Gravitas - Monster Aluminium | Teal

I absolutely love this design, but item I received left a lot to be desired in terms of quality and attention to detail. First, the nib suffered from hard starts. Furthermore, in the pen I received, the microengraving on the finial band is so far off centre that the taller letters are clipped at the top (please see attached photo). For me, neither of these is acceptable at this price point. After exchanging a number of e-mails with Gravitas customer support, they agreed to send me replacement parts for the filling mechanism (including the finial band) and the nib unit.

When the parts finally arrived, I was shocked and disappointed to see that the new filling mechanism did not work at all (the two parts at the tip of the plunger are stuck together, even a generous application silicone grease did not get them to move freely). Furthermore, the colour and texture of the anodising on the end finial of the new filling mechanism did not match the original pen, and the finial band has a serial number that was never present in the original pen (see attached photo). I can’t help thinking that someone out there has a “unique limited edition” pen with the exact same serial number on their pen as I do on my spare filing mechanism, which feels wrong. I contacted Gravitas customer support again, and they informed me that the anodising colour cannot be matched perfectly between batches (strange, considering that the anodising on all the parts of the original item I received was well matched), and that the serial number is not a warranty issue, so they will take no further action to try to remedy the situation. After inquiring about the faulty filling mechanism that didn't work even after generous application of silicone grease, I have not received any reply at all from Gravitas, which is disappointing to say the least.

After nearly 2 months, I am now left with a selection of mismatched and dysfunctional parts and disappointment. I find this to be a huge shame since the design itself is so lovely. Some of the issues I raised above are certainly nit-picky, but in my opinion reasonable expectations to have at this price point. Anyway, I hope that my review will at least allow others to have more realistic expectations of the quality of this product.

Got the Monster (Teal) over a whim. I kind of was drawn in by its ink capacity, the #8 nib and also the option of the nib being replaceable.
I had placed in a request to Emy to help check the pen and the nib before shipping.

Very soon it was in my hands and I immediately fell in love with it. Tuned so well that the nib glides and writes beautifully. Quite well balanced. Yes, a bit heavy if posted, but not too much. Un-posted, it is just perfect.
I keep picking up this pen over the others I have, just can’t stop using it.

I liked the Teal one so much that I ordered another Monster in Black. I am going to be carrying these pens wherever I go, that’s for sure. My love, My precious..! :)
Both my Monsters are with the super juicy Broad nib.

Thanks Emy, Gravitas and the Pen Venture team for the great experience.

Great Pen. Attractive, fits my small hands, wonderfully smooth medium nib, fills like a dream! Great pen.

Perfectly tuned nib, ultra-precise assembly that ooze of quality and comfortable to write with. This pen redefined what a grail pen is for me. I didn't buy it as a grail pen, I have way more expensive pens in my collection, many with gold nib yet when I pick this one it feels really special, every time.
I'll never see steel nib the same way after this pen, Gravitas shown that a steel nib can be as good as any gold nib.
Thank you Gravitas and Pen-Venture this pen is special !

The pen is really large, as well as the nib. Filling mechanism works very well.
Surprisingly I'm still consuming my first fill ;-)

Great customer service as always!