100th Anniversary editions

[hari317]

16 minutes ago, Opooh said:

Exactly, if you need replacement of a nib on an older limited pen, it is possible you get a standard nib.

 

 

I think they will charge you an arm and leg but remanufacture the nib for you.  Some older factory visits have shown nib dies carefully preserved. 

[Lam1]

1 hour ago, hari317 said:

I think they will charge you an arm and leg but remanufacture the nib for you.  Some older factory visits have shown nib dies carefully preserved. 

Unless you have purchased the pen NOS from a MB dealer. I have exchanged 10+ years old special nibs under warranty for free. I was told at the time (two years ago) that, since it was an old nib, if they didn’t have it in stock they’d send it Hamburg to be made. 

[Arcadian]

I have two 149 The Origins. They of course came with M nibs, as they all do nowadays, so I had one sent in for a change to an EF nib, and the other to a B nib. The EF nib came back relatively quickly, but it skipped. I believe the grind was off. So I sent it back for service, and got it again about a month ago. It is one of the best writing pens in my collection now. Perfect line with for everyday note taking, an unbelievably smooth nib, and well balanced ink flow, i.e. medium or slightly less, which makes it very user friendly when taking notes on the go. 

 

The B nib I am still waiting for. I think 6 months now? 

 

 - P. 

[Opooh]

3 hours ago, Arcadian said:

I have two 149 The Origins. They of course came with M nibs, as they all do nowadays, so I had one sent in for a change to an EF nib, and the other to a B nib. The EF nib came back relatively quickly, but it skipped. I believe the grind was off. So I sent it back for service, and got it again about a month ago. It is one of the best writing pens in my collection now. Perfect line with for everyday note taking, an unbelievably smooth nib, and well balanced ink flow, i.e. medium or slightly less, which makes it very user friendly when taking notes on the go. 

 

The B nib I am still waiting for. I think 6 months now? 

 

 - P. 

I think that a large part of the collectibles are donated or disappear unopened into the cabinets of collectors (speculators).
On the other hand, the phenomenon of more cost-efficient working in Western companies in competition with Chinese companies has a negative impact on quality control. Firms of high-end products also suffer from this problem.

[JCC123]

16 hours ago, Arcadian said:

I have two 149 The Origins. They of course came with M nibs, as they all do nowadays, so I had one sent in for a change to an EF nib, and the other to a B nib. The EF nib came back relatively quickly, but it skipped. I believe the grind was off. So I sent it back for service, and got it again about a month ago. It is one of the best writing pens in my collection now. Perfect line with for everyday note taking, an unbelievably smooth nib, and well balanced ink flow, i.e. medium or slightly less, which makes it very user friendly when taking notes on the go. 

 

The B nib I am still waiting for. I think 6 months now? 

 

 - P. 

hmm, you received an EF nib that's writing more like an M and you're happy? That would drive me nuts.

[Arcadian]

8 hours ago, JCC123 said:

hmm, you received an EF nib that's writing more like an M and you're happy? That would drive me nuts.

 

No, it is still an EF nib. Well, almost. I'd say it writes somewhere between an EF and an F nib, which is perfect for me. M nibs are too wide for my taste.  

 

 - P. 

[Phonz]

As Meiers said <M> for Magnificent! ! ! .

[meiers]

Variety is the spice of life in the world of nib sizes. But…

[Leonardo_Writing]

On 6/14/2025 at 1:18 PM, hari317 said:

I purchased my example of “The Origin” 149 in late Oct 2024 and sent it in for the nib exchange to O3B on the spot. Today 14th June 2025, I have received the pen back with the demanded O3B nib. 8 months+ for the nib exchange with constant follow-ups. Flagship Montblanc boutique at Mumbai. But in the end I am happy as it’s a lovely writer. 
 

 

For reference, it took 2.5 months for OBB nib on a friend's 149 Origin (Change asked from EU country) 

[hari317]

19 hours ago, digitorum- Leonardo_W said:

 

For reference, it took 2.5 months for OBB nib on a friend's 149 Origin (Change asked from EU country) 

thank you.

[kabbyr]

If it helps, I have successfully exchanged the nibs on two 149 Origins. The first - to an OM nib- took 6 weeks with a final delivery date of September 2024. The second, to an O3B nib took 9 weeks, with a delivery date of July 2025. Both swaps were initiated at a MB Boutique in Northern California. I do wonder if both swaps were down in Dallas, of if the O3B had to go back to Germany. 

[Opooh]

14 hours ago, kabbyr said:

If it helps, I have successfully exchanged the nibs on two 149 Origins. The first - to an OM nib- took 6 weeks with a final delivery date of September 2024. The second, to an O3B nib took 9 weeks, with a delivery date of July 2025. Both swaps were initiated at a MB Boutique in Northern California. I do wonder if both swaps were down in Dallas, of if the O3B had to go back to Germany. 

