I picked this pen as mother's day gift from my family. I loved it, the nib was so smooth, writing enjoyable, pen itself gorgeous. But it was leaking on the top of the nib (the opposite to the writing end) onto my fingers on the first writing session. I brought the pen to Wonderpens to see if I could exchange it or do anything about the leakage and was told that the leak is due to the way I am holding the pen (my fingertips will occasionally graze the nib top but do not rest on it while writing) and that I would need to pay 15% restocking fee if I were to return it because it was inked. I am not sure how I would discover that the pen is defective without inking it. I showed that the pen leaks even if I swipe a tissue across the top of the nib without any pressure and that from my perspective the pen is defective. I wanted to exchange it for the same pen and was told that I will encounter exactly same issue and that the 2nd pen sale will be final. I was then lectured on costs of demo pens and margins of small businesses. While I can appreciate the sentiments, I could not live with the most expensive pen I own being a dud.
I ended up returning the pen and getting the full price back, but this whole interaction left me feeling so gaslit and guilt-tripped that I am not sure I will be looking to shop at Wonderpens with the previous vigour, certainly not for the expensive fountain pens. I loved the store, but it will be a while until I am able to shake off this interaction aftertaste.
