Vintage Montblanc Restoration

[Marcwithac]

I have a number of vintage (1908-1950) Montblanc pens that are in need of restoration, varying from faded color and loose stars to damaged nibs to heavily brassed clips and tarnished rings. Many need repairs of their filling mechanisms. While all vintage MBs from that period have value, some of the pens are quite rare. I would be interested in any opinions on who might be "best in class" at such work.

[zaddick]

Where are you located? There are folks in Europe and the US I can recommend. Recolor in will not likely be feasible for hard rubber pens that have gone brown.

 

Max Schrage is the top guy for many in Europe. Tom W, Francis G, and Osman S are also top notch. (I am at lunch and dont want to butcher last names right now.)

 

Brad Torelli is my guy in the US.

[pavoni]

Within my vintage pen collection, I have a few vintage Montblanc pens. For servicing, repairs and rebuilds, I have always relied upon Max Schrage (Germany) and Francis Goossens (Belgium). Both gentlemen are hugely knowledgeable and gifted repairers, and we are very lucky to have access to them here on the FPN.

 

Pavoni.

[Marcwithac]

Thanks Zadlock. I am in the greater New York area. While it would be nice to stay local, given the value of some of the pens, I am interested in finding the most capable/reliable/trustworthy MB restorer on the planet.

[Marcwithac]

"Within my vintage pen collection, I have a few vintage Montblanc pens. For servicing, repairs and rebuilds, I have always relied upon Max Schrage (Germany) and Francis Goossens (Belgium). Both gentlemen are hugely knowledgeable and gifted repairers, and we are very lucky to have access to them here on the FPN.

 

Pavoni"

 

Thanks Pavoni. I have read your posts, and you are being incredibly modest when you say you have a "few" vintage MBs.

[zaddick]

Thanks Zadlock. I am in the greater New York area. While it would be nice to stay local, given the value of some of the pens, I am interested in finding the most capable/reliable/trustworthy MB restorer on the planet.

 

Well opinions will differ. Also, what parts you may need will possibly drive who can best help you.

 

Brad Torelli is in CT and is excellent. I have not had the need to send my pens over to Europe to recieve amazing work.

 

Max Schrage is probably considered a top restorer of MB pens given his previous work experience with MB. I hear some work from MB gets outsourced to him. i think he has a decent supply of parts and will give you the most "technically correct" restoration.

 

Osman Sumer is another vintage MB expert, but harder to get a hold of than Max. I think he has the knowledge to do what you would want.

 

For me (and others are free to disagree) those are my top 3 people for restoration.

 

Francis Goossens is am amazing fellow and does excellent work. But in my view, he is more willing to make parts or perform a less "correct" refurbishing of a pen. It will writie amazing and work wonderfully, but may not be restored to original standards.He is an engineer and it shows in his approach.

 

Tom Westerich is another person who can do great preairs. I think if his repaist and more aestherically pleasing versus technically perfect. Again, he can do the work and will provide a beautiful pen but it may not be to factory specs. I think of Tom as an bit more of an artist in his repairs.

 

All 5 have a lot of experieince with MB. There are other great restoration experts who specialize in other brands who could help you too, but I will not muddy the water with more names.

 

Do share with us where you end up going and take some before and after pictures to share. This is a question I think a lot of people struggle with, myself included, when they venture into the wonderful world of vintage MB pens.

[Marcwithac]

 

Well opinions will differ. Also, what parts you may need will possibly drive who can best help you.

 

Brad Torelli is in CT and is excellent. I have not had the need to send my pens over to Europe to recieve amazing work.

 

Max Schrage is probably considered a top restorer of MB pens given his previous work experience with MB. I hear some work from MB gets outsourced to him. i think he has a decent supply of parts and will give you the most "technically correct" restoration.

 

Osman Sumer is another vintage MB expert, but harder to get a hold of than Max. I think he has the knowledge to do what you would want.

 

For me (and others are free to disagree) those are my top 3 people for restoration.

 

Francis Goossens is am amazing fellow and does excellent work. But in my view, he is more willing to make parts or perform a less "correct" refurbishing of a pen. It will writie amazing and work wonderfully, but may not be restored to original standards.He is an engineer and it shows in his approach.

 

Tom Westerich is another person who can do great preairs. I think if his repaist and more aestherically pleasing versus technically perfect. Again, he can do the work and will provide a beautiful pen but it may not be to factory specs. I think of Tom as an bit more of an artist in his repairs.

 

All 5 have a lot of experieince with MB. There are other great restoration experts who specialize in other brands who could help you too, but I will not muddy the water with more names.

 

Do share with us where you end up going and take some before and after pictures to share. This is a question I think a lot of people struggle with, myself included, when they venture into the wonderful world of vintage MB pens.

 

First, let me apologize for misspelling Zaddick in my prior post. That's what I get for being too impatient to wait until I could reply on a computer rather than an auto-correcting mobile device.

 

Second, thank you for sharing your thoughts; this is just the kind of information I was looking for. And, right, there was no need to mention other, non-MB-specialized restoration experts. Indeed, one reason I posted on this topic is that a few years ago I had given a Montblanc 236 (probably my favorite occasional writer) to a well-known restorer when the piston got stuck. What I got back was a pen with a cracked barrel.

 

My next step is to prioritize my restoration jobs over the next few weeks. I will then "interview" two or three of the people listed in the responses and start with one or two pens. For me, technical integrity is far more important than appearance, so that will inform my choice. As you requested, I'll post the before and after, as well as any observations from my experience.