Montblanc Nibs

[art8283]

I was recently told by a person who makes and sells fountain pens, that the nibs he uses are made by the same company which makes nibs for Montblanc. Is it true that Montblanc out-sources the manufacturing of its pen nibs?

[jar]

TTBOMK Montblanc currently makes all their nibs in-house.

[art8283]

TTBOMK Montblanc currently makes all their nibs in-house.

 

I appreciate your prompt reply.

[Maxpens]

I was recently told by a person who makes and sells fountain pens, that the nibs he uses are made by the same company which makes nibs for Montblanc. Is it true that Montblanc out-sources the manufacturing of its pen nibs?

 

 

http://www.peter-bock.com/content/e417/e506/index_eng.html

 

important is the last record; so we have a maybe... as a subcontractor.

 

kind regards

 

Max

[fountainpende]

Dear all,

 

some (basic/standard?) nibs are made inhouse by Montblanc ... and the more complicated nibs (e.g. those from several limited editions) are made by Bock.

 

Bock is THE company for nibs, they produce nibs for all major brands and are HIGHLY experienced ... well, because they focused on nibs. It is therefore a wise idea to use Bock nibs.

 

Most companies don't want to go public with the fact that they buy some parts of their pens. But well, Bock nibs are a quality signal ! :notworthy1:

 

Several parts of Montblanc pens are not produced by Montblanc itself, for example, some overlays are produced by Cartier. Moreover, buying pen parts is not new ... remember the Sarastro overlays on pens from the 30ties or the first nibs in the Rouge-et-Noir pens from 1910 ... they were all not produced by Montblanc ... today and in former times, Montblanc selected the best supplier that is available, which is reasonable.

 

Finally, most companies do not produce all parts of their products but buy them from suppliers, just think of PC's, cars, mobile phones etc.

Edited January 9, 2012 by fountainpende

[georges zaslavsky]

Dear all,

 

some (basic/standard?) nibs are made inhouse by Montblanc ... and the more complicated nibs (e.g. those from several limited editions) are made by Bock.

 

Bock is THE company for nibs, they produce nibs for all major brands and are HIGHLY experienced ... well, because they focused on nibs. It is therefore a wise idea to use Bock nibs.

 

Most companies don't want to go public with the fact that they buy some parts of their pens. But well, Bock nibs are a quality signal ! :notworthy1:

 

Several parts of Montblanc pens are not produced by Montblanc itself, for example, some overlays are produced by Cartier. Moreover, buying pen parts is not new ... remember the Sarastro overlays on pens from the 30ties or the first nibs in the Rouge-et-Noir pens from 1910 ... they were all not produced by Montblanc ... today and in former times, Montblanc selected the best supplier that is available, which is reasonable.

 

Finally, most companies do not produce all parts of their products but buy them from suppliers, just think of PC's, cars, mobile phones etc.

strange because I was told that one the limited edition the nibs were derivatives of the 146 and the 149 nibs and that those weren't made by bock but inhouse. I will send a pm to MB again to clarify this matter

[Pen Nut]

Dear all,

 

some (basic/standard?) nibs are made inhouse by Montblanc ... and the more complicated nibs (e.g. those from several limited editions) are made by Bock.

 

Bock is THE company for nibs, they produce nibs for all major brands and are HIGHLY experienced ... well, because they focused on nibs. It is therefore a wise idea to use Bock nibs.

 

Most companies don't want to go public with the fact that they buy some parts of their pens. But well, Bock nibs are a quality signal ! :notworthy1:

 

Several parts of Montblanc pens are not produced by Montblanc itself, for example, some overlays are produced by Cartier. Moreover, buying pen parts is not new ... remember the Sarastro overlays on pens from the 30ties or the first nibs in the Rouge-et-Noir pens from 1910 ... they were all not produced by Montblanc ... today and in former times, Montblanc selected the best supplier that is available, which is reasonable.

 

Finally, most companies do not produce all parts of their products but buy them from suppliers, just think of PC's, cars, mobile phones etc.

 

Thanks for that. You learn something new everyday

[shrinknib]

Wow- I wonder which nibs on which LE pens?

I just read Rosler's book yesterday on MB and saw that the nibs were not made in house for quite some time.

But recently....

[art8283]

Dear all,

 

some (basic/standard?) nibs are made inhouse by Montblanc ... and the more complicated nibs (e.g. those from several limited editions) are made by Bock.

