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Mb 146 Platinum Line - Scratches On The Platinum Part Of The Pen


michael1204

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Hello, I just want to explain the problems I had with the pen, and then would like to ask your advice on how to proceed.

 

I bought my MB on October 17, 2017 so it has not even been one month since purchase of the MB pen. At first I experienced babys bottom but when I bought it to the boutique I bought it from they were borderline trying to shoo me away. The babys bottom issue is now resolved after using the pen for a while and learning to write holding the pen with the breathing hole going straight up. However, the experience left a bad taste in my mouth as to how the boutique is so I dont want to go there unless I know I will receive the help I need.

 

If you see the attached photos, there is a rather large scratch. It looks more like a grind of sorts to me. At first I thought it was a rather large finger print, because the whole pen is full of my finger prints, but when I cleaned the pen with the cloth you clean glasses with, I actually discovered, to my dismay, those finger prints were actually scratches.

 

Now I know that this is a rather unnoticeable cosmetic scratch but it has only been one month since I bought this pen. I took good care of my pen, taking care to store it in a clothed environment, that is, inside my breast pockets, inside glass cases(cases you put your glasses in), etc. This is supposed to be platinum! Platinum does not scratch as easily as silver or gold. Theyre much more durable and I have made sure not to expose my pen to a 'dangerous' environment. I also have no idea how such a scratch may have come to be.

 

Would I be able to get service warranty on this? The boutique is a fair distance away so I dont want to make my way over there unless I can get something done.

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Sorry you are having a bad experience with your new pen. This shouldnt be the case.

 

Regarding the scratch, I am also sorry you havent noticed it until now. From the boutiques perspective, theres no sure way of telling- I wish you had inspected the pen upon purchase.

 

Maybe a good microfiber cloth and a silver/gold polish could take it away? I have removed numerous scratches this way as they polish easily unless its really deep (that you can feel depth when you pass your fingernail on it).

 

I am am more concerned about the baby bottom you talk about. Did you check the tines with a loupe to make sure theyre perfectly aligned? New pens shouldnt have baby bottoms and it could be just needing a minor adjustment. You shouldnt be holding or using your pen in a specific way to make it write- it should write always.

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The clip is not made from platinum, but it is platinum-plated.

 

It is s shame that you don't feel confident about taking it back to your nearest boutique, but if they were borderline trying to shoo you away when your pen didn't write perfectly out of the box, then they aren't much of a Montblanc boutique.

 

I too would try a polishing cloth on the clip, but you should protect the pen cap surface by placing a piece of paper or thin card under the clip. If a couple of gentle wipes with a regular polishing cloth, e.g. a Sunshine cloth, doesn't remove the scratches, (and it won't if they are deep), then you should contact Montblanc.com and tell them you want to send the pen to them for a repair under warranty.

 

Oh and welcome to FPN. :W2FPN:

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If its plated then youd need to use a sunshine cloth with great care because it will remove plating as it attempts to remove the scratch. Your best option is to try and return the pen

My Vintage Montblanc Website--> link

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Hi, back again.

 

If it is platinum, then shouldnt it be very durable to scratches? It should be much more durable to scratches thant silver or gold, and I have taken very good care of the pen, always keeping it in a cloth environment or my hand. This would mean that A) I scratched the pen on purpose or B) the pen came with scratches. If the pen came with scratches, then I should be able to get the pen back in for A/S because the warranty covers manufacturing defects only.

 

Would this line of reasoning work?

 

I am thinking of going in to the boutique and requesting this warranty along with a nib exchange from F to EF at the same time. It would probably take a very long time but I want my moneys worth of pen.

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Hi, back again.

 

If it is platinum, then shouldnt it be very durable to scratches? It should be much more durable to scratches thant silver or gold, and I have taken very good care of the pen, always keeping it in a cloth environment or my hand. This would mean that A) I scratched the pen on purpose or B) the pen came with scratches. If the pen came with scratches, then I should be able to get the pen back in for A/S because the warranty covers manufacturing defects only.

 

Would this line of reasoning work?

 

I am thinking of going in to the boutique and requesting this warranty along with a nib exchange from F to EF at the same time. It would probably take a very long time but I want my moneys worth of pen.

Good plan

My Vintage Montblanc Website--> link

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If your new 146 has these scratches, it's unacceptable. But if you've used it for years like my 161 ballpoint and Heritage 1912, tiny scratches are inevitable.

 

That being said, go seek help at the boutique.

Lamy 2000 FP, PP, BP, MFP & RB. Mont Blanc Meisterstück 161 Le Grand Platinum BP & Heritage 1912 FP.

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You stated you've had and been carrying the pen around for a few weeks. The assumption is going to be made that you damaged the pen at some point and want them to cover your mistake. Sadly, that seems to be The reaction from most companies. At least here in the US. That's not to say don't try.

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You stated you've had and been carrying the pen around for a few weeks. The assumption is going to be made that you damaged the pen at some point and want them to cover your mistake. Sadly, that seems to be The reaction from most companies. At least here in the US. That's not to say don't try.

To be fair, I dont find it unreasonable that after two weeks they refuse to address your scratches. On the metal pens, micro scratches develop without you even knowing. God knows I never take many of my pens out of my leather-lined desk and handle them with utmost care and still some marks tend to develop mysteriously. Thats the way they are.

 

That being said, get yourself a nice microfiber cloth and a good polish for gold/silver etc. Today I had a polishing session with several of my pens and youd be surprised what you can carefully buff off. Thats the upside of metal, unlike resin, theyre repairable in a way.

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Hi, back again.

 

If it is platinum, then shouldnt it be very durable to scratches? It should be much more durable to scratches thant silver or gold, and I have taken very good care of the pen, always keeping it in a cloth environment or my hand. This would mean that A) I scratched the pen on purpose or B) the pen came with scratches. If the pen came with scratches, then I should be able to get the pen back in for A/S because the warranty covers manufacturing defects only.

 

Would this line of reasoning work?

 

I am thinking of going in to the boutique and requesting this warranty along with a nib exchange from F to EF at the same time. It would probably take a very long time but I want my moneys worth of pen.

 

It's a very thin layer of platinum plating. So if you rub it hard it will come off and reveal the base metal that the clip is made from.

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I must unfortunately agree with the others that it's highly unlikely for either the boutique or Montblanc service to consider this covered under warranty. I would also recommend you to try to live with the scratch, as any attempt to polish it out risks removing the plating entirely. While platinum is harder than pure gold, it's still quite soft and most plating is 18k gold which is harder yet.

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I must unfortunately agree with the others that it's highly unlikely for either the boutique or Montblanc service to consider this covered under warranty. I would also recommend you to try to live with the scratch, as any attempt to polish it out risks removing the plating entirely. While platinum is harder than pure gold, it's still quite soft and most plating is 18k gold which is harder yet.

 

I believe platinum plating is harder than 18ct gold plating, but it's still quite thin plating on some sort of base metal. Brass maybe?

 

OP you can try asking the boutique to help, or if they say they won't help, you can try to polish it very lightly. Or you can live with it. These seem to be your options :)

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I believe platinum plating is harder than 18ct gold plating, but it's still quite thin plating on some sort of base metal. Brass maybe?

The majority of (all?) 18k gold alloys are harder (more resistant to scratching and denting) than jewelry grade platinum, which itself is usually a 95% pure alloy.

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I'm sorry to hear about your bad expereince, but there is a possibility that a single sand grain or salt grain in your breast pocket or glass case (or on your cleaning cloth) can easily scratch your pen, and as others mentioned, the plating will get thinner if you try to polish the scratch away, I'd recommend just live with it, scratch will develope eventually anyway.

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