# Imperial Pen Review



## PenWorks (Jun 24, 2006)

Well after two weeks of not turning nothing. These pen kits finally motivated me to go into the sweat shop and do some turning.

This is one of the new kits from CSU, the Imperial.( a touch on the pricey side). I paired them up with some new Tru Stone resins.








Parts are pretty straight forward. One thing I noticed is that the rhodium finish is a mix of satin and polished. Also, the nib coupler does not have the cap threads attached to it. The cap threads are now on the nib. This is a change I didn't like. As now it becomes a propritary system to the pen and does not make the parts interchangable with others.






All messurements were done with a dial caliper. I like using a dial caliper as I can visually see the difference vs just looking at a digital readout. The bits are 15/32 & 35/64. If you have a Gents, Statesmen or Sketch pencil bit laying around, that will work for the 15/32 and a Havana bit will work for the 35/64. The cut is straight on both barrels with no taper. Although, the pen end cap, did messure .002 smaller than the nib coupler. 






I used some of the new Tru Stone blanks. I was able to get by, picking some of the larger blanks I had. But these are still the small ones that cost 8.99 and not the 7/8 that are 15.00 [:0] As you can see, there is enough room to drill the large hole.






Here is the pen closed and no it does not post.The threads work just fine with no problems. The stamping design is crisp and clean. Finish was done with wet sand and Novus compound and Hut Ultra shine.






Here they are open, The nib is a two tone steel. The front section works just like an Statesmen or Emperor with the same screw out nib assembly, I like this set up. And a Penchetta 14K gold nib will fit this pen. 

It is a nice pen, different look, but on the pricey side. Will see how they sell. I am a little worried about the satin finish showing scrathes, time will tell if this is a winner.


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## wudwrkr (Jun 24, 2006)

Anthony,
Thanks for sharing.  Those are really nice looking pens!


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## huntersilver (Jun 24, 2006)

Anthony, thanks for the great review.  And as always fantastic looking pens!!


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## Fangar (Jun 24, 2006)

Anthony,

Great write up AGAIN.  I am not sure that I am sold on the appearance, but often kits grow on me.  I too see the hesitation about the brushed / satin finish areas and their durability.  I got a Jr. Emperor in the mail a couple of days ago that had been on a back order.  I will likely make that one soon.

Fangar


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## Jim15 (Jun 24, 2006)

Nice pens and write up, thank you.


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## Rifleman1776 (Jun 24, 2006)

Interesting kit. Does it come in Ti plating? How does it compare in size with the Emperor?


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## RussFairfield (Jun 24, 2006)

A dumb question. Why does the pen have a tapered posting cap on the end of the pen barrel if the cap won't post?? Seems like a design flaw to me.


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## johncrane (Jun 24, 2006)

Anthony your pens are very nice.  do you think they feel to heavy or will they be ok for those who like a bigger pen.  I'm also going to try them. and I also think they are to pricey.


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## Ligget (Jun 24, 2006)

Anthony, that was a real good article, lots of helpful pictures too.[]
Thanks for taking the time to do this for us all..[]


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## jssmith3 (Jun 24, 2006)

Tony, those are both fantastic.  I'll trade ya for a painted one []. Keep up the great work, its truelly inspiring.
Janet


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## Tanner (Jun 24, 2006)

Beautiful pens!  Also thanks for showing your MO.


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## DCBluesman (Jun 24, 2006)

> _Originally posted by RussFairfield_
> <br />A dumb question. Why does the pen have a tapered posting cap on the end of the pen barrel if the cap won't post?? Seems like a design flaw to me.


I have to agree with you, Russ.  The "boxy" Asian lines are a visual nightmare with the tapered Western endpiece.  Who comes up with these designs? 

All of that being said, beautiful work, Anthony (but then again, when is your work not beautiful?).  Thanks for showing off the new plastics and kit!


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## woodmarc (Jun 24, 2006)

Thanks for the review. Not only of the pen, But I have also been curious about the true stone blanks from CSUSA.
The kit is nice looking, but....  how do the parts feel?  do they feel like metal on metal? for the price, I would hope that they would feel like you are getting you monies worth.
I don't see them on the site, are they readily available?


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## PenWorks (Jun 24, 2006)

Imperial comparisons............
Here is some weight info some of you have asked for comparison to other pens of this size.

