Hello Everyone,

I am new to the board, so forgive my ignorance. I have had a Montblanc 149 (LeGrande) for a few years and it never seemed to write consistently. When you first put pen to paper it doesn't put the ink consistently on the paper. Also, I have started to sense a little binding in the pen when I refill it.

If I "burb" the pen it writes fine for a while. I am not sure to bring it to a Montblanc dealer or is there someone else who is trustworthy to take good care of it and make sure it gets what it needs.

I also have a LAMY 2000 fountain pen for everyday which writes great, I was expecting more from a much pricier Montblanc.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Best regards,

Steve

You might need to give the pen a good flush, but if that doesn't work, bring it into MB. You can get the nib smoothed by any good nibmeister, but the piston is a little trickier, which I think is better handled by the people who made it. They'll take good care of you, for a price of course. The beauty of this approach is that you can keep sending it back till they get it the way you like it.
You also might want to be sure of which pen you have (just for the record). THe LeGrande, or better known around here as the 146, is distinctly different from the 149.

EDIT: Oh, and welcome to the Forum!

Hey Steve (was the rest advertising, or are you looking for more than fountain pen advice?) -

PRG is, as usual, quite correct.

The MB 149 is otherwise known as the MB Diplomat - the MB 146 (a bit thinner and shorter) is the MB LeGrande. You may find "149" engraved on the gold plated collar at the base of the cap. If the pen has silver/platinum trim, it's definitely not a 149.

In addition to flushing out the ink with cool water, I would recommend you soak the pen overnight in cool water to a level above the threads of the section. Then flush again, blot dry, and refill with ink.

If that fails, take your pen to a Montblanc store (the actual MB stores seem to handle repairs better than the MB authorized dealers).

The 149 (my favorite pen) and the 146 are both great pens and you're quite right to expect great performance from them. Never settle.

Gotta add my 2 cents.
You are the proud owner of a classic pen.You should get a pen that will be no less then 100% great.Send it to MB and let them fix it for you.
Saying that I personaly would let my pen tech fix it for me.He did so on my 146 and it is now one of my favorite writers but I trust him and build a positive relationship with him.For you I would advice just let the MB people deal with it.

By the way the Lamy 2000 is one of the best writers I can think of and it will give almost every MB pen a good run for its money.

Steve, if you want to have the pen repaired and fine tuned may I recommend Chuck Edwards at Fahrney's in D. C.? Fahrney's is an authorized MB repair station, and Chuck is one of the best techs in the U.S. Your 149 is a classic pen that should be one of the finest writing pens you own. I would give it a second life with a tune up.

Yeah dude. You need to get that pen looked at. I think you will find that a properly working 149 is really a beautiful pen to write with. Worth every penny in my opinion.

MF