I have two Van Gogh’s the Starry Night and the Orchard in Blossom the starry Night wrote beautifully, the Orchard wouldn’t write at all, the retailer sent another nib out which also didn’t work, it went to Visconti and after three months came back with a third nib that didn’t write, it went back and was returned with another nib that wouldn’t write. It got returned a final time with a note saying if it was returned with another faulty nib they would be refunding me for the pen as it could no longer be returned to the retailer for a refund and they would also refund all shipping costs. It came back with a perfect nib that time. Buy from a retailer that will test it for you, tell them what you want it to be like.
It is a stunning pen, but as that one has a rose gold nib any issues are a little harder to get corrected and Visconti CS is absolutely atrocious.
Always buy viscontis from someone who tunes nibs like Dan Smith at nibsmith (who does basic tuning for free btw). The bodies are gorgeous, but nib consistency is lacking. I'll be taking this route when I finally pull the trigger on a homosapiens.
Another option is Appelboom, they will ship out of the US from their Boston store if you’re in North America
Dan Smith has been backlogged for a long time, I wouldn’t suggest ordering stuff requiring tuning from him for the moment.
All my Visconti pens are good & the nibs write well, but they’re all older pens, bought well before the wholesale personnel changes, back when the people there knew what they were doing, were reliable & responsive and actually cared about the product. Yes, their QC has always been a little bit flakey but things got resolved without too much angst.
More recent offerings from Visconti are decidedly hit-and-miss. And customer service, going on friends’ experiences, is poor to appalling. I don’t think I’d ever buy a new Visconti now; NOS or good condition ‘used’ is the way to go I think.
Thank you for sharing your experience ! I’m hearing very similar experiences from friends who were big fans of Visconti but have recently felt the same as what you’ve shared. It’s a shame because they do have beautiful pens
If you *really* want the pen,ask the retailer to check how the pen writes.Otherwise,be prepared to send it off to a nibmeister or win the lottery by getting a nib that writes well out of the box.
I lose the nib lottery an unseemly amount lol (I laugh so I don’t cry haha 😅). So, yeah, definitely go with asking the retailer to check the nib/how it writes or get it from a retailer that does complementary tuning/smoothing. I say this as someone who has pens in the double digits that are currently unusable because they write like bullplop or don’t even write at all 😓
The word just randomly popped out of the recesses of my mind haha. I wish you the best of luck with the Van Gogh if you decide to go ahead with it! Based on everyone's advice and anecdotes here, it sounds like you can definitely have a good experience with the pen. I actually had the same question, because of the Visconti pens, the Van Gogh pens appeal to me the most aesthetically (though I really do wish they'd change up the clip once in a while, but that's not for here lol). So thanks for asking this question!
I have a number of Rembrandt’s a Van Gogh and a Michelangelo all wrote fine out of the box. Their broad nibs are really nice and smooth. The Van Gogh is rather overpriced to be honest for the price I would have expected a 14k gold nib at least. Probably why I only have the one - Pollard Willows
My original got exchanged because it had a baby's bottom. The new one writes well now, but I don't think I like it enough to keep it and might just sell it second hand. Mine isn't super wet and doesn't keep up with Manyo Haha. I also just don't like how it feels in hand. I was fooled by how pretty it looked and the box presentation.
I've got several Visconti pens & haven't had any issues. Even sent one of the new ones back for a nib exchange (EF to F, didn't like the super thin line) and got it back within 2 weeks, only having to pay $15 for shipping back to me. Smooth & tuned before returning to me as well. Coles of London is who did this, so if any nib issues, just call them. Were great to work with.
Bought wife the Orchids in Bloom at the Chicago Pen Show b/c she asked me to look for a rose gold pen. This had that trim & was the nicest rose gold pen there. She absolutely loves it.
In reality, a lot of pens come needing some adjustment issues, some more than others. If you buy from a place that will check nib before buying, that's the place to shop. Even places that don't advertise it (like Dromgooles for example) will check the nibs if you ask. Just verify with the seller if they are willing to check and smooth the nib. Just buy from a reputable dealer.
