folks did and that is perfectly ok it still answers the question.
I certailnly wasn't asking for a debate on the relative merits of manufacturers or the relative quality of different platings and while that might be useful information it has been and will be frequently discussed in these forums.
If pointing out to someone that they did not address the question I started the forum by asking is lashing out then I'm guilty.
If you read the original question I was asking what each and every individual considered it to be....nothing more.
I don't know how to make that any clearer than it is in the original post.
This was not a test. There is no right price and there is no wrong price.
If for you the answer is $15.00 than that is your answer. If for someone else is is $50 then that is his/her answer
I did not ask anyone to justify or explaiin their answer. Just what price kit they considered high end. If they use chriteria other than price to make that determination they could say that. Several folks did and that is perfectly ok it still answers the question.
I certailnly wasn't asking for a debate on the relative merits of manufacturers or the relative quality of different platings and while that might be useful information it has been and will be frequently discussed in these forums.
If pointing out to someone that they did not address the question I started the forum by asking is lashing out then I'm guilty.
DurocShark
Member
I don't know what I would consider "high-end". A $19 El Grande can be high end to me.
When I sell a pen, I classify "premium pens" as rollerball or fountain pen. Everything else is a ballpoint.
So no, I don't think price has anything to do with it for me.
When I sell a pen, I classify "premium pens" as rollerball or fountain pen. Everything else is a ballpoint.
So no, I don't think price has anything to do with it for me.
DurocShark
Member
That said... I wish I could afford to stock up on $60 kits. 
ME too
Well even though I don't sell them I wish you could afford to stock up on $60 kits too.That said... I wish I could afford to stock up on $60 kits.
bloodhound
Member
Hello all.
I have read all of this and dont want to start up a brawl. I asked in another post about what everyone was calling high end. It seems that was a bad question. So i guess what my problem is when i sell a pen to someone. I feel good about the finish on the turned portion. But i worry about the finish of the pen kit. I have one i bought from woodcraft. it was a copper finish. i use it daily and the finish has warn off. I cant have that.
So, Who Do You Guys/Girls Suggest I Get My Kits From?
I have been getting them from PSI. No issues that i am aware of to date. but all have been 7mm kits. And its time to step it up a bit.
I have read all of this and dont want to start up a brawl. I asked in another post about what everyone was calling high end. It seems that was a bad question. So i guess what my problem is when i sell a pen to someone. I feel good about the finish on the turned portion. But i worry about the finish of the pen kit. I have one i bought from woodcraft. it was a copper finish. i use it daily and the finish has warn off. I cant have that.
So, Who Do You Guys/Girls Suggest I Get My Kits From?
I have been getting them from PSI. No issues that i am aware of to date. but all have been 7mm kits. And its time to step it up a bit.
This thread is over four years old...
So what if this thread is over 4 years old??? It is obvious that Bloodhound used the search function to find the topic. If he asked the question in a new thread then he would likely have been told to use the search function. Jeesh, give the new guy a break......
Robert Sherlock
Member
As many have said, there are so many variables and opinions out there...
I think it would be safe to say that a Jr. Gent II / Statesman would be considered 'high end' and with either the rhodium / titanium finish, would be a pen that would last a very long time. I order from Exotic Blanks or from Craft Supplies. The pen components run between $15 (for the Jr. Gent II) to $35 for the high end Jr. Statesman.
Robert
I think it would be safe to say that a Jr. Gent II / Statesman would be considered 'high end' and with either the rhodium / titanium finish, would be a pen that would last a very long time. I order from Exotic Blanks or from Craft Supplies. The pen components run between $15 (for the Jr. Gent II) to $35 for the high end Jr. Statesman.
Robert
Fish30114
Member
I think a true high end pen kit will be north of $30. I honestly can't find any pen kits that I feel are of high enough quality to justify prices like--let's say Cross pens get--which are mfg in China BTW, so I know it's possible that
'they' can produce a Cross caliber mechanism, we just aren't being shown or offered that to my knowledge. I suppose if a real quality mfg offered a diverse line of pens--like Lazerlines may be able to do, they would sell all the brought to market pretty quickly. I suppose also that a Cross caliber mechanism/kit would be priced around $20-$30....
Just my .02
'they' can produce a Cross caliber mechanism, we just aren't being shown or offered that to my knowledge. I suppose if a real quality mfg offered a diverse line of pens--like Lazerlines may be able to do, they would sell all the brought to market pretty quickly. I suppose also that a Cross caliber mechanism/kit would be priced around $20-$30....
Just my .02
Holz Mechaniker
Member
When the price for the hardware starts flirting beyond $20 that is when I will say that is the beginning of the high end exclusive kits.
bloodhound
Member
Ok. Thanks for the info everyone. I don't want to beat a 4 year old dead horse. So I will take this info and move on. There are plenty of things in this site. I'm sure I can go kick another tomb stone somewhere else. Thanks again for your time.
And thanks skiprat.
And thanks skiprat.
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This is a good thread for you to read....Learn something from it. There are a lot of different opinions here and also. The answers you get will often not be to the question you ask. I have said in the past "Ask an IAP member what time it is and you likely to be instructed on how to build a wrist watch"
bloodhound
Member
Lol I am catching on to that. Thanks smitty there is a LOT of stuff in the site. Which may be part of the problem. Most threads I will be in will be old. So if I ask a question then I am restarting a dead thread Which seems to be a no no. So I will keep the question asking to a minimum.
Restart dead threads if it brings up a question that doesn't have the answer, other's may be interested in the topic. There are a lot of us that haven't been here for 4 years, so we may have missed a real gem. The forum is meant for learning and sharing the craft, ask away, please.
