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Is A Vintage Montblanc A Good Daily Writer?


Leogrando

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Hello,

 

I started using fountain pen a couple month ago and i'm loving every use of it. My first pen is a pilot Metro and My Second pen is a Pelikan 120. I'm thinking of adding another pen to my usage, so I thought maybe a montblanc would fulfil that spot. I don't have a lot of money so i'm thinking of buying a vintage or secondhand pen. I would like to buy a montarosa, or a montblanc 24, because i like a design and hoping it to have a semi-flex nib.

 

I want to use the pen as a daily writer and I will use it for heavy lecture notes. so i want to know if a vintage montblanc could be use as a daily writer? does a vintage montblanc/ Montblanc 24 durable enough to withstand daily uses? does a vintage montblanc monterosa needs special maintanace or care ?

 

Please tell me your experience with a vintage montblanc, Tell me the pain, the sorrow, the joy, and the happy moment of using a vintage montblanc!

 

Thank you for anyone who replies and told their story,

AIS

 

PS. Hope to join the montblanc family soon.

PPS. I'm mainly interested to buy a used 24 or monterosa. but if their any other recomendation for other vintage montblanc that maybe a good place for my uses. please tell me! Thank you

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144 and 145 are good models available at reasonable prices.146 (piston filler) is also very good and is the optimal choice for many as good daily writer.I personally prefer C/C fillers always though. Another great daily writer is Parker 75, but you are probably aiming at the MB alone.

 

Regards

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The 24 is plenty sturdy as long as you don't do silly stuff like carry it in a pants pocket. There were a BUNCH of different Monterosa pens and they were primarily student or entry level pens so also pretty sturdy.

 

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144 and 145 are good models available at reasonable prices.146 (piston filler) is also very good and is the optimal choice for many as good daily writer.I personally prefer C/C fillers always though. Another great daily writer is Parker 75, but you are probably aiming at the MB alone.

 

Regards

Thank you for the suggestion, bu the parker 75 design doesn't float my boat. In parker lineup, i would like to own a duofold, but i don't like parker 51 design.

 

The 24 is plenty sturdy as long as you don't do silly stuff like carry it in a pants pocket. There were a BUNCH of different Monterosa pens and they were primarily student or entry level pens so also pretty sturdy.

Ok, so a monterosa is studier than the 24. is this because the material? I thought they are made from the same plastic or precious resin.

Sometime i would put my pen in my shirt or pants pocket.

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Thank you for the suggestion, bu the parker 75 design doesn't float my boat. In parker lineup, i would like to own a duofold, but i don't like parker 51 design.

 

Ok, so a monterosa is studier than the 24. is this because the material? I thought they are made from the same plastic or precious resin.

Sometime i would put my pen in my shirt or pants pocket.

They are pretty similar. The 24 was a slightly higher level pen than almost all of the Monterosas (several companies even made pens of that name) and so I would not expect any real quality difference, but fountain pens and pants pockets are generally not a good idea. Both were before marketing adopted Precious Resin.

 

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They are pretty similar. The 24 was a slightly higher level pen than almost all of the Monterosas (several companies even made pens of that name) and so I would not expect any real quality difference, but fountain pens and pants pockets are generally not a good idea. Both were before marketing adopted Precious Resin.

ahh.. Ok, i will put that to list of thing not to do with Fountain pen. I think i will chose depend of the price. Also, Do you own or uses montblanc pen from the 50s or 60s? do you mind telling your experience using them?

 

thanks,

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If you want a daily Montblanc writer, there's little that can go wrong (also concerning the price) with pens from the 1960s and 1970s. My personal favourites are the 220 and similar models: excellent nibs, quite a few piston fillers and overall quality that won't let you down. They're quite easy to service, too; no need for special tools.

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ahh.. Ok, i will put that to list of thing not to do with Fountain pen. I think i will chose depend of the price. Also, Do you own or uses montblanc pen from the 50s or 60s? do you mind telling your experience using them?

 

thanks,

I don't use my Montblancs as often as many other makes but have ones from before the War right through to the 70s and even today. All have been reliable and functional. They range from the higher end pens through the 3xx series and the ones that most often get into rotation are from the 2xx family.