Pen............Capped............pen Only
Emperor FP.....81................45
Emperor RB.....88................51
Imperial FP....70................37
Imperial RB....79................46
Statesmen RB...75................45
All weights are in grams

Since they all share the same tube with the exception of length, they are all very simular in feel. For just personal preference. I still like the Statesmen front sections lines, they flow better. The roller ball front section on the Emperor & Imperial RB don't get it with the little bump.




<br />

Frank, no gold TI, but they do have it with the 22K trim.
Marc, all the parts are metal and finsih is perfect.


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## Randy_ (Jun 25, 2006)

> _Originally posted by PenWorks_
> <br />.....This is one of the new kits from CSU, the Imperial.( a touch on the pricey side).....



The FP is $52 and the RB is $42.  With 22K, they are $10 more Â±.


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## ed4copies (Jun 26, 2006)

Anthony,

Great work on your part, but the pen leaves me cold.  Be very interesting to see if it moves, please keep me informed (I can be convinced with customer cash!!!)

Thanks for the info, and this is certainly NOT a criticism of your execution!!!


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## ncseeker (Jun 26, 2006)

> _Originally posted by RussFairfield_
> <br />A dumb question. Why does the pen have a tapered posting cap on the end of the pen barrel if the cap won't post?? Seems like a design flaw to me.



I could not agree more !!  What's up with all these high end pens that don't post ??  I don't buy into the marketing "spin" about putting your cap out for others to see.  Why not let 'em see it posted where it belongs !!!!


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## scubaman (Jun 26, 2006)

> I could not agree more !!  What's up with all these high end pens that don't post ??  I don't buy into the marketing "spin" about putting your cap out for others to see.  Why not let 'em see it posted where it belongs !!!!


Careful what you ask for!  You'd need an assistant to hold the pen up if you wanted to write with it posted!  I think the point was if you don't post, there are maybe better end treatments possible for this pen.


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## PenWorks (Jun 26, 2006)

I am sure the designers never intended for these large pens to post. 
I think any Gent, Statesmen, Imperial, Emperor would be way to top heavy, long & akward if it were a posting cap. But that's not to say, most of my clients still want the damn cap to post. Even though it would not be pratical. 

I think kit manufacturer's have a hard time designing pen kits that post. The Jr/Barons that post are a little on the unsightly side with the threaded end cap. The Havana is better and the Elgrande & Churchill are better yet for posting.

One of the things that bug me ( JMO ) even on the lightest of my pens a plastic Lamy Safari and a Pelikan, I still do not post the cap when I write. It is a nice feature on these light weight pens, but I still do not post. So why the heck does every one want a post cap including me! 

I think the only time I post a cap is on a small pen where the cap actually is an extension of the pen to make it long enough to handle, such as the Havana FP, or one of my mini turban tops.

All that being said, I think alot of us still want a nice medium size, higher end pen that is attractive and will post and the Imperial, & Lotus are not them.


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## ncseeker (Jun 26, 2006)

Anthony, even though you don't post the cap when you write with your other lighter pens, you CAN post if you wanted to.  I'd just like to see some pens that do post.  It would take away a negative perception by some potential customers.  If for no other reason, at least they could make up their own minds about posting it or not.  This is one of the reasons I like the Churchill and to some extent the El Grande.  

I do agree with you that some of these heavy pens would be way too top heavy.  I just picked up my Emperor and balanced the top on it while holding it in the writing position.  MAN is that heavy !!  But I'm sure there are customers out there that would like it posted.


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## epson (Jun 26, 2006)

I loose a lot of fountain pen sales because the pens do not post.  I am not sure why, but people get disapointed when they find out they cannot post.


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## DCBluesman (Jun 26, 2006)

Posting is a different situation than poor flowing design.  Posting for these kits is impractical from a different perspective.  These suckers are H-E-A-V-Y ! At 70 grams (2.25 ounces) to 81 grams (2.6 ounces), these pens are too darned heavy.  We need some clever engineering which includes high-end design and platings combined with weight of no more than about 30-35 grams. The "big boys" do it.  I know we have to allow for tubes (or do we?) but that only accounts for about 9 grams.  High-quality, ornate parts do NOT have to be heavy.  All of that being said, the manufacturers are listening, so maybe by this time next year we will have lighter weight, posting, high-end pens.


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## SteveRoberts (Jun 27, 2006)

<b>I have the same post-non post issue in my booth. I finally built a posting Gentleman to keep in my booth. I posted it in show off your pens while back. I use it as an educational tool. I post it for them and hand it over.