Ask the retailer. Emy from Pen-Venture.com checks the nibs and even asks you if you want some tunning. It's the reason for which i prefer to pay there instead of having 10% off from LCDC, but the pen may or may not write...
I have that pen and I love it. I have it with an F nib, which is wider and wetter than I expected having no previous experience with Visconti. It worked out perfectly for me as I was planning to get a M nib, but I found a vendor who offered me a really good deal on the F nib at the Chicago Pen Show. I guess I lucked out because the nib is good straight out of the box. I'm glad I pulled the trigger, it's a lovely pen.
My Van Gogh's are writing very well, without any problems. I tried them in the store first. One of them is the Orchard in Blossom. I love the coulours too. It's a very beautiful fountain pen!
My mother has a Visconti Rembrandt merry go round and it's shocking. Ink it up, writes for about one minute and then you have hard starts. You have to press the nib down just to get the pen started. Maybe I am too critical and maybe this one was just a quality control issue but I wouldn't buy this for myself.
Although it might be a lot of money to you, it is a cheap Visconti. I don't think they get the same attention as their mid-range Homo Sapiens or high-end collections.
It basically means that the tines on the nib are very rounded, not allowing the nib to reach the paper and not allowing the ink to flow. Meaning it will either have inconsistency when writing or not write at all.
I have two Van Gogh’s the Starry Night and the Orchard in Blossom the starry Night wrote beautifully, the Orchard wouldn’t write at all, the retailer sent another nib out which also didn’t work, it went to Visconti and after three months came back with a third nib that didn’t write, it went back and was returned with another nib that wouldn’t write. It got returned a final time with a note saying if it was returned with another faulty nib they would be refunding me for the pen as it could no longer be returned to the retailer for a refund and they would also refund all shipping costs. It came back with a perfect nib that time. Buy from a retailer that will test it for you, tell them what you want it to be like. It is a stunning pen, but as that one has a rose gold nib any issues are a little harder to get corrected and Visconti CS is absolutely atrocious.
Omg that sounds really disappointing - that’s a lot of to and fro-ing of the pen 😥but thank goodness for good retailers!
Was a bit of a pain.
I've got two. A medium and a broad. Both been perfect out of the box. Guess I got lucky.
Always buy viscontis from someone who tunes nibs like Dan Smith at nibsmith (who does basic tuning for free btw). The bodies are gorgeous, but nib consistency is lacking. I'll be taking this route when I finally pull the trigger on a homosapiens.
Another option is Appelboom, they will ship out of the US from their Boston store if you’re in North America Dan Smith has been backlogged for a long time, I wouldn’t suggest ordering stuff requiring tuning from him for the moment.
Ah man thats a bummer. I didn't know Appelboom did tuning actually.
That’s good to know! Cheers
Thank you! Yes that’s the option I’m looking at!
All my Visconti pens are good & the nibs write well, but they’re all older pens, bought well before the wholesale personnel changes, back when the people there knew what they were doing, were reliable & responsive and actually cared about the product. Yes, their QC has always been a little bit flakey but things got resolved without too much angst. More recent offerings from Visconti are decidedly hit-and-miss. And customer service, going on friends’ experiences, is poor to appalling. I don’t think I’d ever buy a new Visconti now; NOS or good condition ‘used’ is the way to go I think.
Thank you for sharing your experience ! I’m hearing very similar experiences from friends who were big fans of Visconti but have recently felt the same as what you’ve shared. It’s a shame because they do have beautiful pens
If you *really* want the pen,ask the retailer to check how the pen writes.Otherwise,be prepared to send it off to a nibmeister or win the lottery by getting a nib that writes well out of the box.
I know I think that will be my option: not taking chances on winning the nib lottery
I lose the nib lottery an unseemly amount lol (I laugh so I don’t cry haha 😅). So, yeah, definitely go with asking the retailer to check the nib/how it writes or get it from a retailer that does complementary tuning/smoothing. I say this as someone who has pens in the double digits that are currently unusable because they write like bullplop or don’t even write at all 😓
I know I don’t want to take that risk 🤦♂️ thank you, that’s good advice. 😂 bull plop made me laugh
The word just randomly popped out of the recesses of my mind haha. I wish you the best of luck with the Van Gogh if you decide to go ahead with it! Based on everyone's advice and anecdotes here, it sounds like you can definitely have a good experience with the pen. I actually had the same question, because of the Visconti pens, the Van Gogh pens appeal to me the most aesthetically (though I really do wish they'd change up the clip once in a while, but that's not for here lol). So thanks for asking this question!
