DUKE P3 Orion

Need bottled ink or refills?

P3 Orion    $35.00    Sold out   

The P3 Orion is a classy, sleek pen design that looks good at the opera, in a boardroom or resting comfortably in the pocket of a flannel shirt. A slim pen, it fits comfortably in a large hand -- or small -- measuring a bit over 5-3/8" capped and 6-1/8" posted.

Finished in a rich, black lacquer -- over brass construction -- three design elements immediately attract the attention, depending upon the angle in which the pen is viewed. Looked at edge-on, it's the wasp-waisted, chromed clip that first draws the eye.

The next design feature that tends to attract is the 'temple apex', a visual reminder of the crowning feature of many Chinese temples throughout the world. Interestingly in this model, DUKE has placed this at the end of the barrel, unlike with the Copper Temple or the Beijing Opera, where it adorns the top of the cap.

The third element that tends to stand out is the DUKE 'crown' logo on the top of the cap, where it rests beneath a protective acrylic window. Peeking out of shirt or jacket pocket, it makes for a distinctive, but subtle appearance.

The center band is engraved in flowing script with 'DUKE' on one side and 'P3' on the other.

Removing the slip cap -- which re-seats with a satisfying 'click' -- reveals the spear-shaped steel nib, which nicely complements the slim profile of the pen. I would describe it as a light-medium, laying down a line somewhere between a typical fine and medium western nib. What appear to be cap grooves at the base of the section are in fact a design statement, rather than a functional element.

Unscrewing the all-metal fittings between the section and the barrel exposes the large capacity piston converter for bottled ink filling. Like the majority of DUKE models, the converter may be removed for those who would like to use Parker-style ink cartridges.

The pen comes in DUKE's distinctive 'black pebble' gift box

IMPORTANT SERVICE NOTE: Every nib that ships from His Nibs is closely examined under high magnification and tuned or adjusted if needed. About 85% of modern nibs need some adjustment out-of-the-box from the manufacturer for an optimal writing experience. Most commonly, the tines of the nib are misaligned -- which would cause scratchiness at the minimum; the slit between the tines is partially or fully closed -- which would starve the nib of ink and at best cause skipping; or the slit between the tines is too wide -- which will either again cause skipping, or conversely, flooding. There are other factors  -- such as separation of the nib from the feed -- that are inspected and repaired before any pen leaves the Palace.

The only 100% guarantee of course comes when the pen is actually filled with ink and written with for the first time, but our pre-shipping inspections and tunings have eliminated 99.99999 (my finger is getting tired) of the frustrations that a customer experiences when first using a new fountain pen. Although this can be time-consuming on occasion, it affords our customers a much more pleasant experience when receiving a fountain pen from His Nibs -- and saves us the frustration of dealing with returns!

Ordering Procedures & Returns

International customers, please note, we will not falsify shipping documents

Credit cards, for the quickest fulfillment of your order, are accepted through PayPal, a secure site allowing you to use your credit card without us even seeing the information. If you'd like to make use of this credit card service, please let us know when you email your order and address, and we'll email you the appropriate Request for Payment, and instructions for the simple payment procedure (you don't need to join PayPal to use it).

If you would like us process your credit card directly instead, then please email us:

1. Card # (dividing this number in two, between two emails, will ensure security)
2. Expiration date
3. Name on card
4. Address for billing statement
5. Card verification # (3-digit number printed on the back of your card. It appears after and to the right of your card number, or 4-digit number on the front of your AMEX card).
 

If you'd rather pay by money order or check, kindly make payable to:

His Nibs.com
  2540 W. Union Street
  Allentown, PA 18104

We ship via insured Priority Mail
(email for cost)

Please send your order and shipping address (along with any questions) to:

orders@hisnibs.com
(on PayPal transactions, the email address may also display as stonebri@sprynet.com -- both are valid)

We will email you back with your order total (PA residents please add 6% sales tax)

Warranties and returns

If an item proves to be defective, in most cases the manufacturer's warranty will apply. However, please email us first so that we can determine the easiest way to resolve the problem to your satisfaction. In the case of fountain pens -- which are a bit more individualistic than other writing instruments -- what may at first appear to be a defect (hard starting or poor flow for example), can in almost all cases be resolved with a few simple 'tweaks' to the nib, which we'll be happy to guide you through or perhaps suggest returning to us for adjustment.

Should you wish to return a non-defective item within 3 days of receipt because it doesn't suit you for some reason, again please email us and we'll arrange an exchange, credit or refund (minus any shipping/insurance charges), if the item is returned in an 'as new' condition. If you've dipped a fountain pen to try its writing characteristics, kindly clean off any ink residue prior to shipping -- to save us both a nasty surprise .

We want you to be happy with your purchase from His Nibs.com and hope to have you join the ranks of our many long-term, repeat customers!

Revised: February 8th, 2010

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