 

http://www.fototime.com/3A86D9CE00CC1FD/large.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/E632794B5D2EB5A/large.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/21D01EC2FCA65F9/large.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/14FA9ACB082FF0A/large.jpg

 

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fpn_1472660459__leogrando.jpg

 

 

If you want a daily Montblanc writer, there's little that can go wrong (also concerning the price) with pens from the 1960s and 1970s. My personal favourites are the 220 and similar models: excellent nibs, quite a few piston fillers and overall quality that won't let you down. They're quite easy to service, too; no need for special tools.

 

post-130473-0-94864900-1472664626_thumb.jpg

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Celluloid MB pens tend to have less durability than the later plastic pens. I would say to stay away from those as a start. The 24 is a good pen, so is the 34 which can be lower cost.

 

I have a few celluloid MB pens and while I use them, they do require more care and maintenance. They are also harder to replace if they get lost. Older fountain pens were meant for heavy use so they can stand up to a full workload if properly taken care of.

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I'm not sure that a vintage is the route to go for someone just beginning the hobby.

 

Vintage pen use is a labour of love that may be best left to those with a lot of FP experience.

 

Just saying...

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I only use vintage pens ranging from a Parker Jack-Knife Safety (circa 1920) through MBs from the 1930s to the early 1950s. I've never had any problems of any sort with but one exception: use of some Noodlers inks in pens with rubber bladders has been a mistake and a costly one at that.

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I enjoy seeing the line variation that comes from a flexible nib. However, for "industrial" writing, such as taking notes, I would choose a very sturdy NAIL of a nib. Yes, I think a Montblanc would be an excellent daily writer.

Auf freiem Grund mit freiem Volke stehn.
Zum Augenblicke dürft ich sagen:
Verweile doch, du bist so schön !

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I have had more than a dozen MBs from the 50s and 60s. All of them were excellent daily writers.

" Gladly would he learn and gladly teach" G. Chaucer

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I've just acquired a Montblanc 342G from the early 50s. The seller, another FPN member, told me that back then Montblanc had a number of product lines intended for every day use by students and others, not just the luxury line we see today. The 342G writes like a dream and holds a lot of ink.

 

No, I wouldn't shove it in a pocket, but it's a good daily carry in a case or other reasonably secure place. As for starting out early with a vintage pen, I don't think you can go wrong with a brand that was intended for regular everyday use, as long as you get one in good shape from a reliable seller.

"Life would split asunder without letters." Virginia Woolf

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I started with the fountain pen hobby with 3 old and inexpensive firm nib pens, progressed to having a few LE ST. Dupont Chinese lacquer firm nib pens, both medium and fine nibs and then progressed to vintage flex pens, using a couple of Waterman pink nibs (one is a wet noodle) and a vintage Mabie Todd pen with flex nib. I never thought I would ever venture into owning and writing with any Montblanc pens, modern or vintage/ But when I discovered the post war Montblanc celluloid pens with flex nibs, I got myself 3 of them and I love the feel using them to write. I just wish I had discovered them earlier and in my opinion, the vintage Montblanc pens made between 1930's and 1950's that come with flexible nibs are simply marvelous daily writers.

 

My latest acquisition is a vintage Montblanc 144 green striated pen with a hard to find vintage OBB nib. I had some reservations before buying it, but after doing some research on FPN and other boards, I decided to give it a try. And to my surprise, I really, really like writing with this vintage Montblanc OBB nib. It has a certain feel to it and this pen has quickly become one of my favourites and I write with it daily, inking it with Montblanc Irish Green ink (to match the green striated pen body). The nib is a two tone OBB nib and it writes like a dream, with some line variation and even some shading out of the Montblanc Irish Green ink.

 

All in all, I am really, really glad I bought my vintage Montblanc 144 green striated pen with the two tone OBB nib. The nib itself is well worth the price, not to mention the beautiful green striated celluloid pen body. I feel like I am in heaven every time I write with it. No other pen in my collection gives me that feeling, not even my Waterman 7 with a wet noodle pink nib.

