Montegrappa Pen Won't Write

June 3, 2012

Hi sorry, kind of new here. But I'm having some problems with my new Montegrappa Parola.

I've managed to ink it, and it worked fine at first. But the problem now is, if I don't use it for any time longer than 10 minutes, it won't write, and I have to scribble with it for a good 5 mins before it will start writing again.

I've tried cleaning it out, twice in fact. I've tried using cartridges and the converter. Nothing seems to solve the problem that I've found so far. I'm kind of in a city in Australia and a good fountain pen repairer is kind of ..... non existent.

What should I do? Any techniques, is this a common problem?

June 3, 2012

my experience with montegrappa pens is that they need time to break in. there is no need to keep changing inks. just keep the pen inked to allow the feed to get properly soaked.

June 3, 2012

Cheninsuits,

I also had a problem with my Parola extra fine nib when I first bought it and, as you did, even solicited advice here on the Network.

After trying different inks, flushing numerous times, even once with very mild detergent, I gave up and sent the nib to a pro (mikeitwork) for tuning.

The pen writes like a champ now and I am also finishing a review of the pen as a whole. I have to admit that I too was disappointed at the initial poor performance of such a reputed pen brand.

Good luck, and I hope that my history may help you in some way.

M.

June 4, 2012

Thank you, hopefully it'll get better with time.

The thing is, it only doesn't work if I don't keep the lid on. So if I stop using it and put the lid back on, it'll work fine, only if I'm in between writing something for a little while and just leave it.

This hasn't happened with any of the other pens I've used in the past. Do the same advice apply or is this a bit more different?

Cheers

June 4, 2012

I'm surprised that the pen will go unused for as long as 10 minutes uncapped before the nib dries out. Having said that, you might experiment with "wetter" inks. Personally, I've returned to using rollerballs for scribbling in books while reading, so as to avoid the re-capping & uncapping routine - even the venerable hooded P51's develop dry nibs if left uncapped without use in what seems to be fairly short order.

June 5, 2012

Montegrappa nibs can be difficult, though I love them I had a Miya that did the same thing. It is now with MikeItWork, as well, getting adjusted. He, apparently, sees a lot of this problem with Montegrappa nibs. I imagine, though, once he's fixed it, the pen will have no match. My plan for future purchases is to always have my Montegrappa pens adjusted before they come 'home.'

June 5, 2012

I'm kinda confused. Do you leave a pen uncapped and unused for ten minutes or more?

October 12, 2012

I'm kinda confused. Do you leave a pen uncapped and unused for ten minutes or more?

Sometimes... when I am taking notes during a meeting, I try to avoid capping/uncapping, because it wears out snap-on caps.

Usually I just put the cap on, without clicking it into place.

I have the Parola as well, and found it very disappointing, the flow is very poor.

February 7, 2013

Frankly I don't understand why any fountain pen costing over $200 is so poorly made that it will not write correctly.

February 10, 2013

Frankly I don't understand why any fountain pen costing over $200 is so poorly made that it will not write correctly.

Hi, welcome home. Pull up a stump and set a spell.

My experience has been that no matter how well made an item is that users can find a way to break it.

February 10, 2013

My experience has been that no matter how well made an item is that users can find a way to break it.

Chuckles aside, I had a similar problem years ago with a Miya. It was an early generation of that pen and exhibited the same behavior described above. After a few years of using the pen intermittently at best and giving up in frustration each time I did so, at the urging of a dealer I sent it back to Montegrappa, who sent me back a new one. That one has written perfectly since I received it and is probably the nicest writer –– with one of the nicer (if not nicest) nibs -- that I own and use.

December 17, 2013

Hi, welcome home. Pull up a stump and set a spell.

My experience has been that no matter how well made an item is that users can find a way to break it.

Maybe I somehow misread what the user was saying. He didn't say he used the Parola to open jelly jars. He seemed to be using it to try and write words in ink. Under that assumption, I still think Montegrappa should invest some time in getting their pens to write before the purchaser has to spend more time and money sending it to a 3rd party for "adjustment". When I buy a Pelikan or a Mont Blanc I expect it to write perfectly right out of the box. Never been disappointed with any of their fountain pens. Perhaps it is the old dilemma where the Italians have great designs but fail on execution?

December 18, 2013

Maybe I somehow misread what the user was saying. He didn't say he used the Parola to open jelly jars. He seemed to be using it to try and write words in ink. Under that assumption, I still think Montegrappa should invest some time in getting their pens to write before the purchaser has to spend more time and money sending it to a 3rd party for "adjustment". When I buy a Pelikan or a Mont Blanc I expect it to write perfectly right out of the box. Never been disappointed with any of their fountain pens. Perhaps it is the old dilemma where the Italians have great designs but fail on execution?

It could well be, but I really wonder. I have a few Montegrappas from several different periods and only one has failed to work right from the beginning.

Think what you want but my personal experience is that Montegrappa pens are far more reliable than Pelikan or Montblanc. (I have a few of them as well)

The OP is letting the pen sit unused and uncapped and says it does not dry out if he recaps it. Seems to me what we see here is simple user error.

Put the cap back on. Problem solved.

December 19, 2013

I had the "benefit" for a couple of years of using a Montegrappa pen that belonged to my organization. It was definitely not a fun pen to use, as it frequently stopped writing and required effort to get going again. This was a $1000+ pen and should not be let out of the factory in this sort of condition. I have vintage third tier pens that are much better performers than this high-priced showpiece. Oh, the cap took four turns to unscrew, so it did not encourage recapping frequently. I think that they made it this way so that the owner would make a performance of opening the cap and everyone would notice. End soapbox...