buying meisterstuck - worth it?

[silence]

hi,

 

i am a student turning 20 in the next week or so and will be coming into some birthday money.

 

my waterman (a £40 one) recently broke and i intended on purchasing myself a new fountain pen. out of curiousity, i popped into the mb concession in selfridges, birmingham and tried out the meisterstuck (not the large one, a medium size one i believe) and various nibs. what an incredible feeling.

 

the M nib at first seemed great, but when trying out an OB nib, it seemed to suit my handwriting much better. is this sort of nib a regular one to get? i mean that in the sense that i don't want to spend a few hundred pounds on a fountain pen which writes nicely in the shop but then have to write with it for the next few years in a relatively thick style.

 

another question - pen cases and ink etc. having read some posts i would get mb's own ink - is this pricey? also, do they sell pen cases? (i wouldn't want to leave it loose in a bag or pocket vulnerable to scratches).

 

one final thing - i study up here in birmingham so the store is quite convenient for me to shop at as it's a 10 minute drive away. when not at university, however, i do live in central london. would it be best to make my purchase in one of the london boutiques rather than the selfridges concession? even if the birmingham one has the pen/nib combination i'm after? or does it really make no difference?

Edited June 10, 2007 by silence

[Shangas]

hi,

 

i am a student turning 20 in the next week or so and will be coming into some birthday money.

 

my waterman (a £40 one) recently broke and i intended on purchasing myself a new fountain pen. out of curiousity, i popped into the mb concession in selfridges, birmingham and tried out the meisterstuck (not the large one, a medium size one i believe) and various nibs. what an incredible feeling.

 

the M nib at first seemed great, but when trying out an OB nib, it seemed to suit my handwriting much better. is this sort of nib a regular one to get? i mean that in the sense that i don't want to spend a few hundred pounds on a fountain pen which writes nicely in the shop but then have to write with it for the next few years in a relatively thick style.

 

another question - pen cases and ink etc. having read some posts i would get mb's own ink - is this pricey? also, do they sell pen cases? (i wouldn't want to leave it loose in a bag or pocket vulnerable to scratches).

 

one final thing - i study up here in birmingham so the store is quite convenient for me to shop at as it's a 10 minute drive away. when not at university, however, i do live in central london. would it be best to make my purchase in one of the london boutiques rather than the selfridges concession? even if the birmingham one has the pen/nib combination i'm after? or does it really make no difference?

 

1. Yes. A montblanc is worth buying. You will not find a smoother nib anywhere else.

2. Yes, the ink can be rather pricey. Naturally, cartridges are cheaper than bottled ink, but bottled ink is always more economical, although a little more expensive.

3. Yes, Montblanc does sell leather pen-pouches which are very tough and protective.

4. It's really up to you. With the boutique, you get the really specialised service, but if there's a good quality pen shop near you which sells Montblanc and has the stuff you want - then buy your pen there, for the sake of convenience, if nothing else.

 

I'm not an expert on nibs, but I invariably go for F nibs. Keep that in mind, just in case...I dunno.

 

If you want more help, you can contact me on MSN messenger or Yahoo messenger (see my profile).

 

Hope that was some help.

 

Shangas.

 

[Allan]

MB pens are extremely good pens, as to if you should purchase one, that is a very subjective thing. Do you like the style? Are the colors what you want? How does the pen feel when you are writing? Does the nib have the correct amount of flex for you? These are all things to consider, and there is no right or wrong answer to anyone but yourself.

 

If you like the pen, and you think it writes well, then you would be very happy owning one. Their products are excellent, warranty is great, service has always been spectacular for me, and after warranty repairs are very, VERY, reasonable.

 

Allan

[silence]

thanks for the advice.

 

when writing with the pen it felt great - to the extent that i could actually see why it cost over £200 relative to cheaper pens. with that in mind i can't think of any reason not to buy it.

 

if i purchased the pen with an OB nib, and (in theory) came not to like it too much after a few months, would i be able to get them to change the nib to a different one (paying however much this cost?)

 

shangas - you mentioned that montblanc sell leather pouches. they don't do anything more economical do they? what sort of items does the pen usually come with for free (such as cleaning cloth, any ink etc..)?

