Montblanc Inks Changed Manufacturer

[DetlevCM]

Hello all,

 

a post after a long break.

 

So... I've recently switched to the new bottles of ink - and Midnight Blue succeeds Blue Black, it flows better than the old stuff... it's much wetter and nicer, but - the Austrian definition of Blue differs from the German one - but to my eyes the ink is more purple... it goes pretty blackish after a little while, but while writing...

 

Anyway, so, does anybody know why the manufacturer changed?

 

Many thanks to Axel from the German Montblanc forum who actually noticed the manufacturer change

 

And many thanks to all those who reply

[Michael R.]

Hi,

 

I'm really glad that you like the new MB inks and you are correct that some of the colors changed slightly.

 

Unfortunately I find some of the inks (especially Midnight Blue but also Royal Blue and Burgundy Red) to flow less freely compared to the older inks.

 

Especially with modern Montblanc pens I have problems writing with those as the ink flow will start skipping after 1-2 pages of continuous writing while the same pen works perfectly with other inks like e.g. Waterman or Diamine.

 

I'd like to add that Mystery Black seems to flow much better compared to some of the other colors.

 

 

Cheers

 

Michael

[DetlevCM]

Hi,

 

I'm really glad that you like the new MB inks and you are correct that some of the colors changed slightly.

 

Unfortunately I find some of the inks (especially Midnight Blue but also Royal Blue and Burgundy Red) to flow less freely compared to the older inks.

 

Especially with modern Montblanc pens I have problems writing with those as the ink flow will start skipping after 1-2 pages of continuous writing while the same pen works perfectly with other inks like e.g. Waterman or Diamine.

 

I'd like to add that Mystery Black seems to flow much better compared to some of the other colors.

 

 

Cheers

 

Michael

 

Hello Michael,

 

thanks for the reply.

 

My change was Blue Black to Midnight Blue - in a P146 - on that note though, Blue Black never really flowed very well.

I had inked my P146 with Racing Green and Burgundy in the past - so it was the ink in my case, hence possibly the positive experience

 

Else I have violet in my William Faulkner - which flows very well, but the old inks worked well too - so no complaints from me.

 

On the flow problem with your pens - have you considered contacting Montblanc about it?

I'm not sure if they would like to hear it, but they should

[CS388]

That's odd, I find that the BlueBlack flows nice and wet in my MBs?

 

It's my daily choice, so I stocked up when I found out it was to be retired. Not tried the new inks yet.

[Michael R.]

 

Else I have violet in my William Faulkner - which flows very well, but the old inks worked well too - so no complaints from me.

 

On the flow problem with your pens - have you considered contacting Montblanc about it?

I'm not sure if they would like to hear it, but they should

 

Yes, the Lavender Purple seems to flow as well as the Violet but I have not tried both in comparison extensively.

 

I might write to Montblanc about this as I cannot undestand this at all. Also it is intresting to note that the skipping only occurs after constant writing but not when using the pen for a few notes once in a while.

 

Cheers

 

Micheal

[DetlevCM]

Else I have violet in my William Faulkner - which flows very well, but the old inks worked well too - so no complaints from me.

 

On the flow problem with your pens - have you considered contacting Montblanc about it?

I'm not sure if they would like to hear it, but they should

 

Yes, the Lavender Purple seems to flow as well as the Violet but I have not tried both in comparison extensively.

 

I might write to Montblanc about this as I cannot undestand this at all. Also it is intresting to note that the skipping only occurs after constant writing but not when using the pen for a few notes once in a while.

 

Cheers

 

Micheal

 

My suspicion with regards to that is, that ink most likely collects in the nib feed and saturates it - especially if you hold the pen nib down.

Same as you can drench a tissue in water and it will be much wetter immediately after you pull it out.

 

Oddly enough, on that note Midnight Blue behaves exactly the other way for me - a bit drier at the start as it has slightly dried in over a few hours, and as I start to write it flows better - if I ever stop for a few seconds, holdign the pen nib down I get an extra wet piece of writing.