When posted it is tail-heavy. I haven't done one in an Emperor yet as I don't feel I need to spend $80 to make the point but maybe some day I will have to. I opted for the Lotus pen instead of the imperial. I just prefer the esthetics of it. The dual bands of carvings at the center really work for me. We take them to market in about a week to see how they do. I have designated them my upper-upper end pens. I wanted something to make the Emperor look reasonable at $280.</b>


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## ed4copies (Jun 28, 2006)

Good luck, Steve!!!!!  Please keep us informed on your success-good to know someone has found a market for these offerings-I continue to try (although, I am pretty slow during the summer-only about 3 shows until Fall).  If you find a method that works, it could save me some experimentation in the early Fall shows!


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## SteveRoberts (Jun 28, 2006)

> _Originally posted by ed4copies_
> <br />Good luck, Steve!!!!!  Please keep us informed on your success-good to know someone has found a market for these offerings-I continue to try (although, I am pretty slow during the summer-only about 3 shows until Fall).  If you find a method that works, it could save me some experimentation in the early Fall shows!



<b>Ed,

I have set aside some materials for the lotus only. That way they can't see it in any of my other pens. I have pens that start at $30 and go steadily up from there. I like them to see the value at the next level and self-upgrade.

I find that the key to selling a high end pen is planting at least two or three seeds early in the converstation and letting them know I "don't bother showing these to everyone".  

This sort of dares him to show me I was right about assuming he could afford it.  You have a sales back ground and I know you know it is more about the presentation than it is about what is presented at a certain level.

I sold a $500 emperor at my last show doing just that. I knew from when he walked up what he was leaving with, it just took 20 minutes to get him ready for the gentle and reverent placing of the much nicer than anything else on the booth presentation box in his hand.</b>


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## bluesky (Jun 28, 2006)

Steve,

Thank you for the last post. From a marketing stand point this has made
the most sense to me than anything I have ever read. The simple idea of 
using certain materials on certain kits. Thereby making the type of pen
special and adding an intrisic value to it. Do you also have more of the 
lower end product in the booth and fewer of the high end pens to add even more perceived value?

David


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## jhelminski (Jun 28, 2006)

Seems to me if they would improve the "Details" of the Baron i.e. remove the plastic and add some gold to the band and caps we would have the perfect pen. 

-jim


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## huntersilver (Jun 28, 2006)

I too use only special woods for the Emperor pens.  I feel
it makes them stand out from some of the other designs.


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## PenWorks (Jun 28, 2006)

> _Originally posted by jhelminski_
> <br />Seems to me if they would improve the "Details" of the Baron i.e. remove the plastic and add some gold to the band and caps we would have the perfect pen.
> 
> -jim



They did.....it's called the Jr. Statesmen II. If they could only figure out how to make an attractive posting end cap for that pen, it could be a top seller. []


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## ed4copies (Jun 28, 2006)

Steve,

Thanks for the further insite.  We are, generally, on the same page.  However, I don't get enough people in my booth wearing Rolexes (darnit!!!)

But, I do share your selling philosophy and I have a couple target customers whom I will see closer to Christmas-by then, I don't want to be in "experimental selling" mode.  All help is gratefully appreciated!!!!!!!!!


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## PenWorks (Jun 28, 2006)

Ed, just remember, 
If I don't have it....... I can get it......
If I can't get it........ You don't need it. 

Maybe we should invite Zig Ziggler over here for a chat on the art of closing the pen sale. []


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## ed4copies (Jun 28, 2006)

Zig Ziggler USED TO use a bic- (nearly 30 yrs ago)

Go GET 'EM Anthony!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Ron Mc (Jun 28, 2006)

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! Let me ask a fast question....It looks like only the posts on the either end is some kind of brushed metal. Yet the rest of the kit doesn't appear to look the same? This looks odd to me. Is it just me or do the kits actually look like they came from two different finishes?

Very nice work on the pens!


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## PenWorks (Jun 28, 2006)

Ron it is a mix of polish & brush metal. The tapered cap is brushed finish with some polished rings around the stamping and the cap with the clip is also brushed with a polished clip.


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## Johnathan (Jun 28, 2006)

Thanks for doing this Anthony. I still haven't had a chance to take mine out of their nice white boxes.


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## MDWine (Jun 29, 2006)

Thanks for a great write-up and a couple of beautiful pens.
Happy 4th!


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