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Hi, I am a college student who recently acquired some Mont Blanc pens from a family member. I don't know much about pens, but I do know that Mont Blanc are pretty nice. I was wondering if y'all could help me identify them. The pens come in a 2 pen box that is solid black with a gold border near the opening. The two pens are both black with gold outlining and detailing. The first pen, the ball point one, has a gold "Made in Germany sticker" on it. It is solid black with a gold tip, gold middle plate with 2 black lines going through it. meisterstuck montblanc letters go around it. The clip is gold with very small letter details on the circle part of it. "Germany" with some serial number. The top has a white 6 pointed star on it. The second pen appears to be a fountain pen. Similar design to the first pen in terms on coloring and the middle band. Has a gold sticker on it that says EF W-Germany. Opening the cap reveals the gold and silver plated tip. The tip reads: 4810 14k montblanc 585. The inside of the pen consists of a clear tube. I will attach some pictures so y'all can see what I am talking about! Thanks again! THE PICTURES http://m16dernwarfare.imgur.com click on the pens album LINK UPDATED

Have any of you done a restore on this pen? Any tips? Mine isn't here yet so I am researching ahead of time. I finally was able to obtain one for a decent price.

Following a recent discussion at FP Geeks, I found I was able to remove the nib of my 90th anniversary 149 by simply unscrewing it. Now, I'm curious: if I were to send the pen back to MB for a nib swap, would it be returned with the new nib (perhaps a nice BB) as well as the original, medium nib? Thanks for any advice you can offer! (The pen is more than six weeks old so I would have to buy the nib)

Montblanc knows reallly well how to make people pay them They offer intriguing LE pens and inks on regular basis. When they're gone, they're gone for good. They tend to emerge on eBay with crazy price tag, though. Love You is 2008 LE ink. Nice, saturated red, that I enjoy a lot. Ink splash http://imageshack.com/a/img909/8326/Bj1mI5.jpg Drops of ink on kitchen towel http://imageshack.com/a/img538/5453/dvCjfH.jpg Software ID http://imageshack.com/a/img901/108/pboNEL.jpg Waterproofness http://imageshack.com/a/img673/4752/PWFKuS.jpg Oxford recycled, satynowany, 90g, Kaweco Sport Classic, stalówka B http://imageshack.com/a/img633/7807/MKQQy4.jpg http://imageshack.com/a/img537/9892/Jc2NGg.jpg http://imageshack.com/a/img537/7803/4dyZCn.jpg http://imageshack.com/a/img537/8946/uDeSAD.jpg Comparison http://imageshack.com/a/img908/5631/JsdbV0.jpg

This is a review of Montblanc's Toffee Brown ink. It's very similar to Visconti Brown/Sepia. A very nice ink. It was used on three different papers with a Belmont pen with a Binderized medium nib. There papers were: HP Laserjet 24lb, Mohawk via Linen 70# text weight, and Moleskine. The Montblanc Toffee Brown is a warm brown and is very similar to the Visconti brown/sepia in tone. In that regard, they are practically indistinguishable. The difference lies with the MB being a bit warmer in color temperature, and being quite a shady ink. It's in the lighter areas where the warmth really comes out. A very fuss-free ink at least in this pen. This ink is not as dark as Sailor Doyou which is like writing with an ebony twig or liquid chocolate. The MB comes in their classic 60 ml bottle. The ink does not stain the interior of the Belmont's clear barrel. Recommended. The following pic is a scan with the feature "text enhancement" turned ON. It gives a darker treatment to the ink than in reality. But the text is clearer I think. The following pic is a scan with the feature "text enhancement" turned off. It gives a more realistic depiction of the color, hue and tone of the ink. Here are photos from the iPhone, so no color correction, but the value for the ink may be good. On the Laserjet paper. On the Moleskine paper. On the via Linen paper. This is a page in a handmade notebook I made for myself. The black splotches on the right running vertically was from my printing the lines on the page. The printer (since tossed) was giving problems. And a chromatic evaluations. I don't know if the ink is made of a brown, with red and green accents, or if it is solely from dyes of red and green. My guess is the first. I think this ink will sheen given the way I saw it behave, but I don't have papers where that would happen.