Cmiles1985
Member
As I sit here not feeling so well, and with a light fever, I have found this to be an excellent read.
In answer to the OP, I'd consider high end to have a sliding scale dependent on the type of pen. I consider a high end ballpoint kit to be >$12. For a RB or FP, I'd say >$20. I find my logic to be a little screwed up as I'm thinking that a ballpoint should be higher due to the mechanical piece, but that's just a random thought.
In answer to the OP, I'd consider high end to have a sliding scale dependent on the type of pen. I consider a high end ballpoint kit to be >$12. For a RB or FP, I'd say >$20. I find my logic to be a little screwed up as I'm thinking that a ballpoint should be higher due to the mechanical piece, but that's just a random thought.
NittanyLion
Member
I do not think you can necessarily equate price with high end. Take all the new pens from PSI as an example. All priced over $20, yet many have fit/finish issues, and none of them with what many consider to be a high quality plating. To me, they are just over embellished glamour kits. I would never consider them to be a high end pen....yet PSI has done a great job marketing them. PSI found a niche in the market and a price point where they can likely make a good profit.
Personally, I consider a Rhodium Jr. Gent with a great blank and custom finial about as high end as you can get from a kit pen. It also must have great fit/finish.
Just my opinion, please do not crucify......
Personally, I consider a Rhodium Jr. Gent with a great blank and custom finial about as high end as you can get from a kit pen. It also must have great fit/finish.
Just my opinion, please do not crucify......
Dan Masshardt
Member
I don't make many pens that I'd consider to be 'high end'. Quality of blank material and craftsmanship and finish are always factors.
These are the 'kits' that I'd generally consider these to be at or toward the high end.
Emperor
Lotus
Imperial
Majestic
Statesman.
Cambridge
Sceptre
The stainless kits and jr gent 2 in better platings are in that direction but can go either way I think depending on what you do with them.
These are the 'kits' that I'd generally consider these to be at or toward the high end.
Emperor
Lotus
Imperial
Majestic
Statesman.
Cambridge
Sceptre
The stainless kits and jr gent 2 in better platings are in that direction but can go either way I think depending on what you do with them.
GaryMGg
Member
Funny how a thread like this is pretty timeless.
Smitty, I think IF you wanted a reply based exclusively on kit cost, you should have stuck with that and omitted "Do you all think in the same terms when you say high end" because that language opens the door for all manner of opinion and you can't herd cats.
Anyway, for me the high-end cost kits were Imperial, Statesman, and Emperors in better platings. They were $50-ish and up each BUT could be had for a fair discount during group buys.
That reminds me, I've got a box full of NOS high-end kits in a drawer which need building -- I think I'll sell them to get kits for ServicePens.
Chatham PenWorks
Member
You beat me to it. PSI has so many expensive component sets that are just ornate, blingy, or gimmicky, but not at all high end, that a price point just doesn't do it anymore.
Freethinker
Member
LOL. I can commiserate with you Smitty.
You asked a simple question, yet people wanted for some reason to give answers to entirely different questions.
As a direct answer to your asking what individuals here think of as being *high end* in terms of dollars and cents....I consider anything above $25 or so to be a *high end* kit.
As someone else said, the question of how good or bad a writing instrument is created FROM a particular *high end* kit is another question entirely.
I have seen some modified slims that were very well crafted and slick looking, while I have seen some of the most expensive kits (like the Emperor or Lotus) that were a bit bulbous looking and dressed in some quite unattractive plastic blanks.
You asked a simple question, yet people wanted for some reason to give answers to entirely different questions.
As a direct answer to your asking what individuals here think of as being *high end* in terms of dollars and cents....I consider anything above $25 or so to be a *high end* kit.
As someone else said, the question of how good or bad a writing instrument is created FROM a particular *high end* kit is another question entirely.
I have seen some modified slims that were very well crafted and slick looking, while I have seen some of the most expensive kits (like the Emperor or Lotus) that were a bit bulbous looking and dressed in some quite unattractive plastic blanks.
But that sentence is pretty clear ... I think.
That is why I didn't ask about finished pens. We have here some pretty darned good blank makers selling blanks that cost quite a bit....I was wondering at what price level people might start using some of those blanks.....If one has a $50 or $60 blank are they going to put it on a $10 kit was something I was thinking there.
They didn't have them when the question was asked...I might word the question differently today. BTW many of those PSI kits are the same kits with different cap/clip/tip. They have found a cheap way to introduce different designs for one, two or all of them.
lwalper
Member
I am loathe to pay more than $5-6 for a kit. Most of them don't cost that much to produce. I know the distributors are filling a demand and I don't have a problem with some enterprising individual making a living, covering their costs, and making a business work. That said, a good quality mechanism (one that works well and reliably) coupled with a skilled artist/turner creates a "quality" pen. Quality components would include the components which actually involve more $$ materials, machining and better quality control on the front end.
The slimline/trimline style kits are affordable and can be turned into a "quality" product. For just a couple of bucks investment you can produce a really nice pen. If you find demand for "high-end" there's always the sterling silver or stainless steel available. For what they are even those parts seem to be reasonably priced, but you'll need a market that will appreciate the initial outlay to justify the price of a pen starting out with "quality" components.
The slimline/trimline style kits are affordable and can be turned into a "quality" product. For just a couple of bucks investment you can produce a really nice pen. If you find demand for "high-end" there's always the sterling silver or stainless steel available. For what they are even those parts seem to be reasonably priced, but you'll need a market that will appreciate the initial outlay to justify the price of a pen starting out with "quality" components.