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There has been 'concern' (that is perhaps a polite understatement!) expressed over Prismacolor's manufacture location moving to Mexico, and some noted inconsistencies in quality control. Though the Mexico-made pencils I have purchased are consistent with the quality I have come to expect from Prismacolor, I wrote briefly to Sanford/Prismacolor, asking what their response is to the people who are concerned over substandard product (specifically poor blendability of pencil pigment using odorless mineral spirits or another solvent). This was their reply. Thought I would pass it on here. Sounds to me like they are standing confidently behind their product.
Hello Ms. K,
Thank you very much for reaching out to us about our Prismacolor� Thick Lead Art Pencil. It causes us great concern to learn of your experience with our product and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
As stated on the back of product packaging, Sanford guarantees complete customer satisfaction and replacement. Anytime you are disappointed with a new Sanford product drop it in the mail in a padded envelope with a brief description of your experience. Replacement product will be returned to you as soon as possible. We would also be happy to reimburse your postage, simply request this in your correspondence.
Please mail your product to:
Sanford Brands
Attn: Consumer Affairs 2707 Butterfield Rd.
Oak Brook, IL 60523-1278
We appreciate your taking time to return the product to Sanford for it will be inspected by our Quality Assurance Department. This feedback helps us identify quality issues and areas for improvement; without invaluable feedback from consumers like you this would not be possible. We appreciate your partnership in improving our products and ensuring that any future purchase of Sanford product will be of the quality that you have come to expect.
Sanford has been making and selling high quality ink products since 1857 and pride ourselves on the brands we manufacture. Thank you for contacting us and your continued support of Sanford products.
This whole not blending "at all" with OMS totally perplexes me. I haven't met a type/brand of pencil that will NOT blend at all. Even watercolour pencils and chalk pastel pencils will blend with OMS to some extent ( actually some brands of WC pencils I like the blend better with OMS than the premier prismacolors - very smooth). Now not blending "as well" I get but sometimes this is colour/pigment specific across the set of Prismacolors eg. some of the light blues don't blend well as say the darker blues or reds.
Another question I have re the quality of the "Mexico" pencils is do these "burnish" well or blend together when colouring one colour into another? Or will they blend out with a blender pencil? Is the normal colour lay down as good as the old ones?
That definitely sounds like a very good and reasonable offer to consumers having trouble with their pencils. I'd say they are standing by their product and their customers
Maybe those people who have the pencils which will not blend or blend poorly SHOULD send them back with an explanation as to why they're returning them. If they get enough returns they may just try blending with them to see what the problem is. At least they're standing behind their product and offering to "make good" on purchases. Can't find any fault with that.
This is great news! I need to play with mine a bit more, but I did find one that kind of just blended blotchy. (Not sure that is a word or that I spelled it correctly:confused If I do find ones that don't blend properly, I think I will send them back. Perhaps they will be able to figure out what is wrong with the pencils and fix the problem, and they will replace my bad pencils. It sounds like a win-win to me. Thanks for sharing this information!
The pencils I have received that were made in Mexico are just fine, and others have said the same - not everyone is having a bad experience! Good question though!
I just called Prisma and got the exact same message from them. They even would pay to have me send them back. They did tell me that all of the replacements would be made in Mexico. I have a blender pencil and have been playing with that.
Are the new pencils thinner than the old ones? They seem so to me.