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What To Do With My John Lennon Charity Fountain Pen


michaelggraham

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I bought the Montblanc John Lennon commemorative/charity pen not too long ago. It's the most expensive, nicest pen I've ever purchased. I own several Visconti's, Pelikan's, and other various brands and I use them all on a rotation. I enjoy my pens, and enjoy showing them to people who are mesmorized by them.

 

BUT....this was a special purchase for an anniversary, and I just can't get myself to ink it and use it. Should I? Could this be a collectible that I should preserve for generations and keep the tradition alive? Or, should I just use the dang thing and get over it?

 

THOUGHTS?

You find the greatest people in the FPN community!

Mike, in Richmond, VA

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I'm in the use um camp. Any time I find that I have purchased a pen that I just won't use (NOS, collectable, stickered, too expensive, too pretty, etc.) I end up selling it to someone else who may use it. There is nothing wrong with collecting for the sake of collecting and many folks do just that. Let your heart be your guide. Nice pen by the way!

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BUT....this was a special purchase for an anniversary, and I just can't get myself to ink it and use it. Should I? Could this be a collectible that I should preserve for generations and keep the tradition alive? Or, should I just use the dang thing and get over it?

Congrats on a beautiful pen! I am firmly in the Use it! camp! It always amazes me how a person can resist inking up a new pen immediately, especially a gorgeous LE! I remember how when I picked up my Duofold Cloisonné at the post office, upon arriving home I ripped open the package, inked it up and tried it--then took off my coat! :D To me, every time you used that pen you would be honoring the anniversary.

Happiness is a real Montblanc...

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Your dilemma is one that I have experienced with each and every one of my MB fountain pens.

These wondrous writing instruments were made to be used, and the same goes for the Lennon which is a really lovely pen..

Don't waste your energy on whether to ink her or not, go ahead and enjoy your pen - but DO try different inks until you find the shade that you like the most and gives you the best writing performance .......

You will find that even though the Lennon nib is pretty smooth, this can be further enhanced by good ink !

Wishing you well to use your Lennon !

Best regards

Adam

 

 

Ps if you can't pluck up the courage to ink her, you can always send her to Hari in Mumbai who will ink and try her out for the first time like he did with mine....... Eh Haribhai ?

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Took me 6-7 years before I inked my first MB WE pen. I was worried that I may break them, by using them they might drop in value should I wish/need to sell them.

 

I was so glad I inked them and now wish I'd done so many years previous.

 

By using them it made it easier for me to justify to myself (and others) future purchases.

My Collection: Montblanc Writers Edition: Hemingway, Christie, Wilde, Voltaire, Dumas, Dostoevsky, Poe, Proust, Schiller, Dickens, Fitzgerald (set), Verne, Kafka, Cervantes, Woolf, Faulkner, Shaw, Mann, Twain, Collodi, Swift, Balzac, Defoe, Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Saint-Exupery, Homer & Kipling. Montblanc Einstein (3,000) FP. Montblanc Heritage 1912 Resin FP. Montblanc Starwalker Resin: FP/BP/MP. Montblanc Traveller FP.

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Keep in mind that I'm not a "collector" , but a user-collector, so I use my pens. Seems to me, that just because a pen has been inked and used, doesn't mean that the preservation for future generations or keeping tradition alive would end. Again, I'm not a collector nor do I purchase pens as an investment.

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Use it and enjoy doing so. Otherwise it will be like those I seen offered for sale sealed with an x-ray picture showing the contents. Madness !

A wise man once said    " the best revenge is wealth "   but a wiser man answered back    " the best revenge is happiness "

 

The true definition of madness - Doing the same thing everyday and expecting different results......

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Use it or lose it! Uh, well, use it at least. Your future generations will likely enjoy the pen more knowing you enjoyed writing with it.

the pen is the window into the writer's soul

www.spinningtrees.webuda.com

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I remember how when I picked up my Duofold Cloisonné at the post office, upon arriving home I ripped open the package, inked it up and tried it--then took off my coat!

 

When I received my Christie in the mail, I actually drove back home from work to ink and play with it all day :) (I hope my boss is not reading this)

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WWJLD?

 

I believe John Lennon would ink that baby up and use it.

 

Since you're asking, I'll concur with the imaginary John Lennon in my head: Ink it up!

 

Says a woman with a Hemingway inked and in heavy rotation.

_________________

etherX in To Miasto

Fleekair <--French accent.

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Thank you all for the motivation. It'll be wet tomorrow....now, what I wonder will I put in it. Hmmmm........

You find the greatest people in the FPN community!

Mike, in Richmond, VA

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Future generations may not appreciate it as much as you do.

Since it was purchased for your anniversary, using it daily will remind you of life's true treasures.