[QM2]

I tried some of the new inks in Vienna a few months ago and did not like the consistency of any compared to the previous inks. I kept trying not to be negative and looked forward to them, but to me the ink change-over seems like the nail in the coffin for the direction MB has taken lately : ((

[Blade Runner]

I've tried the three new inks: Oyster Grey, Irish Green, and Toffee Brown and love all three, both in terms of color and performance. In fact, Oyster is my favorite ink of all time, and I'm already stockpiling it in case it is eventually dc'ed! I've tried the newly bottled Violet, and I detct no difference to the original. Haven't tried the reiterations of the others, but I think dry writing inks can be good for German pens, as they tend to be wet writers.

[hari317]

 

Many thanks to Axel from the German Montblanc forum who actually noticed the manufacturer change

 

 

Hi, can you pls tell us who makes the inks for Montblanc?

 

Thanks!

Hari

[penparadise]

 

Many thanks to Axel from the German Montblanc forum who actually noticed the manufacturer change

 

 

Hi, can you pls tell us who makes the inks for Montblanc?

 

Thanks!

Hari

No, I can tell you who made the Montblanc ink – it was Gutenberg in Bonn, Germany.

But I can't tell you who makes the new inks for Montblanc except it is a company lokated in Austria (not Australia )

[DetlevCM]

Many thanks to Axel from the German Montblanc forum who actually noticed the manufacturer change

 

 

Hi, can you pls tell us who makes the inks for Montblanc?

 

Thanks!

Hari

No, I can tell you who made the Montblanc ink – it was Gutenberg in Bonn, Germany.

But I can't tell you who makes the new inks for Montblanc except it is a company lokated in Austria (not Australia )

 

And there he is

[meiers]

Many thanks to Axel from the German Montblanc forum who actually noticed the manufacturer change

 

 

Hi, can you pls tell us who makes the inks for Montblanc?

 

Thanks!

Hari

No, I can tell you who made the Montblanc ink – it was Gutenberg in Bonn, Germany.

But I can't tell you who makes the new inks for Montblanc except it is a company lokated in Austria (not Australia )

 

Axel,

 

have you tried out the new inks?

How do you like them?

 

Matt

[penparadise]

Many thanks to Axel from the German Montblanc forum who actually noticed the manufacturer change

 

 

Hi, can you pls tell us who makes the inks for Montblanc?

 

Thanks!

Hari

No, I can tell you who made the Montblanc ink – it was Gutenberg in Bonn, Germany.

But I can't tell you who makes the new inks for Montblanc except it is a company lokated in Austria (not Australia )

 

Axel,

 

have you tried out the new inks?

How do you like them?

 

Matt

Matt, you did ask the same question a few weeks ago and my answer is still the same.

 

 

Hi Axel,

 

Have you tried the new midnight blue?

How does it compare to the blue-black?

What is your preference?

 

I always enjoy your posts. You know this stuff.

 

Freundliche Gruesse aus Winnipeg!

 

Matt

No, I only write with washable inks - no matter the brand. But sunnert did a comparison.

As I'm quite lazy with my pens and often don't clean them up before I switch to another pen.

So the ink dries out and I have to clean the pen before I refill and reuse it again. As you might

guess this is much easier and more gentle with washable ink ... :embarrassed_smile:

[meiers]

Many thanks to Axel from the German Montblanc forum who actually noticed the manufacturer change

 

 

Hi, can you pls tell us who makes the inks for Montblanc?

 

Thanks!

Hari

No, I can tell you who made the Montblanc ink – it was Gutenberg in Bonn, Germany.

But I can't tell you who makes the new inks for Montblanc except it is a company lokated in Austria (not Australia )

 

Axel,

 

have you tried out the new inks?

How do you like them?

 

Matt

Matt, you did ask the same question a few weeks ago and my answer is still the same.

 

 

Hi Axel,

 

Have you tried the new midnight blue?

How does it compare to the blue-black?

What is your preference?

 

I always enjoy your posts. You know this stuff.

 

Freundliche Gruesse aus Winnipeg!

 

Matt

No, I only write with washable inks - no matter the brand. But sunnert did a comparison.

As I'm quite lazy with my pens and often don't clean them up before I switch to another pen.

So the ink dries out and I have to clean the pen before I refill and reuse it again. As you might

guess this is much easier and more gentle with washable ink ... :embarrassed_smile:

 

Axel, I was thinking about your experience with the new washable inks.

