Ordered a custom Al-Star pen and a set of violet T10 ink cartridges and both came within 5 business days as LAMY themselves said it would. I am writing this from Sydney Australia, however, and I think they made it in Victoria which is a 10 hour drive away. Postage will mostly depend on the local post system. The violet ink is solid purple, and the Al-Star has a nice feel. Fine nib is also very nice as it dries faster than medium nib, which in my opinion, lets out too much ink and takes too long to dry. The inprint is the only questionable aspect about this whole thing - I had mine on the cap and it is not to the quality I thought it would be for being 30% the price of the pen itself. They always give blue ink in the pens.