 

Unfortunately no one or no company are able to make such high quality writing instruments any more. The art and science and quality of the hand-made vintage Montblanc pens and nibs have disappeared.

 

Another one of my newly acquired Monblanc 44 pen was made in Spain in the late 1940's - early 1950's and it has a lovely wet noodle nib.

 

Manufacturer/Model: Montblanc /44 /Spain

Year of production: Late 1940's - Early 50's
Filling system: Piston filler, (with it's original cork - fully functional).
Nib: Solid 14K 585 gold; Ultra flexible wet noodle nib. Size EF extra fine, will write all bigger sizes, F, M, B, BB and BBB!
Material: Tortoise brown striped cellulose, gold filled clip and ring
Length (pen closed): 132mm, Posted 154mm

Condition and information:
One of the most special pens in my collection, a wonderful rare version of the Spanish Montblanc factory, the model 44, in absolute mint condition, simply mint condition, perfectly preserved. The pen was made in the early 50's, by the small Montblanc factory in Barcelona Spain. After the WWII, Spain did not allow any import of German made goods, so in order to resurrect Montblanc in this market, a German family Wiese opened a small factory which produced original Montblanc pens with rights on all Montblanc patents from Germany. This model is based on the 50's Montblanc pens such as 342, 344 and similar models. The pen is slightly larger then the 342 and slightly smaller then the 344 model. The mechanism and build quality are identical, though the materials and design are different, these Spanish models were the only brown stripped Montblanc pens at the time, and thus are one of the rare and collectible Montblanc pens. Only a handful of these are known to exist. The pen is simply astonishing design, perfectly shiny and reflective due to the tortoise pearl design. Very beautiful long yellow ink window, perfectly clean and with a special feature; (the cap does not cover the entire ink window, so one can read the ink window even when the pen is closed.) The piston is in flawless condition, fills very smoothly, and takes great amount of ink, and it still has its original cork. The piston like the 342 and 344 has 8 edged star shape with brass inlay and brass spiral, which makes for one extremely tough piston meant to last. The best part about this pen is the nib; 14K 585 solid gold EF extra fine, smooth on the paper writing without scratching and fully flexible nib which simply melts on the paper. The tines split apart as soon as it starts writing, so if held gently it will write EF, but the lightest pressure will produce all sized writing up to triple broad BBB. This results in some of the best writing one could ever hope to achieve with a fountain pen, feels like writing with a paint brush. The feed is ebonite with great ink-flow which allows for such an extremely wet nib. The old Montblanc Mountain Range logo located on the side of the cap and the Mountain star logo on top of the cap. A unique vintage masterpiece, one of the rare Montblanc pens.

 

Overall, my vintage Montblanc 144 green striated celluloid pen with the 2 tone OBB nib gives me as much writing pleasure as this vintage Montblanc 44 wet noodle pen. I write with them daily and I am so happy writing with them.

Edited by iveyman
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Just about ANY pre 1969 MB in working condition would be a good "daily writer" ! Myself of the 30+ MB's I have, one of two from the 1950's are usually in my shirt pocket at least 4 out of 7 days. First is a 256 with a soft winged BB 14k nib, piston filler with a slip fit cap.

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh215/michaelintexas/Fountain%20Pens/2563_zps4b0d8759.jpg

 

Next is a 24 from 1959 with a soft semi-hooded M 14k nib and a slip fit cap also.

 

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh215/michaelintexas/Fountain%20Pens/Montblanc241959_zps530ec225.jpg

 

Both fit easily in a shirt pocket and bothe are piston fillers that hold a nice amount of ink and write well. My personal opinion of MB's pens is that around 1970 they started making pocket jewelry and stopped making writing instruments. I'd say ANY pre 1969 MB in good working condition would make a good "daily writer" for you

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..... My personal opinion of MB's pens is that around 1970 they started making pocket jewelry and stopped making writing instruments. I'd say ANY pre 1969 MB in good working condition would make a good "daily writer" for you

 

Exactly !

 

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fpn_1472713675__7.jpg

regards

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