 

Matt

[Darius]

 

Many thanks to Axel from the German Montblanc forum who actually noticed the manufacturer change

 

 

Hi, can you pls tell us who makes the inks for Montblanc?

 

Thanks!

Hari

No, I can tell you who made the Montblanc ink – it was Gutenberg in Bonn, Germany.

But I can't tell you who makes the new inks for Montblanc except it is a company lokated in Austria (not Australia )

Axel, does Gutenberg make inks for any other pen company, or perhaps under their own name? It would be interesting to know if the old MB inks are still available in different bottles under another name. I know that Lamy's blue-black was the same as the old MB blue-black. Maybe all Lamy inks are the same as the old MB's?

[penparadise]

 

Axel, I was thinking about your experience with the new washable inks.

 

Matt

No, I haven't tried any of the new inks because I have a sufficient stock of old inks.

[penparadise]

Axel, does Gutenberg make inks for any other pen company, or perhaps under their own name? It would be interesting to know if the old MB inks are still available in different bottles under another name. I know that Lamy's blue-black was the same as the old MB blue-black. Maybe all Lamy inks are the same as the old MB's?

As far as I know Gutenberg made and still makes inks for several European pen manufacturers. And also offers a small range of inks under it's own name.

 

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ZlpRL4PIL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

 

The LAMY blue black cames from Gutenberg as well but the LAMY washable blue ink was and is made by LAMY itself.

 

http://www.laeufer-gutenberg.de/produkte/produkte/produkt_db/produktbilder/140015_fuellhaltertinte.jpg

 

Since 2004 Gutenberg is part of the Läufer company and has no web shop. Laufer & Gutenberg are only delivering the specialist shops and no CC markets. And of course, they don't tell you who is using their inks. Neither would any pen company tell you where their ink comes from.

[Darius]

As far as I know Gutenberg made and still makes inks for several European pen manufacturers. And also offers a small range of inks under it's own name.

 

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ZlpRL4PIL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

 

The LAMY blue black cames from Gutenberg as well but the LAMY washable blue ink was and is made by LAMY itself.

 

http://www.laeufer-gutenberg.de/produkte/produkte/produkt_db/produktbilder/140015_fuellhaltertinte.jpg

 

Since 2004 Gutenberg is part of the Läufer company and has no web shop. Laufer & Gutenberg are only delivering the specialist shops and no CC markets. And of course, they don't tell you who is using their inks. Neither would any pen company tell you where their ink comes from.

Thank you Axel for your informative response. I would expect pen manufacturers to advertise their inks as an in-house product. This would probably work for non-pen enthusiasts. But I guess most if not all pen enthusiast know that many pen manufacturers don't make their inks as is the case with their nibs. Reading your response made me think of another question. Do fountain pen ink makers have specific formulas for each brand they produce? Like for example Bock making nibs to the specifications of the pen manufacturers they supply nibs to. Or do they produce the same ink and ship it the different brands for packaging?

[penparadise]

Thank you Axel for your informative response. I would expect pen manufacturers to advertise their inks as an in-house product. This would probably work for non-pen enthusiasts. But I guess most if not all pen enthusiast know that many pen manufacturers don't make their inks as is the case with their nibs. Reading your response made me think of another question. Do fountain pen ink makers have specific formulas for each brand they produce? Like for example Bock making nibs to the specifications of the pen manufacturers they supply nibs to. Or do they produce the same ink and ship it the different brands for packaging?

Good question. But I'm not the person who can answer it.

[STA]

I've tried the three new inks: Oyster Grey, Irish Green, and Toffee Brown and love all three, both in terms of color and performance. In fact, Oyster is my favorite ink of all time, and I'm already stockpiling it in case it is eventually dc'ed! I've tried the newly bottled Violet, and I detct no difference to the original. Haven't tried the reiterations of the others, but I think dry writing inks can be good for German pens, as they tend to be wet writers.

 

 

Oyster Grey is a very stylish color.

However I have a strange experience with it: if writing for a longer period the grey starts to fade, becoming lighter. I close the pen for a bit, it goes back to the more intense grey.

Would not call this a "flow problem" because there are no skips in the writing. It is really a variation in the color.

 

Did you see that happening at all?