 

Bock is THE company for nibs, they produce nibs for all major brands and are HIGHLY experienced ... well, because they focused on nibs. It is therefore a wise idea to use Bock nibs.

 

Most companies don't want to go public with the fact that they buy some parts of their pens. But well, Bock nibs are a quality signal ! :notworthy1:

 

Several parts of Montblanc pens are not produced by Montblanc itself, for example, some overlays are produced by Cartier. Moreover, buying pen parts is not new ... remember the Sarastro overlays on pens from the 30ties or the first nibs in the Rouge-et-Noir pens from 1910 ... they were all not produced by Montblanc ... today and in former times, Montblanc selected the best supplier that is available, which is reasonable.

 

Finally, most companies do not produce all parts of their products but buy them from suppliers, just think of PC's, cars, mobile phones etc.

 

Many thanks for your informative response to my query.

[georges zaslavsky]

I sent an email to MB asking wether or not some of their nibs are made by bock.

[hari317]

I sent an email to MB asking wether or not some of their nibs are made by bock.

pls share their reply here, if there is one.

[georges zaslavsky]

I sent an email to MB asking wether or not some of their nibs are made by bock.

pls share their reply here, if there is one.

will do asap

[georges zaslavsky]

Got the reply from MB:

"Monsieur,

 

Nous vous confirmons que toutes nos plumes, même celles de nos éditions

limitées, sont bien réalisées dans notre manufacture à Hambourg.

 

Restant à votre disposition pour vous fournir toute information

complémentaire,

 

Cordialement,

 

Justine Prost

 

MONTBLANC Customer Service "

 

In English, it translates:

"Dear Sir,

 

We confirm you that all our nibs including the ones of our limited editions are made inhouse in our factory in Hamburg

 

We stay at your disposal, for any additional information

 

Yours truely,

 

Justine Prost

MB Customer Service."

So, I think it is time for some people to stop spreading false rumors and bsing (sorry I have to say it) about Bock making nibs for MB when it was never ever the case even in the past.

[hari317]

Thank you for sharing their reply Georges. But personally, I would not dismiss the alternate information provided in the posts above.

 

In the past, MB customer service has repeatedly denied that their Blue/Black ink has ferro gallic content, whereas the pamphlet with the ink bottle clearly states to the contrary. I take replies from the CS of any company with a pinch of salt.

 

Best

Hari

[fountainpende]

So, I think it is time for some people to stop spreading false rumors and bsing (sorry I have to say it) about Bock making nibs for MB when it was never ever the case even in the past.

 

That's funny ... or may be not. At least I know for sure, that Montblanc does produce nibs inhouse BUT also buys them from Bock.

 

Be aware, the above written is NOT a rumor.

 

Georges ... be honest ... what answer did you expect from them

 

First, I would not expect that their service personnel knows who produces nibs or not.

 

Second, that reminds me

... what do you think, when was Montblanc founded ... 1906 or 1908. Well Montblanc celebrated its anniversary in 2006 ... so it's 2006 ... or may be not ?

... or "Meisterstück: Virtually unchanged since its conception in 1924, Montblanc's Meisterstück 149 ..."

 

There are several advertising claims that I would not take too literally.

 

Finally, have you seen the statement above mine ...?

so we have a maybe... as a subcontractor.

Edited January 13, 2012 by fountainpende

[georges zaslavsky]

So, I think it is time for some people to stop spreading false rumors and bsing (sorry I have to say it) about Bock making nibs for MB when it was never ever the case even in the past.

 

That's funny ... or may be not. At least I know for sure, that Montblanc does produce nibs inhouse BUT also buys them from Bock.

 

Be aware, the above written is NOT a rumor.

 

Georges ... be honest ... what answer did you expect from them

 

First, I would not expect that their service personnel knows who produces nibs or not.

 

Second, that reminds me

... what do you think, when was Montblanc founded ... 1906 or 1908. Well Montblanc celebrated its anniversary in 2006 ... so it's 2006 ... or may be not ?

... or "Meisterstück: Virtually unchanged since its conception in 1924, Montblanc's Meisterstück 149 ..."

 

There are several advertising claims that I would not take too literally.

 

Finally, have you seen the statement above mine ...?

so we have a maybe... as a subcontractor.

