October 3, 2024

Where to buy Fountain Pens

It would be nice to be able to go to a store, see, and try pens, but that is not an option now in Tucson, Arizona. There are many excellent online options.

Amazon and counterfeits

You see great deals on Amazon, but beware. As they say, if the price is too good to believe, maybe something isn't right. I have purchased two Lamy Safaris on Amazon, both of them leaked and made me hate Lamy -- until I realized they were defective, counterfeits, or something of the sort. Realize too that you aren't buying from Amazon, but from some seller, who is not likely to be an authorized retailer, meaning any warranty that would ordinarily come with the pen will not be honored by the maker. This is fair, since they have no way to know if the pen was used, damaged, counterfeit or what. When I received a Lamy 2000 from Amazon in a plain plastic bag without the genuine Lamy box with warranty papers I send it back.

Buying from Japan via Amazon

This is indeed a way to get pens at great prices, and even pens that would not ordinarily be available on the US market. In the case of Sailor at least, and almost certainly other manufacturers you get no warranty -- so you have to balance that against a good price. You do get a 30 day return window from Amazon, so you can inspect it, try it out, and verify that you made a good purchase.

Another way to buy from Japan

I have never tried this, but I found this tip in the above Reddit post:
There is another site called Buyee.JP where you can order a pen directly from a shop in Japan. It will be delivered to the Buyee wharehouse and then they write up the customs forms and forward it on to you.
I did it some years ago to get the Yellow Pilot Custom 74 which was a limited edition. Pretty seamless process.

Top tier retailers

These all should be authorized retailers for Lamy, and probably all other brands. I have ordered from Goulet and Goldspot -- both are great.

Dromgooles has free shipping over $69.
Goulet has free shipping over $99.
Jet Pens has free shipping over $35, which is great for ink.

Dromgooles sells previously owned pens.

Feedback? Questions? Drop me a line!

Tom's Pen Info / [email protected]