Montblanc 149 Real Or Fake

[Matlock]

Hi,

 

I called it a fake (outside eBay alerting me) by the print and quality of the pen box. The booklet was actually 10/10 in comparison to other authentic examples I have. I actually had a laugh at the exterior cream packaging - they certainly went to great lengths!

 

The pen itself was 9.5/10 - held up to light the (resin?) body even shown red - as soon as you held it, you could tell by the weight it was not genuine. The converter had 'Mont Blanc' & was printed poorly, yet looked a reasonable duplicate from the outside.

 

I placed a bid @ 189.00 and was unsuccessful, only to receive a second chance offer which I accepted.

 

I recently sold this example on gumtree, clearly noted as a replica for $50 (sold within 24 hours)

$50 You can buy new from Aliexpress for $13 and, yes, apart from the converter and the steel nib they are quite convincing.

[torstar]

I do the opposite, leave the $1000 ones lying around in places where nobody could believe they could be real.

[Sasha Royale]

Another clue might be the quality of engraving. Precise, even lettering is expensive.

The spelling on the cap band is not "MEISTERSTUCK" , but " MEISTERSTüCK ".

 

A smooth-working piston is relatively expensive to include in a counterfeit.

[Matlock]

Another clue might be the quality of engraving. Precise, even lettering is expensive.

The spelling on the cap band is not "MEISTERSTUCK" , but " MEISTERSTüCK ".

 

A smooth-working piston is relatively expensive to include in a counterfeit.

The engraving on my $13 fake is perfect. I suspect that the fakes are getting better all the time, once they learn to fit a non magnetic nib then it will be even more difficult to to pick out the fake.

[Nathanb]

$50 You can buy new from Aliexpress for $13 and, yes, apart from the converter and the steel nib they are quite convincing.

I'm from Australia - never knew that site existed!

 

Sorry for the thread hijack to the OP

[Matlock]

I'm from Australia - never knew that site existed!

 

 

They are very carefull not to describe any of the pens as Montblanc but all their pens are fake I believe. If you fancy a 145 for $13 then go for it but I would suggest that we should all stick to REAL MBs.

[PDW]

They are very carefull not to describe any of the pens as Montblanc but all their pens are fake I believe. If you fancy a 145 for $13 then go for it but I would suggest that we should all stick to REAL MBs.

 

Not sure I agree - if you think you're getting the real thing and don't then you should complain, loudly and vociferously. But if you know you're getting a non-MB pen - like my 'homage' to Boheme - and would/could not spend the money to get the real thing then I;d say just think of it as a pen and see how well it works.

 

My non-Boheme dries out overnight (no inner cap - I think I need to block the air hole with wax) and the cap threads sometimes catch but it writes very nicely and I'm enjoying using it.

[Matlock]

 

Not sure I agree - if you think you're getting the real thing and don't then you should complain, loudly and vociferously. But if you know you're getting a non-MB pen - like my 'homage' to Boheme - and would/could not spend the money to get the real thing then I;d say just think of it as a pen and see how well it works.

 

My non-Boheme dries out overnight (no inner cap - I think I need to block the air hole with wax) and the cap threads sometimes catch but it writes very nicely and I'm enjoying using it.

The point I was making is that the $13 fake writes like a $13 pen. Fine if that is what you want but if you want quality then go for a real MB (or whatever your chosen pen is). I bought the fake just to see how good (or bad) it was and for that price it is quite a competent writer, but MB it ain't.

[PDW]

The point I was making is that the $13 fake writes like a $13 pen. Fine if that is what you want but if you want quality then go for a real MB (or whatever your chosen pen is). I bought the fake just to see how good (or bad) it was and for that price it is quite a competent writer, but MB it ain't.

 

My only MB (!) is a Noblesse, which TBH feels very ordinary as a writer, although any pen bought used as I did might not reflect its capabilities when new.

 

But my non-Boheme is a very nice pen in the hand and to write with, and would be so if I'd paid three times as much as I did (GBP 14.5). I'm sure I'd be more critical if I'd paid the MB price for their version of it, but it's working better than some more expensive pens from mainstream manufacturers.

 

Edited for typo

Edited May 26, 2015 by PDW

[RayCornett]

Just how reliable is the flashlight test? I recently acquired a 1990 149 and every single thing points to it being authentic to me and to many MB collectors with the exception of the cap showing dark read when a flashlight is shined into the cap.

[zaddick]

Just how reliable is the flashlight test? I recently acquired a 1990 149 and every single thing points to it being authentic to me and to many MB collectors with the exception of the cap showing dark read when a flashlight is shined into the cap.

 

It is not that accurate any more. Some fake pens show this characteristic and pass the test. 149 pens are not commonly faked. If it is a piston and the nib and feed look good, I would not worry.

[RayCornett]

 

It is not that accurate any more. Some fake pens show this characteristic and pass the test. 149 pens are not commonly faked. If it is a piston and the nib and feed look good, I would not worry.

It all checks out. My last concern was the translucence but that now checks out. My flashlight was not bright enough and the room I was in evidently was too bright. I did it in a dim room and it definitely has the translucence.