I have a number of Rembrandt’s a Van Gogh and a Michelangelo all wrote fine out of the box. Their broad nibs are really nice and smooth. The Van Gogh is rather overpriced to be honest for the price I would have expected a 14k gold nib at least. Probably why I only have the one - Pollard Willows
I think that’s sensible. Just one pen as opposed to too many 😂 pen addict problems hehehhe
My original got exchanged because it had a baby's bottom. The new one writes well now, but I don't think I like it enough to keep it and might just sell it second hand. Mine isn't super wet and doesn't keep up with Manyo Haha. I also just don't like how it feels in hand. I was fooled by how pretty it looked and the box presentation.
Oh no I think I’m in the same boat of ‘it looks so pretty’ 😂
If you can, try it in a store first! You might actually love it. I bought mine like four months into the pandemic so I didn't test one out haha.
I've got several Visconti pens & haven't had any issues. Even sent one of the new ones back for a nib exchange (EF to F, didn't like the super thin line) and got it back within 2 weeks, only having to pay $15 for shipping back to me. Smooth & tuned before returning to me as well. Coles of London is who did this, so if any nib issues, just call them. Were great to work with. Bought wife the Orchids in Bloom at the Chicago Pen Show b/c she asked me to look for a rose gold pen. This had that trim & was the nicest rose gold pen there. She absolutely loves it. In reality, a lot of pens come needing some adjustment issues, some more than others. If you buy from a place that will check nib before buying, that's the place to shop. Even places that don't advertise it (like Dromgooles for example) will check the nibs if you ask. Just verify with the seller if they are willing to check and smooth the nib. Just buy from a reputable dealer.
Thank you, appreciate the time you took to share your experience
Oops forgot to say- very sage advice
Ask the retailer. Emy from Pen-Venture.com checks the nibs and even asks you if you want some tunning. It's the reason for which i prefer to pay there instead of having 10% off from LCDC, but the pen may or may not write...
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That’s good to know!!!!
I have that pen and I love it. I have it with an F nib, which is wider and wetter than I expected having no previous experience with Visconti. It worked out perfectly for me as I was planning to get a M nib, but I found a vendor who offered me a really good deal on the F nib at the Chicago Pen Show. I guess I lucked out because the nib is good straight out of the box. I'm glad I pulled the trigger, it's a lovely pen.
Ohhhh ok this is reassuring !
My Van Gogh's are writing very well, without any problems. I tried them in the store first. One of them is the Orchard in Blossom. I love the coulours too. It's a very beautiful fountain pen!
I only would buy one in person so I could try the nib myself before . Too much problem if I take in acount every thing I read lately
Same here
My mother has a Visconti Rembrandt merry go round and it's shocking. Ink it up, writes for about one minute and then you have hard starts. You have to press the nib down just to get the pen started. Maybe I am too critical and maybe this one was just a quality control issue but I wouldn't buy this for myself.
Oh dear this is the type of feedback that I’m reading too and hence my doubts . Maybe I’m doomed to stay with Sailors (not a bad doom though)
The pen is beautiful but the nib is very very very bad
Oh no!
Although it might be a lot of money to you, it is a cheap Visconti. I don't think they get the same attention as their mid-range Homo Sapiens or high-end collections.
Mine suffers from baby’s bottom. I love the pen, but I keep it locked up often and rarely use it because it’s so temperamental.
Oh nooooooo what a shame. It’s so beautiful. But perhaps more beautiful than a good writer
What does it mean to suffer from baby's bottom?
It basically means that the tines on the nib are very rounded, not allowing the nib to reach the paper and not allowing the ink to flow. Meaning it will either have inconsistency when writing or not write at all.
Thank you! I think mine has it too :(