Duke/Danni Rabbit - Dannitu Pens
- From: PoohcornerPens@xxxxxxx
- To: pens@xxxxxxxx, fptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, 4pens@xxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 18 May 2006 22:16:13 EDT
I'm speaking not as a pen seller here, but as a consumer/user.
Curious about the Duke pens, I followed a lead from one our posters (Zoss
list I think it was), and looked into the Duke/Danni Rabbit pen line.
Actually I went to Ebay (sorry to use the "E" word, but just need to be
honest here), and looked up the seller "D2Wally".
Sure enough there were the pens, about 25 different models from 4-5
manufacturers/labels, most starting off at a $9.99 opening bid. I bid on 5
pens; won
them all for $9.99 each. Shipping / handling / insurance via EMS plus the
cost of the pens was about $135.
The pens arrived today (about 3 days after the seller told me he had
shipped). I purchased the red resin, blue resin, Orchid (a "Danni Rabbit" pen,
not a
Duke), 911 Shell, and Charlie Chaplin. The pens all have medium-ish nibs;
some run a bit finer; some a bit wider. The Orchid and Chaplin are gold plated
nibs. The nibs appear to be manufactured in Germany; at least they're
stamped as such, with the exception of the "rabbit" pen. I dipped them all and
they're smooth as glass. All are c/c fillers and included the converter, a
nice
display storage box, polishing cloth and warranty booklet.
The feeds appear to be similar to most German feeds I've see from Bock; same
with the nibs, being similar to many of the generic Bock nibs produced by
Bock. The stainless nibs appear to be very high quality; as I said they're
very
smooth. I'd not put them in the same league as Schmidt stainless nibs, but
they're passable.
The feeds/nib assemblies appear to be press/friction fit into the section.
I haven't filled one yet, but I will. I was looking for some "knocking
around" pens, and I think these are the ticket. I especially like the 911
Shell,
which resembles a Sheaffer Balance, only with a souped up effect. The resin
pens (red and blue) are similar in style and size to a Pelikan 600 They have
good weight, and a nice feel with the caps on or off.
From what the booklets say, Duke is a subsidiary of the German pen company,
operating in Hong Kong, with R&D ties to Germany. I'll say that the company,
Shanghai G. Crown Fountain Pen Co. Ltd., is turning out some high quality
pens using resin and brass / shellac overlay, similar to what we see from
Levenger and other companies.
The "Danni Rabbit" pen had no booklet, thus I can't comment on the company.
The nice presentation box is stamped inside and out with a rabbit logo and
"Dannitu Danny Rabbit (USA) International Holdings Limited Develop".
I'm not quite ready to buy stock in the company just yet, but for less than
what I'd pay for most pens, I have five really nice pens that may turn out
much better than just the "daily user" grade I was looking for.
I'm not familiar enough with the Chinese pen companies, such as Hero, to say
that perhaps this is a competing Chinese company to Hero?
So, if you're interested in taking a spin with Wally (AKA Wallace Lee) on
Ebay, I don't think you'll be disappointed. My buying experience was as good
or
better than any other international or local purchase I've had off of Ebay,
as far as that goes. Wally communicates well and often. He has several brands
on his site but it appears the Dukes are his biggest sellers.
I will say that shipping/handling is a bit expensive, running about $24.99
per pen, but he does discount that with multiple purchases. I think the
shipping on my 5 pens was $70; not too awful bad I guess for the weight of the
package and being sent insured/traceable. If I was shipping it the other way,
it
would cost about $55 insured via USPS Global Express, so the
shipping/handling seems fair. As I mentioned, all pens came in nice, high
quality clam shell
storage/display boxes.
I don't get a kickback; just a satisfied customer, and as a seller myself, I
hold customer satisfaction to be my NUMBER ONE business mission!
I'll comment more down the road as I get a chance to use the pens a bit.
Jim Sanders
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