Ok fine but let me ask you a question, on which proof do you know that MB is supplied by Bock? Did you or do you still work for MB? I know the marketing is not reliable at 100% but why would someone from MB Customer Service would lie to me?? :blink: If you are Tom Weistrich then my apologies fore the mistake.

[fountainpende]

Ok fine but let me ask you a question, on which proof do you know that MB is supplied by Bock?

 

Just talk to the guys involved ... Or may be it's a good idea to contact some other collectors ...

 

 

Did you or do you still work for MB?

 

No ... I do not work in this industry or any related industry. I'm a private collector ...

 

 

but why would someone from MB Customer Service would lie to me??

 

no, I definitely do not think that they would lie to you ... but if you ask them... I assume, that they simply do not have the necessary information

 

Take the Meisterstück 149 advertising claim as an example, most sales people simply do not know that the first masterpieces were completely different... and some won't believe you ... even if you show them the pens from the 2ties, 30ties or 40 ties ...

 

If you are Tom Weistrich then my apologies fore the mistake.

No, I'm not Tom Westerrich ... I'm Michael

 

Best regards

Michael

 

PS: I did not mean to say something "bad" about Montblanc, the opposite is true ... hey, I'm a Montblanc collector for more than 12 years ... I mean, it is not "bad" if a company selects the best partner available to produce its products! And again, that's not new (also think of Montblanc leather products in former years and Seeger) and it is also very, very common for the other manufacturers and other industries ...

 

PPS: may be some of of you remember... there was a time when whole pens were produced by other companies ... just remember this one made by Aurora

http://fountainpen.de/old-70er-vip-pen.htm

Edited January 14, 2012 by fountainpende

[art8283]

Since I started this topic with what I thought was a simple to answer question (I suppose there are none), allow me a couple of observations at this juncture in the conversation. First, customer service representatives generally have no independent knowledge, or permission to speak, beyond the information and authority given to them by their employer. The information they provide may or may not be truthful.

Second, there is a legal dictum which should apply here: "he who accuses must prove." Montblanc says they make their own nibs; a responsible assertion to the contrary should be based upon facts, not conjecture.

 

If an accuser wishes to base an opinion upon conjecture, partial evidence, intuition, prior experience or anything other than complete and convincing facts, the accusation should be properly labeled so that others may judge its veracity.

 

Finally, despite differing and strong opinions, let's try to keep our posts civil -- a tad bit of good humor would not hurt either.

 

Best wishes to all.

[bartl]

I do understand te fuss but you have to put it in perspective. Outsourcing can improve quality. Production of pens no longer is an artisanal activity. It is not like a "produit du terroir", a wine of certain origin. I meet many R&D managers of manufacturing companies and I can assure you that the sales people of consumer goods are often clueless of the provenance of components. They can however have a clear directive towards communication with customers. How the situation is at MB I do not know, and honestly I do not care.

 

Referring to the communication of the MB Sales rep: often the word "make" is a pars pro toto. Making then includes creating - design - engineering - producing - assembling - finishing. So if Hamburg people do create-design-assemble and finish (if applicable) then perhaps they rightfully can claim the nib is "made" in Hamburg.

 

I do understand that who makes the nib can be for a fountain pen enthusiast of importance but tracking down the provenance of the nib of a particular model is a daunting task. If MB designs and speficies with great detail the nib, outsources it properly and does a fine testing (of prototype and 0 series), than that nib is a true MB nib.

[fountainpende]

Hi art8283

 

let me guess ... you are a lawyer

 

by the way, I do not accuse anybody ... why should I ?! But ... I did not expect that what I wrote was perceived to be "bad". After all, it was not uncommon in the past and today that MB uses subcontractors...

 

Here is another example, some designs for Montblanc LEs are also from third party designers ... I once interviewed André Ribeiro who is the designer of several Patron of the Arts editions, the Royal edition etc. (see page 6-7 in the following document ... it's in German but may be you can understand the text if you copy it to Google translator ... http://www.fountainpen.de/news/newsletter-nr1-2007-hohe-aufloesung.pdf )

 

By the way, as far as I know ... Montblanc does not use external designers today, i.e. all pens are designed inhouse.

 

If MB designs and speficies with great detail the nib, outsources it properly and does a fine testing (of prototype and 0 series), than that nib is a true MB nib.

 

:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

I absolutely agree !

 

Best regards

Michael

Edited January 13, 2012 by fountainpende