I think it goes back to Germany

- If they change the nib in Germany it can be seen as a repair with no extra parts. Only labour.

- otoh If they change the nib in the US, they will need to pay importtaxes on the gold nib. Since the nibchange is free, they loose dollars on taxes.

in case 1000 people ask change, if tax is 10 $, that makes 10.000 $.

[Lam1]

2 hours ago, Opooh said:

I think it goes back to Germany

- If they change the nib in Germany it can be seen as a repair with no extra parts. Only labour.

- otoh If they change the nib in the US, they will need to pay importtaxes on the gold nib. Since the nibchange is free, they loose dollars on taxes.

in case 1000 people ask change, if tax is 10 $, that makes 10.000 $.

 

I’m not sure that is exactly the case.

Two years ago I changed the nib on a NOS 149 90th Anniversary, and the person on My Jewelry Repair said that if they didn’t have the nib in stock here, they would order the nib from Germany (which can make them). In my case, they had the nib in stock (OB) and it was less than a month.

 

Of course, ordering the nib or sending the pen would both take about the same time.

 

For what is worth, I pre-ordered mine from Fritz Schimpf with a BB, and that was the very first pen he received. And I received it here in the US very early in the release.

 

i think they just underestimated how many people wanted the 149 and how many of those would choose OBBB.

[meiers]

Things take time. We have become very impatient. 

[Surlyprof]

On 3/13/2025 at 8:02 AM, NoType said:

@a student Thank you very much for these links to Kintsugi; I had no conception that this age-old method could be applied to non-porcelain material!  Fascinating, indeed.

 

Although a recovering perfectionist, I am a little familiar with wabi-sabi philosophy, and have been the fortunate client of a Kintsugi artist for a 2010 Masters for Meisterstück Porcelain Black and White Porcelain White LeGrand Special Edition Fountain Pen (ident 106071), the cap needing repair after a fall from the writing desk:

analysis by Kintsugi artist before repair

 

 

 

after Kintsugi repair using ancient techniques and white gold powder

 

The finished piece is now a treasured item and dearer to me than before.

 

 

This is brilliant!  It almost makes me want to break my 146 to have this done (although I will not).  Such a fantastic result.  Beautiful.

 

If you ever wanted to know more about wabi sabi, I’ve read several and found Andrew Juniper’s book to be one of the better ones I’ve found on the subject.

[Phonz]

Wabi sabi! Yes!

[Opooh]

On 7/11/2025 at 3:01 PM, Lam1 said:

 

 

i think they just underestimated how many people wanted the 149 and how many of those would choose OBBB.

The problem with forums like this is the fact that you mainly encounter like-minded people here, that's how you get tunnel vision. Many Montblanc pens are purchased as gifts and part of them end up in a cupboard and then later come onto the market as NOS. An M nib is the best solution for these pens as well as for the occasional user. Only the real dilettantes go for more exotic nib formats.

Nib group
Estimate share of sales
EF
~10–20 %
F
~30–35 %
M
~30–35 %
B
~10–15 %
BB/DB
~3–5 %
BBB / OBB
< 1 %
Oblique
< 5 %, especially B/BB levels

 

 

[Scribs]

5 hours ago, Opooh said:

 Only the real dilettantes go for more exotic nib formats.

 

 

 

 

I've never heard such a poorly formulated conclusion: If I know I like EF nibs, then I would be pretty stupid to buy myself mediums. You suggest that all of us with our specific tastes and preferences are dilettantes?!

[a student]

7 hours ago, Opooh said:

The problem with forums like this is the fact that you mainly encounter like-minded people here, that's how you get tunnel vision. Many Montblanc pens are purchased as gifts and part of them end up in a cupboard and then later come onto the market as NOS. An M nib is the best solution for these pens as well as for the occasional user. Only the real dilettantes go for more exotic nib formats.

Nib group
Estimate share of sales
EF
~10–20 %
F
~30–35 %
M
~30–35 %
B
~10–15 %
BB/DB
~3–5 %
BBB / OBB
< 1 %
Oblique
< 5 %, especially B/BB levels

 

 

 

Thank you for this perspective

[Opooh]

4 hours ago, Scribs said:

 

I've never heard such a poorly formulated conclusion: If I know I like EF nibs, then I would be pretty stupid to buy myself mediums. You suggest that all of us with our specific tastes and preferences are dilettantes?!

Sorry, I meant aficionados . All I wanted to say: Montblanc is part of the Richemont group specialised in making money by selling luxury goods. So the decision to deliver all limited editions with an M nib has only commercial reasons. The “ tailor made “ businessmodel of Ferrari is an example for every firm in the luxury business. They make more profit, give the client an exclusivity feeling and give an incentive to start a collection. 

Ps there is nothing wrong with EF nibs.