Montblanc Service Email

[gibbs]

I sent my 146 to montblanc to have a nib issue repaired, have received the quote and so far it is looking like they have listened to my request and are going to repair the nib opposed to replacing it like I feared.

The quote also mentioned cap and body does this mean they are going to polish them or are they going to be replaced, this is of concern as the cap is marked W.Germany and is something I'd rather remain original.

 

Finally there are 2 email addresses in the email and I am unsure which to contact giving the go ahead and to potentially get answers to these questions the first is the sender which is cs-quotation@montblanc.de and second is for the administrator for the technical centre.

[chunya]

Hi,

 

Whenever I've had a quote from them that showed cap, body etc. then it's always been the case that they've replaced them. But I'm wondering whether maybe they've made a typo and meant to list 'cone'.

Whenever they've replaced a cap for me then they've also listed the clip etc.

I would send duplicate emails to both, then you'll be hedging your bets. The email that I've used on a few occasions was imply service@montblanc.com

 

As you've sent it yourself, rather than through a boutique/approved dealer, then be careful when it's returned. Unless it's changed in the past 6 weeks or so then your pen will come back via UPS, and you will be required to pay the driver on delivery, so you'll need cash to hand. You also need to make sure that the driver converts the cost as it's given in Euros and you need to pay in £. On two occasions the driver has maintained that the figure is £, it wasn't worth arguing with them but I did contact Montblanc and they did apologise and compensate me on both occasions (with inks).

[gibbs]

Hi,

 

Whenever I've had a quote from them that showed cap, body etc. then it's always been the case that they've replaced them. But I'm wondering whether maybe they've made a typo and meant to list 'cone'.

Whenever they've replaced a cap for me then they've also listed the clip etc.

I would send duplicate emails to both, then you'll be hedging your bets. The email that I've used on a few occasions was imply service@montblanc.com

 

As you've sent it yourself, rather than through a boutique/approved dealer, then be careful when it's returned. Unless it's changed in the past 6 weeks or so then your pen will come back via UPS, and you will be required to pay the driver on delivery, so you'll need cash to hand. You also need to make sure that the driver converts the cost as it's given in Euros and you need to pay in £. On two occasions the driver has maintained that the figure is £, it wasn't worth arguing with them but I did contact Montblanc and they did apologise and compensate me on both occasions (with inks).

I will send an email to both the technical admin and the address you have listed as I sent an email to the sending address a few days ago and have so far heard nothing. As for the cap issue it could be a mistake so I will attempt to get clarification. I do remember there being a tiny chip on the cap I wouldn't consider it enough to warrant replacement though. However as I had requested if possible for th nib to be repaired and the orginal feed kept as the newer versions are different I wonder if they would go to the extra work to transfer the clip and other metal work across to the new cap so that it maintains the correct markings?

Edited May 21, 2018 by gibbs

[chunya]

If the cap was chipped then I think that they're definitely going to replace it and reuse the clip and crown, so that is a good price. If the piston was fine then they're probably not going to change that and so there won't be the need for a new cone (when there is a problem with the piston as the helix is attached to the cone its easier for them to supply a new one than mess around removing bits of broken helix from the existing cone).

 

edit

 

If you have already given them the OK to do the work then it might already have been completed and on its way back to you. I've had pens back from them in a week. They apparently don't have the means of notifying you when the pen is done ... odd as it may seem, but last time when the UPS man arrived unexpectedly (just 3 days after I'd agreed to the work and price) I had to ask him to come back and then dash into town to get the cash. This is what MB said (they also apologised about the mistake with Euros and £). Despite the odd little problem MB really do provide an exceptional service.

 

.... I am very stunned that the UPS driver charged you 176 GBP instead of converting the amount of 176 Euros to GBP. I could only assume that this is done by mistake and he does not know different.....We are working on the process of informing our customers by email, once we ship the service, but this is not yet implemented. I completely understand that it is annoying when you have to rush to the ATM to get the needed amount.

Edited May 21, 2018 by chunya

[gibbs]

If the cap was chipped then I think that they're definitely going to replace it and reuse the clip and crown, so that is a good price. If the piston was fine then they're probably not going to change that and so there won't be the need for a new cone (when there is a problem with the piston as the helix is attached to the cone its easier for them to supply a new one than mess around removing bits of broken helix from the existing cone).

 

edit

 

If you have already given them the OK to do the work then it might already have been completed and on its way back to you. I've had pens back from them in a week. They apparently don't have the means of notifying you when the pen is done ... odd as it may seem, but last time when the UPS man arrived unexpectedly (just 3 days after I'd agreed to the work and price) I had to ask him to come back and then dash into town to get the cash. This is what MB said (they also apologised about the mistake with Euros and £). Despite the odd little problem MB really do provide an exceptional service.

 

.... I am very stunned that the UPS driver charged you 176 GBP instead of converting the amount of 176 Euros to GBP. I could only assume that this is done by mistake and he does not know different.....We are working on the process of informing our customers by email, once we ship the service, but this is not yet implemented. I completely understand that it is annoying when you have to rush to the ATM to get the needed amount.

I sent the original email friday afternoon and I'm unsure if they work weekends, either way I have sent one to the other 2 addresses to see if they can provide further clarification. based on what you've written it seems like there is a good chance the clip will be transferred so I'm happy about that. As for the piston I did mention that it worked fine but was a little stiff so probably just needed lubricating given the pens age and fact I have no paperwork so have no idea if the pen has received work previously. But I'm guessing this would be part of the standard service anyway. It does seem odd that montblanc has no way of tracking the pen.

[chunya]

It does seem odd that montblanc has no way of tracking the pen.

 

Oh, they do track it via UPS, but there's apparently no system in place (as yet) to let us know that its repaired and on its way back, so its a good idea to have the £70 cash at hand.

[gibbs]

I received a reply from them this morning, it does make me wonder what they class as cracks I knew about the small chip in the cap but bar some scratching from the previous owner posting it for the 20 odd years they owned it I hadn't noticed any cracking. But at least it's been confirmed the clip will be carried across

 

 

Your Fountain Pen has cracks in the cap tube and the body. That´s why we have to replace them. The original clip will remain on the pen.

 

 

Kind regards

Carola Koc

 

[chunya]

You'll receive a lovely looking pen.

[Chrissy]

They won't send the pen out with a chipped cap, or scratched body, they intend to replace those. Don't worry about it. You will be happy when you see the pen.

[gibbs]

You'll receive a lovely looking pen.

 

 

They won't send the pen out with a chipped cap, or scratched body, they intend to replace those. Don't worry about it. You will be happy when you see the pen.

Well you guys were right I was amazed when the pen arrived today and if they hadn't carried over the clip and the fact that the slight sweet spot on the nib is still there amazingly so considering the state it was in this is definitely my pen albeit in a much nicer body

 

although I had the same issue as chunya and was charged the price in sterling opposed to the converted price so I'll send them an email tomorrow about that.

 

bar that I am very happy it was like being reunited with an old friend only sore point was the loss of the ebonite feed but I'm sure they had there reasons for swapping it out

Edited June 4, 2018 by gibbs

[chunya]

They generally do a very good job and I've never had cause to complain about an MB service.

The issue with converting Euros to £ seems to be a problem with the UPS processing section and not the drivers nor with MB. When I tackled the drivers about it they showed me their delivery notes and the cash to be collected was entered in the boxes but with no currency defined (Euros or Sterling). It's a shame that MB currently seem to be only able to ask for C.O.D as they are paying for UPS's mistakes.