As indicated in the recent POA topic, Montblanc is releasing donation pen in wood made from the only tree left standing in a forest in Tohoku after the 2011 Fukushima earthquake. Price is going to be about $4400 (520K Yen) with 20% going to support the relief efforts. You can find more details here. Here's a shot of the pen that's circulating with the various news stories, this one taken from Japan Today: There's no indication as to whether the pen is a 149 or 146 size, but I generally like the design that (at least to me) takes a lot from the Aubrac, which is not surprising since it's the only other recent MB pen that I know is made of wood. (and yes, I remembered the Humbolt) I'm not sure if the star is a regular resin star or an MOP star. One interesting quote from the article is: This seems pretty weird, since i) I never heard about production issues with the wood used in the Aubrac and ii) Japanese pen makers have been making fountain pens for years in wood. (Pilot makes wonderful pens out of Japanese maple). You'd think that MB might have asked Pilot or Sailor for a few tips... PS: Mods - I wasn't sure if this should be posted in the MB forum or the Japan forum; feel free to move if necessary...

I was given the following pen by a friend few years back. Its a ball point pen and comes with a leather case. Has Mont Blanc Meisterstuck written on the rim and some sort of serial number on the top. Any idea on the actual name and valuation will be very very much appreciated. Thanks

A series of Montblanc WE rollerball pens have appeared on an auction site that don't quite look right. The Jules Verne is normally a lacquer blue. Did MB make a second series in black? This looks like a cross between Verne and Twain. All of the pens for sale are rollerballs and similar ones are sold on line for $13 not $500+. However, the seller has 60+ positive feedback and a history of selling vintage (authentic?) MB pens suggesting that they are authentic or may not know they are replicas. http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Montblanc-Jules-Gabriel-Verne-Writer-Edition-Rollerball-Pen-Black-Lacquer-Metal-/331481385182?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_2&hash=item4d2dd488de

Good afternoon all, I have recently purchased a new Platinum Line LeGrand (my first fountain pen for many years and my first Montblanc) and I’m really enjoying getting back into writing again. I have a couple of questions about the ink though: 1. I was given a bottle of Royal Blue by the store but it has a Use By date of May 2014 (I didn't notice till I got home). Does this matter? Can ink 'go off' if left too long in the bottle? Can it dry-up? I have filled and used the pen and it seems fine so I suspect it's fine but wanted to check. 2. I've followed the instructions in this video for filling the pen but doing the process once seems to leave room in the pen for more ink. So could you / should you dip it twice? This would mean fewer refills but are there any other advantages or disadvantages? 3. I really like some of the LE inks (e.g. the Blazac turquoise and the JFK) that are no longer sold but they do seem to be available on eBay; is there any risk with buying inks on eBay that they might be old or even fake? Hope someone can answer my questions so thanks in advance!

It is with a heavy heart that I report.... my last bottle of Montblanc Jonathan Swift Limited Edition Seaweed Green has just run dry. Can anyone recommend alternatives that is just as "batshit gold-green" (as my friend calls it) but more importantly -- writes as dry as the MB? I use it primarily for a pen that's quite a gusher, and so far only this ink tames the flow and ensures words don't come out blobby. Looking forward to hear what you all think. Thank you!

Hello FP Masterminds, I recently purchased a Montblanc 242 that is in overall good shape. However a few hours after inking I started to write and noticed my hands were covered in ink. It appears to be leaking from the piston knob. I got a partial refund and now I'm looking into the best way to have the pen repaired. It is quite old so I'm not sure if Montblanc will take it for repairs. I was wondering if there was an easy repair someone inexperienced like me could do or if there was someone in the US who could repair it for a fair price. The pen only ended up costing $100 so obviously I don't want to spend more than that to repair it. Thanks

Hello All, Since it was quite difficult to resist a MB for long , I got a pre-owned 146 for myself before buying a brand new one (which is intended for a gift ). I had reviewed it here. Paid USD 319 for the pen and it turned out to a good piece with a few visible scratches (of use) in the grip section. The pen has a fine nib and it's performance is superlative with a wet ink flow. I am happily using pelikan 4001 black ink with the pen. Still wondering on two questions: 1) On how to go about polishing the pen ? (might sound a bit crazy ) Do I get it serviced from an MB boutique? 2) How do I know the year of manufacture? Grip Section: http://s25.postimg.org/3ly2j18a7/DSC_1819_1.jpg Complete Pen http://s25.postimg.org/zc1sw7nlb/DSC_1819.jpg Best, Sonik

Hello everyone, So I've been wanting for a while now get a Mont Blanc ballpoint or rollerball. Just because my line of work does not allow me to use fountain pens because of the bleed through on the paper. I currently have a montblanc 146 fountain pen that I would be willing to sell or even trade for a ballpoint. In your opinion, which one is better a ballpoint or rollerball. I love smooth gel like writing. What are your thoughts and is anyone willing to trade or something that.

