Update: Help me get my copy of this pen back! My office was burglarized in June 2014 and this pen, among many others, was stolen. I've tracked down the fence who has/had this pen in his possession, but the police are too busy solving "real crime" to bother with writing a warrant and arresting the Oakland, CA resident. He continues to sell off my collection, while the police sit by and watch it happen. If you should come into possession of a copy of this pen already pre-loaded with red ink (Diamine Red Dragon to be precise), please contact me. Original Review: Cross gets little respect in the fountain pen community. Perhaps it's because its products are available in big box retailers, perhaps it is the association with ballpoints, or perhaps because its styles are considered mostly staid, but compared to players like Parker and Pelikan, Cross is a distinct afterthought. The year of the dragon is the first of Cross's Chinese zodiacal special edition pens Cross released. (They subsequently released the years of the snake and horse). Modeled on the Sauvage line, the Dragon, in Chinese red, is a handsome pen. It features a brass body with red translucent lacquer and inscribed images plated in gold. Despite being brass, the weight is very good. The eon is not especially heavy and well balanced whether the cap is posted or not. The nib is solid 18kt gold with a simple, classic double wave pattern inscribed on it. My fine nib writes smoothly and easily with no scratching skipping or any of the other problems sometimes afflicting fountain pens. The display box is also extremely nice, a red and black box with a special inlay for displaying the pen with a little stand. This is a wonderful touch that I've not seen elsewhere. Far from being staid, the shape of the pen is unusual, with a flaired back end and flowing convex arcs in front and back. It is a somewhat unusual design and definitely a departure from the ubiquitous cigar form factor featured on so many fountain pens (especially ones with snowflakes on the crown). Perhaps the best part in all of this is the value of the item. I paid only around $150 for this pen, an amazing prize for a special edition with a solid gold nib. The combination of design, style, function, and price makes this pen an exceptional value. Cross's lagging reputation in fountain pens apparently offers great opportunities for open minded buyers. Read more
I have a modest, yet somewhat amazing pen collection that goes from the modest Crosses to the top Monteblanc solid two-tone gold pen. Sadly, some are just not that practical, but this Cross is. It is not that expensive to keep at home, but it is still a beautiful clean writing pen that one can proudly carry around. Just be careful that no one steals it away. This pen series often may come with the presentation box, which while cool, decays with age...so it is not worth the extra price premium. Some of the ones in this series I bought either from the Amazon Warehouse or on Ebay. They are all nice. I do stick with the Ballpoints and some Roller Balls. The standard Cross pen refills fit fine. Do not get cheap generic refills that can leak and damage these pens. If one knows someone who likes getting gifts that go by the year of the Chinese Horoscope &/or are Asian, these can be treasured for sure. You really cannot go wrong for these pens which typically can run from $100 to $200. While not collectable, they are fun and practical pens. Enjoy! Read more
I prefer the writing ends of the Cross SAUVAGE designs, but the cap ends of their TOWNSEND designs. For the first time, there are two design versions of the Cross Chinese Zodiac 2020 BLUE RAT pens: TOWNSEND or SAUVAGE designs, for each of their three ink delivery technologies (ballpoint, rollerball, fountain). BOTH have the same beautiful (and unique to this year's design) blue color, with gold engraving of a rat's body. I already had the TOWNSEND BALLPOINT, so I figured I'd get the SAUVAGE ROLLER, mainly to be different. But it was a tough choice, because there is 1 significant pro and 1 significant con to each of the designs, IMHO: SAUVAGE PRO: a large part of the writing end is gold plated metal, rather than the black plastic of the Townsend, so that's VERY nice. SAUVAGE CON: but the Sauvage's cap end (flat gold with Chinese character for a rat) is just not as nice as the Townsend's cap (in my opinion), which has the traditional Townsend curves and Cross cone, plus a blue Swarovski crystal at the very top. Also VERY nice. The Sauvage cap is also a SCREW-ON (hence the metal tip?), versus the PUSH-PULL of the Townsend. But that distinction is not a big deal to me, especially because I display my nicest Rollerballs (and capless Ballpoints) horizontally with the caps posted, to make then easy to just pick up and write. It's too bad they can't come up with a design that marries the styles of the writing end of the Sauvage with the cap end of the Townsend!! How hard could that be? Surprisingly, the Townsend's price has recently come down even more than the Sauvage did ($120 vs $145 as of 9/1/20; I think both list for $300 at Cross. Read more
I love the way the pen looks, but I bought it so I could use it. I just received the pen today and had been trying for a good 30 mins hoping to be able to use it... but there's no ink in the refill. I am not asking for a replacement of the whole pen, but at least send a working refill so I could actually use this pen. Read more
