Montblanc Dilemma

[Waltz For Zizi]

Hello! I found on a local website a Montblanc for sale. It's a special edition from 2016 the Miles Davis LE1926, that retails for 3000$, seling for 200$. But unfortunately is has a slightly bent nib and no box or papers. The rest of the pen seems in good condition, with no dents or even scratches. I have no ideea if the piston is in good condition because the seller is completely ignorant of fountain pens, but he sais the knob turns very smoothly.

I'm thempted to buy it but I'm not too fond of buying pens that need repairing, to invest even more in them

 

Should I buy it? What do you think? Is this a reasonable price? Whould I be able to sell it for the same price if I decide I don't really want to repair it?

Edited June 27, 2018 by Waltz For Zizi

[zaddick]

For that price I would assume it is a fake.

[kuli1961]

Or it may be stolen...

[Mulrich]

Even without a nib that would be a breathtaking deal -- if it's sounds too good to be true it's probably fake. There's always a chance you found a very naive seller but I wouldn't risk $200 to find out.

[Waltz For Zizi]

Even without a nib that would be a breathtaking deal -- if it's sounds too good to be true it's probably fake. There's always a chance you found a very naive seller but I wouldn't risk $200 to find out.

 

I'd be able to handle the pen before buying it, so it would be easy to tell if it's fake or not, but I'm afraid as someone said above, about it being stolen.

 

The seller has obviously no ideea what he is selling, for it is listed as a "Montblanc Three deuces", which is something written on the cap of the pen, and not the model of the pen.

 

Would I be able to search for the serial number somewhere, or ask Montblanc, to see if it's stolen or not?

[Waltz For Zizi]

Would anyone buy it, if it was genuine, but with the risk of being stolen?

[zaddick]

Would anyone buy it, if it was genuine, but with the risk of being stolen?

How would you feel of it was your pen that was stolen? How you answer that question should answer your others.

[Uncial]

Go and see it. You can ask the person directly where they got it. It could be an unwanted gift, a swapped item from someone with more money than sense, an inherited item or just a lucky buy.

[Mulrich]

I'd be able to handle the pen before buying it, so it would be easy to tell if it's fake or not, but I'm afraid as someone said above, about it being stolen.

 

The seller has obviously no ideea what he is selling, for it is listed as a "Montblanc Three deuces", which is something written on the cap of the pen, and not the model of the pen.

 

Would I be able to search for the serial number somewhere, or ask Montblanc, to see if it's stolen or not?

 

I remember once seeing a website with a list of various stolen or misplaced pens but I can't find it. In theory it's still out there.

[Charles Rice]

PASS

[flipper_gv]

Or it may be stolen...

 

This, would explain with the nib is bent too. The thief tried to use it and it wasn't inked and didn't know much about fountain pens.

[Chrissy]

For that price I would assume it is a fake.

 

Me too.

[niksch]

 

Me too.

 

Me three.

[chunya]

Trying to answer your questions, it really is impossible to say, from a photo, one way or another whether or not this is a genuine pen.

 

It's not a stock photo so the seller probably does have the pen. I haven't seen a fake Miles Davis, had another quick Google and still not been able to find one, but that doesn't mean that they don't exist.

 

Is it worth it and will you get your money back? If it's a fake then it's not worth it. If it's genuine then get the nib repaired by Montblanc and you'll still make a profit.

 

As Uncial suggests, go and see it if you can (always taking the appropriate precautions) and you should be able to determine whether it is genuine or not and possibly also get some of its history.

 

I do usually agree with those who say 'if it's too good to be true then it can't be', but in instances where I can actually verify something then it's a case of weighing up a possible loss of some time against buying a bargain. But I would not part with $20 never mind $200 without physically seeing it.

[Uncial]

Sometimes people don't realise that they can get a nib exchange reasonably easily. Sometimes a work, family or retirement gift can get damaged and when they see the price of repair they decide they don't want to do it because they had little interest in it to begin with. There may be a lot more wrong with the pen than just the nib being bent, they may have no idea what they have other than it being a pen or, as others have said, it may be stolen goods. There are a host of reasons why someone might sell something valuable at a vastly reduced price. If you go and meet the person and see the item in person you can ask them questions. An important question to ask is if they have anything else for sale. If they have a little stash of luxury items at vastly reduced prices then I would be inclined to assume the worst and I'd run far, far away.

 

About five years ago at a car boot sale I spotted what I thought was an Adachi reprint of of a Hiroshige woodblock print being sold for 30 euro, which back then was probably about right. What they had was an almost pristine first run printing with little edge trimming. It's value was probably around 50,000 euro and an extremely rare find. It wasn't stolen; they just had no idea at all what they had languishing in the boot of their car. In the end, guilt got the better of me and I told them they probably shouldn't sell it at a car boot. They didn't believe me, so I gave them my details and asked them to contact me so I could put them in touch with a valuer. About three months later, after I had initially refused money from them, they sent me a case of wine. Every sip reminded me I'd passed up on 50 grand.

[JulieParadise]

About five years ago at a car boot sale I spotted what I thought was an Adachi reprint of of a Hiroshige woodblock print being sold for 30 euro, which back then was probably about right. What they had was an almost pristine first run printing with little edge trimming. It's value was probably around 50,000 euro and an extremely rare find. It wasn't stolen; they just had no idea at all what they had languishing in the boot of their car. In the end, guilt got the better of me and I told them they probably shouldn't sell it at a car boot. They didn't believe me, so I gave them my details and asked them to contact me so I could put them in touch with a valuer. About three months later, after I had initially refused money from them, they sent me a case of wine. Every sip reminded me I'd passed up on 50 grand.

 

Wow. Great story and even greater to see you live by the principles of honesty and fairness. Me too, I passed more than one chance similar to yours in my life and would not go back and change it. There is a value in itself to be true to yourself and not take what is not yours. In the end things mostly find their place and acting altruistically often gets you farther in the long run than taking the easy road first.

[Old_Inkyhand]

Every sip reminded me I'd passed up on 50 grand.

 

Uncial, your story has made my day. I don't want to mull over the question whether it is morally permissible to make use of someone's ignorance, but I think it was extremely good and generous on your part. Many people wouldn't do that, and I wouldn't blame them, but you did it and it makes me really happy. Thanks and sorry for the off-topic.

 

If I bought a stolen item, I would be at least happy that it was me who bought it. I would report my suspicions to the police and maybe they would be able to track the rightful owner. In that case, I'd try to collect as much information concerning the seller as I could. If I knew from the beginning that it was stolen, I'd rather inform the police instead of buying the item.

[chunya]

Uncial 'Every sip reminded me I'd passed up on 50 grand.'

 

But was there ever anything quite so delicious?

 

It's good to read such heart-warming stories, it does go a long way in restoring faith in human nature

[Barry Gabay]

Unical, You are a person who possesses a conscience, and you listen to yours. Thank you for reminding us of how we should all treat one another. Thank you again for sharing an enlightening and inspirational episode from your very genuine life.

[meiers]

I would advise the vendor to have this little treasure repaired.

Edited June 28, 2018 by meiers