Hi All, I have an opportunity to pick up some Montblanc ballpoint pens at 30% off MSRP. I heard that the Tribute to Montblanc LeGrande is going to be discontinued, would it be good value to pick one up? An alternative is the Meisterstuck Diamond. Which will hold value in the longer term?

My holidays rarely match with others’ in the family. So, last afternoon, while I was staring at the chessboard to play yet another game, I thought of putting the board to a better use than just moving the pieces against myself. So, why not take three big nibs out of their temporary resting places and give them a try. In this fast-paced world, fountain pens have most certainly embarked the sail of luxury, consistent with properties of both time and money. These days, keyboards – physical, on-screen or speech-engine ones have taken over a Pen’s traditional space-time. Thankfully, notebooks and writing pads are still there to keep them alive, even if people have started to take notes in their tablets, phones or phablets. Not being a fan of very big pens, I usually go for the minus-1 flagship models. They seem to be appealing from both perspectives of cost and convenience. Rather than writing everything down, I have left it to the reader to decide the verse through pictures, mostly. The pictures lose resolution with time, as I am using a free service. Please feel free to navigate to the same topic in my blog : Tale of the lesser flagships A briefer history in time http://s25.postimg.org/5h2xulkiz/image.jpgMONT BLANC I came across a real Montblanc pretty much later in life, though used to love a pen called Camlin Premier during school days. It came with a 1-pen leather pouch, an additional screw-fit nib and it did have the striped ink windows. I say I loved it, but never wrote with it since it belonged to my dad and I was a kid. Back in 1999-2000, it cost around USD 5.00 and it was a hefty price tag for a locally made fountain pen . Later I did realize that it was yet another MB 146 inspiration, when I went to a pen store in Calcutta. As most of you would know, Montblanc was started in 1906 a Hamburg banker, Alfred Nehemias, and a Berlin engineer, August Eberstein as Simplizissimus-Füllhalter which means Simplistic Fountain pens, after they learnt about fountain pens with ink tanks from the US. By 1908, three other people by the name of Wilhelm Dziambor, Christian Lausen and later Claus Johannes Voss had taken over the business and the company took the name “Simplo Filler Pen Co.” which referred to a fountain pen design with a built-in ink-tank. In 1909, a safety fountain pen made up of hard rubber called “Rouge et Noir” was launched, which actually means Red and Black. The pen consisted of a red cap and a black body, perhaps inspired from a card-game. You can also find a limited edition of the same. In 1910, the company became Mont Blanc, inspired by the highest peak of the Alps (4810 m) and a pen called Montblanc was introduced with a white tip (which would later evolve into a white star in 1913). In 1926, the Meisterstück was launched. By 1929, the nibs were engraved with 4810, the official height of Mont Blanc peak, as an allusion to supreme quality and craftsmanship. The flagship Meisterstück 149 was launched in 1952, evolving from celluloid & brass mechanism to resin & plastic mechanism over the years. For the Meisterstück 146, the ink windows were modified to striped version somewhere around the 1970s from clear blue window and the the two-tone nib was introduced in 1993-94. You can find a brief history of Pelikan here and Pilot here. 146in Pictures http://s25.postimg.org/vuzqt8oj3/DSC_1786.jpg http://s25.postimg.org/vd4lddyy7/DSC_1801.jpg With m805, Custom 823in Pictures http://s25.postimg.org/cm2o384dr/DSC_1803.jpg http://s25.postimg.org/9c6bx63ov/DSC_1805_1.jpg http://s25.postimg.org/aeyffaz3j/DSC_1809.jpg Dimensions http://s25.postimg.org/zc1sw7nlb/DSC_1819.jpg http://s25.postimg.org/3ly2j18a7/DSC_1819_1.jpg http://s25.postimg.org/a0x3fpezz/DSC_1819_2.jpg WritingThe writing experience is simply superlative although I do find the pilot custom 823 and m805 equally good when it comes to non-flex nibs. Custom 823 with a medium nib & a wet-ink, is still able to draw a line, tad thinner than both 146 and m805 with fine points. Personally, I prefer the widths of 146 and m805. http://s25.postimg.org/comjq281b/DSC_1825.jpg Ratings With my own biases* http://s25.postimg.org/xigz8aptb/146_FP_rating_scale.jpg References http://www.montblanc.com/en-us/discover/history.html http://www.gentlemansgazette.com/montblanc-meisterstuck-fountain-pen/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/anthonydemarco/2013/05/08/leadership-changes-at-montblanc-and-jaeger-lecoultre/ Thank you for your time; hope you like the chessboard too , Sonik