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It's the nearest I have to what people call a 'grail pen' .... I was a Beatles fan and was born the same year as JWL (did you know his middle name was 'Winston??) and I do like the look of it.

 

But, if I had one I would definitely use it.

If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; But if you really make them think, they'll hate you.

 

Don Marquis

US humorist (1878 - 1937)

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I bought the Montblanc John Lennon commemorative/charity pen not too long ago. It's the most expensive, nicest pen I've ever purchased. I own several Visconti's, Pelikan's, and other various brands and I use them all on a rotation. I enjoy my pens, and enjoy showing them to people who are mesmorized by them.

 

BUT....this was a special purchase for an anniversary, and I just can't get myself to ink it and use it. Should I? Could this be a collectible that I should preserve for generations and keep the tradition alive? Or, should I just use the dang thing and get over it?

 

THOUGHTS?

 

 

I did the very same thing. I held onto that thing- silver, white and beautiful in it's sealed package for about 6 months. Still, I couldn't decide. What was justifying the "keep it sealed" mentality was the fact that the nib was the stock Medium nib. I told myself that I wouldn't enjoy the Medium Nib experience, anyway.

 

Medium- who likes Medium? It's so Jan Brady. Go Marcia, Go Cindy, or GO HOME.

 

So, I decided to send it in for a nib exchange. I was horrified when the Montblanc sales associate actually cut the plastic and opened my beloved, untouched John Lennon- way too much money- silver pen. In my horror, I watched her take the pen away to get it ready for shipping back to Germany. I asked if I could at least hold the pen, since I hadn't even felt one in real life.

 

My wife and I have two of the black resin Lennon pens, which are user pens- but those are completely different from the CE.

 

I held it, actually touched it- outside of the plastic- and it was glorious. Sturdy, yet delicate. Masculine in proportions, but feminine in its beauty. The blue stone atop the clip was mesmerizing, when finally taken outside of the pen's sealed plastic 'prison.' After holding it in my hand, if only for a few moments, and feeling its cold silver beauty with my hands, I was afraid to let it go. I was in love with that pen.

 

Three months later- exactly 6 days ago...

 

It came back with a beautiful, John Lennon Commemorative Edition EXTRA FINE nib, peace sign, and all.

 

Less than a day later, it was inked with the Limited Edition, Montblanc Ink of Friendship.

 

There is something that just makes sterling silver pens sing when filled with a turquoise shaded ink- at least for me.

 

I'm so glad I did it.

 

So glad.

 

Like the other, "I can't believe I spent that much money on a single pen" grail fountain pens in my collection, I'm too afraid to take it out of the house. It sits in the pen case next to my 139L and 1950's 'silver rings' 149.

 

Such an awesome experience.

 

It's hard to put into words, really.

 

Suffice it to say, I'm enjoying my Uber-Lennon much more now that it is unsealed, equipped with MY style nib, and inked with a beautiful turquoise ink.

 

What it was meant to be.

 

Hope that helps, Michael.

 

Love,

 

Joe

 

#1653 / 1940

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It's unlikely it will be worth more than you paid for it for a long long time. I'd wager you'll get far more pleasure taking it out of your pocket and writing with it whenever you damn well please, rather than mentioning it in your Will in the hope that the un-inked pen will finally pay off as an investment in your heirs' lifetimes.

 

Fred

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I am pretty new to pen collecting but here's what I think: if you really want to leave something for posterity, just ink the pen, write down some personal thoughts for your next generations, date the notes, state which pen you used, and start a tradition of having everyone in your family add to the notes with the pen every year, every decade, whatever suits you. Would that not be a good way to make the pen invaluable to your family?

 

I value my writing more than I value my pens, or even the hand that writes with them. I'd wish the same for my children (if I had any).

So everywhere my dreams went

And I stayed here

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I bought the Montblanc John Lennon commemorative/charity pen not too long ago. It's the most expensive, nicest pen I've ever purchased. I own several Visconti's, Pelikan's, and other various brands and I use them all on a rotation. I enjoy my pens, and enjoy showing them to people who are mesmorized by them.

 

BUT....this was a special purchase for an anniversary, and I just can't get myself to ink it and use it. Should I? Could this be a collectible that I should preserve for generations and keep the tradition alive? Or, should I just use the dang thing and get over it?

 

THOUGHTS?

 

What To Do With My John Lennon Charity Fountain Pen

 

Well, you can do as I did,,

Order a custum made "pencabin" with UV proof glass, built in ledlightning and a possibility of adding more "art" in a future,,,, :rolleyes:

 

On the othet hand I come so far by now that I can handle it without using the special MB white cotton gloves.

Next thing will be to ink it!! :thumbup:

post-49473-0-62489300-1322069606.jpg

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