I have a Montblanc 144 with med. nib from the late '80s. I fill it up, and it writes fine for a while. Then the ink simply stops flowing. I open it up, give the converter a turn or two, and it's back to writing again. What is happening? It's as though the converter won't let the ink flow to the nib. Thanks for your help.

Try soaking it in water.
Then flushing it.
Then soaking it.

You can also do the above with some soapy water. Or a 1:10 water:ammonia solution.


The other thing to do is to get a length of latex tube and slip it over the section, then you can suck water and blow it out. This moves a lot of water.

A pen of that age might benefit from an ultrasonic bath.

If, after doing as James has suggested, you find the problem remains, try using a cartridge instead of the converter and see if you still have the problem. If you still have the problem, then it's likely an obstruction in the feed etc. If the ink flows just fine with the cartridge, then you know the problem is with the converter. If all else fails, scream loudly at the top of your lungs. This won't fix the problem, but you'll feel better.

The next time it happens don't turn the pen upside down. Unscrew the barrel and have a look at the converter. Does it look like the ink is sticking to the inside of the converter and not flowing down in to the nib?

If you have a full converter it may be difficult to tell if this is the case. Empty the pen so you have only about a 1/2 full converter and try again.

I've noticed that MB has begun putting small springs (and I have heard small metal balls) in their converters presumably to remedy this problem. The spring or ball acts as an agitator to keep the ink flowing.

If it looks like the ink is in fact "sticking" and your converter does not have a spring or ball in it, you can probably get one of these converters from an MB service center.

Hope this helps.

This definitely sounds like the solution. I have noticed the ink collecting in the converter. I will try a cartridge to test against the converter.