I have just got a Meisterstück 146 from the 1950's which otherwise looks pretty fine to me - but the three bands on the lower part of the cap are all brass and some of the letters are almost worn off. What worries me is that I can't imagine that it's really possible to wear down brass like that... It could be some kind of paint, its a weird brassy colour anyway. It certainly is not gold and its not even shiny. It even looks nastier in reality than on the picture. If its a fake band it has taken a lot of work without ever being able to fool anyone... Any suggestions to what it is?

Sometimes I wish I lived in a world without little pocket computers we pretend are phones. Last Sunday I was sitting at a strange neighbor's house for a neighborhood watch meeting and it was hot and boring. A quick pop onto FPN while no one was looking and straight to the classifieds, you know, in case someone posted a 139 in mint condition for $500. Instead I saw a user grade Montblanc Masterpiece No. 35 push-knob filler. A little back and forth and the pen was bought and paid for. A smooth transaction from a fellow member here. Easy peasy lemon squeezie. The No. 35 is part of the series of pens MB made in the 1920s and 1930s end even through the 1940s in Denmark. From what I understand the ones made in Germany were primarily black, but others were coral and lapis, especially those made in Demark. (I have seen the beautiful coral pens around and always wanted one.) The pens started out as safety fillers and sometime around 1928 or 1929 switched to push-knob fillers. The big innovation was that the blind cap screws on but does not come off... it pops up like a plunger on a click pen and you only need to plunge it once to fill it. Then you simply screw it back down. No little blind cap cover to worry about falling off and losing like most button fillers. A pretty neat feature if you ask me. They also made lever fillers and these are the rarest of all from what I have seen. The number of the pen corresponded to the size to some extent, ranging up to 45. The number, conveniently, was also the price in marks. The 30 and 35 are the same size, it's just the 35 cost more. The same is true for the 40 and 45. Hey, MB raises their prices all the time now. Good to know they have had lots of practice. The original push-knob fillers did not come with clips. You could add one, but not everyone did. I think about 1932 or so they started to come with clips as standard. Most of the pens I have see include clips that look like they came out of the factory that way. The pen is made of hard rubber. This was the dominant material in pens for many years, but it does have its issues. It oxidizes and usually turns brown as the surface breaks down. Light and water are the enemy. The good news is that these are things you almost never run into on Earth. There is also no real easy way to reblacken a pen other than to grind the surface away or to essentially die the surface. The other great news is that there is not really a good way to repair a crack in hard rubber, which this pen also has. You may have read my other recent thread about the celluloid 149. I have already admitted the unwise process of buying a pen based solely on the photo resolution offered by my phone. Again, I was reminded of this lesson when I went home and looked at the seller's photos on a computer monitor. Well, the pen is more brown than I thought and the crack in the cap looks a little worse. To be fair to the seller, he disclosed all this and was very up front. I have no issues with his descriptions, just my seeming willingness to trust the screen on my phone! The pen arrived Thursday and while the discoloration was worse than I had guesstimated from my phone, the crack did not seem too bad. I wiped the pen down with ultra toxic water and flushed it a little. I was happy with the size of the pen and the nib looked quite nice, though too fine for my tastes. The star also has some nice age but still looks pretty decent. OK, ok, here are some photos... Can anyone help me date this pen? I know the switch to push-knob was around 1928 or 1929. The early pens did not have clips and also the nibs did not have the now iconic 4810 until 1930 to 1932. This leads me to believe this pen is from probably 1929 to 1930. I am absolutely no expert on this series so any guidance or corrections of my information would be much appreciated. I have been on a few Collectible Stars books but have not got one as a reference. Maybe the answers are in there or other similar tomes.