[Shangas]

thanks for the advice.

 

shangas - you mentioned that montblanc sell leather pouches. they don't do anything more economical do they? what sort of items does the pen usually come with for free (such as cleaning cloth, any ink etc..)?

 

Hello, Silence.

 

Yes, they do sell leather pen-pouches with the Montblanc star or other Montblanc logo on them. I myself own a three-pen Montblanc pouch. And no, not really. It's the pouch or the big, unwieldly box which is bloody huge when you consider the size of the pen.

 

As for what comes with the pen for free, well -

 

The big, black, fat, gold-banded cigar of a fountain pen called the Montblanc Meisterstuck 149, comes in a beautiful silk-lined box with it's own bottle of Montblanc ink. The other Meisterstucks will come with the pen, a small information & care booklet. If it comes as part of what I call the 'musician' series, (Mozart, Chopin etc etc), then the box will also include a CD with some of that composer's work (which is quite nice to listen to). But really - Ink you have to buy seperately unless you buy the 149, and that pen is huge. If you have anything other than massive hands, don't buy it. It's going to be like trying to write with a baseball bat.

 

So long-answer-short - You get the pen, a nice box, an instruction booklet, maybe a CD, the ink-converter (or other filling-system. Which will be screwed into the pen) and that's it. Ink you will need to buy seperately. Cartridges are obviously cheaper, but they're a pain in the ass. If you buy a bottle of Montblanc ink, while it may be more expensive, it is more cost-effective.

 

As for cleaning-cloths - All you need is a good, lint-free cloth. Nothing with little fiddly cottony bits. A clean T-shirt, a handkerchief (clean, please), a clean tissue or even those little cloths that you use to clean your glasses with. They'll work fine. If you're going to clean the nib (remove oil, dust, water, excess ink etc), then I suggest you do that underneath a magnifying glass of some kind. This is to make sure you're getting the right places and not damaging the nib.

 

[silence]

thanks again for the reply.

 

i went into the shop this morning and have already purchased my pen - le grand - 146. it's being sent down to london to get an OB nib fitted so i won't get it for a couple of weeks.

 

as a lifelong cartridge user until now, i was just wondering how practical this piston system pen is. as a student i sit three hour exams and can write up to 16 sides of A4 in that period. should be enough to last on one load? i was offered the traveller pen but wasn't so keen on the large case it came with.

 

also - what are people's views on engraving? just initials maybe. does it take away from the pen's value? does it make the pen less aesthetically pleasing?

[Shangas]

Okay...

 

If you're a fan of cartridges, there's no reason why you can't continue to use cartridges. Just keep in mind that it's more cost-effective to buy bottled ink.

 

As for engraving.

 

DO NOT DO IT.

 

It may seem pretty now, but in the long-run, you will regret it, and yes, it does lower the value of the pen.

[Ray]

Okay...

 

If you're a fan of cartridges, there's no reason why you can't continue to use cartridges...

 

Yes there is. The 146 has a piston filling system. You can't use cartridges with the 146. However, the pen holds more ink than a cartridge would.

 

Ray

Edited June 11, 2007 by Ray

[Shangas]

Oh I forgot about that...my apologies.

 

Then yes, you'll have to switch to a converter. Just take a bottle of ink and a few tissues with you. It only takes a minute to fill a fountain pen.

[Ray]

The 146 is a piston-filling pen and the barrel itself holds the ink, unlike with a converter which sits inside the barrel and consequently holds less ink.

 

As Silence learned in the shop, there is a similar model, the 147 traveller, which runs on cartidges, but only on cartridges: you can't fit a converter.

 

Ray

[silence]

Oh I forgot about that...my apologies.

 

Then yes, you'll have to switch to a converter. Just take a bottle of ink and a few tissues with you. It only takes a minute to fill a fountain pen.

ah, another question about this.

 

as i've only used cartridge pens until now, i was wondering about blotting.

 

would blotting an mb onto regular kleenex tissues be ok for the pen? or is a specific type of blotting paper necessary?

