All Activity

Lazy me didn’t look up the spelling of Terre de Feu. I have a bottle in the room too. I really like that ink.

a Montblanc Boutique

@Bo Bo Olson thank you for the compliment. Some day, I’ll get all my Kaweco pens together for a photo. Until then, here is the newest. There was a red box that seems to have added a touch of red to the pen.

Perhaps, or perhaps they're milking their customer eventually comes to a crescendo as others like me also walk from the brand. Sure, they have customers who spend more than $10,000 on a single pen, but I would still wager over $10,000 in Montblancs is pretty committed as far as customers go to now be walking.

I found an OB Z50 today. I may go back and get it in a couple of weeks.

There are only 2 conclusions I can guess at. If someone else owned the pen before, chances there are ink residue that is holding the nib to the section or the nib holder. If you soak the pen nib immersed into water or pen cleaner for a few days, it would dissolve the dried ink sufficiently for you to remove the nib. The other is that it's a bladder pen. If it is do NOT twist the nib holder as the sac is attached to this. Just pull the nib out.

Not to be rude, but if you feel that the products/ pricing/ approach no longer appeals to you, and that you're walking away from the brand, I guess that is a risk that Montblanc is willing to take. They seem to be going to strength to strength with their endless limited editions and constant price raises.

@mosh_2k7 do you plan to write with the pen out of interest?

CS Le Tigre 106 and Dinkie 570, filled with Pelikan 4001 Turquoise.

+1

I guess to be fair I have no idea what kind of lacquer they mean. When I hear the word lacquer, by itself, I assume nitrocellulose lacquer, as that's the one in the US that gets called simply "lacquer." It's what cars were once painted with. It chips and scratches more easily than enamel. Lacquer is easier to apply and faster to dry (and it does in fact dry, not cure). If they mean Chinese/Urushi lacquer, that's a different story, but I feel like they would have specified it if they meant it. I don't know of any enamel Montblancs, but it is the way it's done in jewelry for a reason. I do know of other lacquer Montblancs, like the Napoleon, but it's clear coated over and consistent, whereas the caps here seem to just have the lacquer exposed since it can be felt.

in exchange for

Imported from India

Thank you guys for your helpful advice, and I was given a nib by a friend which I think might suit my writing style better. Appreciate your advice.

That looks amazing, I generally not a huge fan of transparent pens but this is ridiculously good. Congrats! The nib is has so much fine engraving, probably my second preference to nibs with jewels. May I ask what something like this should cost?

using edible goldflake

@marlinspikeMy knowledge of lacquer is limited to Chinese lacquer (plant-based; featured on some S T Dupont pens) and Urushi lacquer (also plant-based). I presume that Montblanc uses synthetic lacquer in pens for which the descriptors “lacquer” and “lacquered” are mentioned. I wasn’t aware that synthetic lacquer’s life expectancy was necessarily abbreviated. Can you shed any light on synthetic lacquer’s fragility? (Or point me in the correct direction for learning more about synthetic lacquer? A cursory internet search has not wielded much thus far.) Many thanks!

Thank you, I appreciate your perspective. Regarding the superiority of enamel coatings it is true (although I assume that lacquer coatings have better aesthetics) however I am unaware of their use in Montblanc fountain pens. I was wondering if you knew of any examples where they have been used?

They will make far more money than I ever will by continuing to push themselves as a luxury "lifestyle" brand selling leather backpacks to those who came upon money too quickly or too easily, and then for good measure selling some high 5 and 6 figure pens to people who will use them as a form of contract kickback. I agree that limiting the marbling to the cap is good for the ballpoint, where the asymmetric design means the marbling helps improve the balance of the visual weight. However, to my eye the fountain pen and rollerball would do better to have the effect throughout. In Montblanc terminology, "platinum-coated" is 3 to 4 microns and gold-coated is 15 microns. I'm fine with both, but if they truly lacquered and aren't just badly describing enamel, the failure of the lacquer is a matter of when not if, and that's pretty bad at this price point.

I think with the “Ink” effect on the resin caps Montblanc was going for a more delicate. understated design inspired by the different marbling effects of the early Meisterstuck, also updating the marbling of today’s production techniques. Personally I like the limited marbling effect to the cap it is very subtle (depending on the lighting) and contrasts well with the rest of the body. Otherwise the effect would have been blended into the pen and lost. Here are the details of the coatings: DOUÉ LEGRAND:  Platinum-coated with lacquered pattern. Laser-engraved vintage logo. Platinum-coated cap ring. DOUÉ CLASSIQUE & SOLITAIRE LEGRAND: Gold-coated with lacquered pattern. Laser-engraved vintage logo. Gold-coated cap ring.

@mosh_2k7Thank you for this photographic unveiling sequence which makes puts us right in the middle of the action. A holy grail pen indeed! After more than three years of waiting, and possibly many more years of searching, your excitement and satisfaction at finally receiving this work of art is likely incalculable. I have always considered elaborate hand engraving to be part and parcel of a skeleton piece, as with desirable examples from vaunted horologists like Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, and Vacheron Constantin, and so far, to me, only this particular skeleton pen model in Montblanc’s vast and variegated pen portfolio properly fits the bill. What a rarified and exceptional pen! My hearty congratulations to you on its acquisition!

Interesting. I vaguely remember learning about the Fibonacci series in some math class in high school, but had to look it up to double check that I remembered what it was *correctly* Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

As of now, two bottles, thought to be unobtainium, are available here: https://www.artemiranda.com/gb/rohrer-klingner-schreibtinte-calligraphy-ink-special-colours-limited-edition/29080 Please leave a comment if you nag the last bottle so this isn't a frustrating tease to others!