Hello! What does everyone think about Montblanc introducing new products outside the category of writing instruments to the market? e.g. leather goods, watches, eye wear etc... Are you happy that an iconic brand you admire is offering a wider range of products for you to experience? Or do you feel the brand is becoming less exclusive, and that more products are diluting the brands powerful reputation as a well-established writing instrument manufacturer? Do you like the new products that are on offer?

I have acquired my first PoA pen which is the Humboldt. Although it is new, it seems not taken care well. I see a number of white patches on the wood barrel. I would like to seek an advice if this can be restored and how to do so. Preferably if It can be done (DIY) rather than sending it to MB which will send to Hamburg for a couple month. Thank you in advance. http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll206/ongl/E8F04A5E-6345-4F68-8DB8-99399AEC3EFC.jpg http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll206/ongl/5A801409-DF98-48CA-946B-62A77BC55D11.jpg

Hi everybody I just lay my hands on a 149 pen that is supposed to be from the 80's. The pen looks legit to my knowledge, but the imprints of the nib looks odd. I am not sure if is a good fake of a bad original nib. Please could you look at the pict and give me your opinion? Thank you very much in advance and happy holidays in advance Very best Ricardo

I’d like to offer a Group Buy, but with small volumes. I’m thinking of placing two orders for the end of January: one from Diamine (or possibly Cult Pens), and one from Fountain Pen Hospital. Let me know how much you would want of which inks, and if enough people want enough of an ink to complete a bottle, I can guarantee you a vial with exactly the amount of ink you want without having to get a whole bottle. Unfortunately, I’ve got a limited budget, so if I can’t make up a full bottle’s worth, I can’t make any promises. I will add as many inks with partial requests as I can, and you’ll get first dibs on the amount you want. The focus for the order from the UK is Diamine ink. That potentially includes their full “regular” line, as well as the 150th Celebration Inks, the Music Set inks, and the Flower set inks. If I go via Cult Pens, the Deep Dark series becomes a possibility as well. Pricing is a bit of a catch-22: there *might* be a discount on shipping at a certain level, but they need to know how many bottles I’m buying, and it’s hard to know how many bottles will be bought without pricing info. My guess is that the normal Diamine inks will be ~12-13 cents/ml, depending on order size, the Music/Flower set inks will be ~19-20 cents/ml, and the 150th Anniversary Inks will be ~28-29 cents/ml. The focus of the Fountain Pen Hospital inks is Montblanc and the FPH exclusive Noodler’s inks. If there’s another ink with a lot of interest that would be great. Shipping prices depend on order size, but the normally priced Montblanc inks will probably be ~35 cents/ml, and the Noodler’s ~15 cents/ml. Normal costs for vials (24 cents for each 5 ml and 37 cents for each 30 ml vial) and shipping would apply. So take a look at the Diamine inks and the Fountain Pen Hospital Site, and then let me know what you’re interested in. There’s a form here and here with the ink options. I’m going to try to put in the order at the end of the month – not before the 25th, and probably more like the 31st. Orders should start going out mid-February if everything goes well: no customs issues or blizzards or illness or work crises anywhere between here and the UK for the next month. You know what, let’s say orders might start going out the end of February. As some of you know, I’m also selling ink at cost in smallish volumes. (Classified ad with details is here.) Edit: Made links go to the right place.

Hello, Anyone get a chance to pick up the new JFK ink from montblanc, if so what do you think about it.

This is my new Montblanc Meisterstuck LeGrand 90th Anniversary Edition fountain pen. What do you guys think about it? Testing some pens: And, I got the LeGrand Fine Nib -William S. Park EDIT: Thanks, dad.

I have Montblanc's Royal Blue and Mystery Black. I've been using the blue for about a week now and I quite liked it to begin with, but now I find I'm bored of it - it's a little flat (for me). I like blue/blacks and was wondering if I could mix it with Mystery Black to create something a little interesting. Has anyone done this with good results, and if so, what are the proportions of the mix?

These three dark reds compared. I think I'm getting colour-blind... http://s0.homezz.com/201501/5915/49137_o.jpg [Edit: Splashes added.] http://s1.homezz.com/201412/5915/49052_z.jpg http://s1.homezz.com/201501/5915/49139_z.jpg http://s0.homezz.com/201501/5915/49138_z.jpg