 

i'm also slightly worrying about my choice with the oblique broad nib - the woman in the concession said 'i had neat handwriting' but i have read at some places online saying that you shouldn't get an oblique nib unless you've had your handwriting looked at and given the go ahead as it were. when trying it out in the shop it seemed fine, if not more suitable to my handwriting than the medium nib, but i'm no expert at all! any ideas about this or should i post separately in another forum?

[Ray]

Oh I forgot about that...my apologies.

 

Then yes, you'll have to switch to a converter. Just take a bottle of ink and a few tissues with you. It only takes a minute to fill a fountain pen.

ah, another question about this.

 

as i've only used cartridge pens until now, i was wondering about blotting.

 

would blotting an mb onto regular kleenex tissues be ok for the pen? or is a specific type of blotting paper necessary?

 

i'm also slightly worrying about my choice with the oblique broad nib - the woman in the concession said 'i had neat handwriting' but i have read at some places online saying that you shouldn't get an oblique nib unless you've had your handwriting looked at and given the go ahead as it were. when trying it out in the shop it seemed fine, if not more suitable to my handwriting than the medium nib, but i'm no expert at all! any ideas about this or should i post separately in another forum?

 

There are a couple of points to make here. First, I wouldn't use kleenex, since it might shed material and leave fibres stuck between the tines. Kitchen paper towel is generally better, but don't apply any pressure; you're wicking rather than wiping.

 

I'm worried from your comments that you might not really understand the nature of an oblique nib. You should only use one if you hold a pen rotated in a certain way to the paper. The glossary at Richard's site (http://www.richardspens.com) will give you more detail on this.

 

Ray

[silence]

There are a couple of points to make here. First, I wouldn't use kleenex, since it might shed material and leave fibres stuck between the tines. Kitchen paper towel is generally better, but don't apply any pressure; you're wicking rather than wiping.

 

I'm worried from your comments that you might not really understand the nature of an oblique nib. You should only use one if you hold a pen rotated in a certain way to the paper. The glossary at Richard's site (http://www.richardspens.com) will give you more detail on this.

 

Ray

 

i'm not sure if i do hold the pen in such a way. i've attached a couple of photos - one of my regular handwriting with a regular pen (waterman £40 one) and another of me attempting to write, to show how i hold the pen. not too sure how useful it is though, given the difficulty in holding a camera in one hand and writing with the other.

[Ray]

It's not easy to say for sure, but that doesn't look like an angle for an oblique nib. Have a look at Richard's site, and follow the link for Reference Info, followed by Nibs I: The Basics. You'll see some photos there which describe the hold better than I can.

 

Ray

[Shangas]

I'm not so sure about that, Ray. I've used tissues for years to clean the nibs of my pens. I've never had any problems. I find paper-towel too coarse for the delicate job of removing ink.

 

Regardless of what you use, Ray IS correct in the fact that you MUST be gentle. Just whisk the tissue over the nib. Don't press down too hard. If you do, you may damage the nib. Just use light dabs and gentle wipes to remove the ink. Don't press.

[Titivillus]

1. Yes. A montblanc is worth buying. You will not find a smoother nib anywhere else.

 

Wait a second there, let's preface that with "in my opinion". I've tried and owned MB FPs as well as probably a hundred or so other pens and I can say that there are smoother nibs out there.

 

 

 

 

 

K

Edited June 11, 2007 by Tytyvyllus

[PhilBiker]

Congratulations, I hope you enjoy your new pen for many decades to come! If you liked the nib in the store you'll probably like it at home, too.

[Allan]

1. Yes. A montblanc is worth buying. You will not find a smoother nib anywhere else.

 

Wait a second there, let's preface that with "in my opinion". I've tried and owned MB FPs as well as probably a hundred or so other pens and I can say that there are smoother nibs out there.

 

While I personally think MB nibs are about the smoothest out there, I agree that there are others that some may think are smoother. How about Montblanc makes some of the smoothest nibs out there. That better?

 

Allan

[Titivillus]

While I personally think MB nibs are about the smoothest out there, I agree that there are others that some may think are smoother. How about Montblanc makes some of the smoothest nibs out there. That better?

 

Allan

 

 

That's better.

 

K

 

[mysta rave]

My MB 149 is definitely not the smoothest nib I've tried and I'm not afraid to admit it . My sailor is much smoother. They are the same line thickness.