Was this Pen Chalet Cache worth the Cash?
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- čas přidán 4. 05. 2024
- I have a thing for mystery boxes. They're usually a good value for the money, and they can give you things that you wouldn't otherwise have bought, but might just enjoy a whole lot. Sometimes there are exclusive things in there, too. Pen Chalet sometimes offers a limited number of something that the call the "Cache" and so I grabbed one the last time it was offered. They let you pick the nib size of the fountain pen, and then there are supposed to be a few other stationery items and some store swag in the package.
So: What did I get? Was it a good value? Watch and see!
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Not a fan of mystery boxes, and this confirms it for me.
They're not for everyone, but most of them are fine by me. I like the surprise. This was just not a great surprise.
Those coasters have been on all kinds of Pen Chalet discount pages for months, like more than six months. My guess is that they were purchased along with other leather desk accessories and did not sell in the expected numbers.
Yep, trying to get rid of unsold stock.
Well, it worked!
Mystery boxes are okay for some industries, I dont think I could do it with pens and art unless the value was much higher. That loupe is probably .50C from china, the coasters maybe a dollar for a 4 pack. Kaweco sports are cool but we all know they are a gas station toy marked up as much as they can get for them. Getting a black ink in a mystery box would really upset me. Everyone has a black or blue. Even the Kaweco they spent comes with a blue. I get that they use these boxes to dump high quantity / slow moving inventory but man.. at least make the ink interesting. To me its $20-$30 worth of items that probably sit in their warehouse longer than they want sold for 90% its retail price.
I’m disappointed in Pen Chalet. That’s more of a grab-bag than a Mystery Box.
I received the same box with the same contents. l agree with you concerning the value. I wasn't aware that I could specify the nib size, that is good to know.
I love a mystery box but either it has to be monetarily a good return on the gamble, or it has to have been very inexpensive for me to be happy with it. My favorite ever was a one man press I like had a bunch of unsent packages that he no longer knew himself what they contained so he just sold them for ten bucks each. I made out like a bandit on that one, but even if I hadn't, I feel like it was in the true spirit of the thing. NOBODY knows what you're getting, and that's beyond a reasonable price for at least one book.
This one... IDK. The coasters would actively piss me off. I can't treat leather like that, and I definitely would not have intuited that product category from the description. That loupe is great though. Had they thrown in a notepad, it would help a lot.
I was disappointed for you. A mystery box should be fun. That was just plain sad.
Ooof! That is a pretty sad mystery box. A bit shameful, really. I understand that these boxes are a way for businesses to liquidate stock that isn't selling, but rule #1 is that a mystery box should surprise and delight the person who opens it, even if it isn't something they would have bought for themselves. It shouldn't be a sad junk box like Pen Chalet sent out. It honestly wouldn't have taken much to make it look like they were trying to give customers an experience, rather than just tricking them into buying the stuff that doesn't sell.
I'd say that there is a pretty wide gap between their *description* of the Mystery Box and the actual *contents* of the Mystery Box. Pen Chalet didn't actually lie, but it seems pretty shady to me, especially calling two paper clips stationery! I'm glad your cat at least likes them. Sorry... 😞
Eh. It happens. They can't all be winners.
I got that box and I got a bottle of Monteverde ink in it as well it was some sort of rust brown. I really could have done without the coasters though.
Some of the rusty Monteverdes are real nice. Canyon Rust, maybe?
I like mystery boxes, this one would have been disappointing to me. It looks like they’re cleaning out returns or just half damaged stock. 2 coasters? I think Tom does a better job with the Ink Flight boxes.
Yep, I got the same stuff, but my coasters were gray.
I would like to see the contents of the more expensive mystery box. It had already sold out, when I ordered mine.
Triplet is a kind of lens design.
Ah! Thanks.
I guess you're right!
The box should at least be half the size 😬 Im not interested in mystery boxes in general though
I’m a little sad for you :( I love love a good mystery but I’ve found it challenging to find one I think is amazing for fountain pens. I did like my last mystery dip from Goldspot pens but if you have any other ones you like let me know.
The one from Truphae was good, as was the one from Retro 51.
That's a drag. I got a good mystery box from pen chalet one time. But I also haven't rushed to but any more.
Are there any retailers who have really great mystery boxes?
Goldspot makes pretty solid ones from what I've seen
The Truphae one was good, too.
You're being very kind about this box, but to me it's not a mystery, just a disappointment. Apart from the Kaweco TT it looks more like they're getting rid of various bits and bobs they can't sell in their shop the way they put them in the package: 2 paperclips instead of the standard 6, 2 coasters instead of 4. And tbh, even if it's 30x, the loupe can't be great quality at just under $10. I have a 20x with an LED that cost me €45 (for study in nature).
Yeah, I think they were clearing the shelves. That's okay sometimes, but this was a pretty disappointing box. Oh well. They can't all be winners.
The contents of the box were disappointing for sure, but then to charge $10 for shipping on a $40 sale? That's some weak tea.
Yeah, I get that shipping costs quite a bit, but they could have used a way smaller box and saved us some cash on at least the shipping.
The shipping blows me out of the water makes me not want to buy anything. How's Nose?
I’ll never understand the attraction of mystery boxes. We’ve moved beyond wish listing to “surprise me?” Sorry, can’t play this game.
Seeing this puts Pen Chalet on the do not buy from list for me. I get that mystery boxes help move slower moving items, but not every single item can be the slow moving one. At least one needs to be a win for the purchaser and not the shop. This is very nearly a scam box, as coasters aren't pen accessories, and those paperclips are swag, and not pen accessories either. Throw in limited edition ink instead, or an extra unadvertised item. Mystery box should delight, and drive future sales. This one disappoints, and drives future sales to another merchants, so a failure on many levels.
Well, the Kaweco is nice, but I agree on the coasters and paperclips. I'm definitely not going to write off Pen Chalet as a store, I like them, but this Cache was a miss for sure.
I think it was not worth what you paid.
I'm was not worth what you paid.
I mean, it WAS worth more than I paid. Just not a whole lot more.
Not impressed!
Facts.