Neil
Fellow
Brian asked me to copy and paste this comment that I wrote under another thread about the Empress pen, havent caught up with this thread yet as I ve been away so dont know the precise relevance other than Brian is probably having another bash at our Chinese friends and their inability to produce a good kit!
Anyway, this is what I wrote on Pauls thread about the Empress:
I have some of these kits so am equally guilty of deluding the manufacturer that they have created a masterpiece by creating a demand for this kit. I bought several when TB launched it as the Spring Blossom (I think it was) and then Axminster launched it as the Empress, the difference being that Axminster launched it as both a FP and a RB whereas TB did only as a RB and also the Axminster model had that plastic thing on the end of the clip.
I have to say that the kit has the design finesse of a motorway pile up. Take for example the clip, it says it all. The inset brass coloured bling thing fits looselywithin the punched recess on the clip itself which has no design style whatsoever. it is a flat piece of cheap material, badly coated and simply folded. The design concept for the top of the pen was obviously taken from a baked bean can, the cylinder that it is, is featureless and poorly coated further highlighting its lack of styling and quality. The brassy blingy bits are cheap pressings that lack fine detail and look like a five year olds efforts with play doh.
The plating redefines abysmal, similes nor metaphors not required, simply awful.
To cap it all the pen was launched, and TB refused to market the Fountain Pen, as the internal bore on the pen was too narrow to take a cartridge, who was the designer? Homer Simpson?
The nib section of the Roller ball looks like it came from the head of a medieval arrow tip, designed to penetrate the body and not come out without causing maximum damage.
The pen as a whole has the design flair of a police truncheon and is equally good as a writing implement.
Anyway, this is what I wrote on Pauls thread about the Empress:
I have some of these kits so am equally guilty of deluding the manufacturer that they have created a masterpiece by creating a demand for this kit. I bought several when TB launched it as the Spring Blossom (I think it was) and then Axminster launched it as the Empress, the difference being that Axminster launched it as both a FP and a RB whereas TB did only as a RB and also the Axminster model had that plastic thing on the end of the clip.
I have to say that the kit has the design finesse of a motorway pile up. Take for example the clip, it says it all. The inset brass coloured bling thing fits looselywithin the punched recess on the clip itself which has no design style whatsoever. it is a flat piece of cheap material, badly coated and simply folded. The design concept for the top of the pen was obviously taken from a baked bean can, the cylinder that it is, is featureless and poorly coated further highlighting its lack of styling and quality. The brassy blingy bits are cheap pressings that lack fine detail and look like a five year olds efforts with play doh.
The plating redefines abysmal, similes nor metaphors not required, simply awful.
To cap it all the pen was launched, and TB refused to market the Fountain Pen, as the internal bore on the pen was too narrow to take a cartridge, who was the designer? Homer Simpson?
The nib section of the Roller ball looks like it came from the head of a medieval arrow tip, designed to penetrate the body and not come out without causing maximum damage.
The pen as a whole has the design flair of a police truncheon and is equally good as a writing implement.
however when I try to vote the page says 'You have already voted in this poll' so I don't know what went wrong 
