Fountain pen users, rejoice!

[Scepticalscribe]

One more question. I know that the 144 is a small pen. Do you use it with the cap on top of the pen, making it a little longer?

That depends.

Sometimes I do, but most of the time, I don't. However, bear in mind that I have small hands, and don't really need the pen to be much bigger for it to feel comfortable in my hand while writing with it.

But, precisely because it is small and light (some of the big Mont Blancs are quite thick, and heavy), it is very easy to carry in a jacket breast pocket, for example. You don't feel the weight of it.

 

[AVBeatMan]

That depends.

Sometimes I do, but most of the time, I don't. However, bear in mind that I have small hands, and don't really need the pen to be much bigger for it to feel comfortable in my hand while writing with it.

But, precisely because it is small and light (some of the big Mont Blancs are quite thick, and heavy), it is very easy to carry in a jacket breast pocket, for example. You don't feel the weight of it.

Can you please let me know the length, with and without the cap on?

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Can you please let me know the length, with and without the cap on?

Ah, three measurements, then.

Are inches acceptable as a unit of measurement?

Without a cap, the 144 is a little - marginally - over four and a half inches long.

With the cap on over the nib, - the normal way of carrying the pen - the pen is around five and a half inches long, whereas, with the cap attached to the rear of the pen, leaving the nib free (to write), the length of the pen comes in at six inches.

 

[AVBeatMan]

Ah, three measurements, then.

Are inches acceptable as a unit of measurement?

Without a cap, the 144 is a little - marginally - over four and a half inches long.

With the cap on over the nib, - the normal way of carrying the pen - the pen is around five and a half inches long, whereas, with the cap attached to the rear of the pen, leaving the nib free (to write), the length of the pen comes in at six inches.

OK, thanks for that. That seems perfectly acceptable. I was a little worried as the J Herbin I've recently mentioned is a little under 4" (yes, inches, what else?!). I find I'm able to use the Herbin OK but 'could use a little extra".

With my Waterman (which is just under 5" without the cap) I find is fine. If using with the cap on It's a little heavy.

 

[cdcastillo]

...Now, a small word of advice: I always have two of these in the pen, one attached to the nib, and the other - reversed - stored as a reserve, in the base of the pen...

I do exactly the same thing with my StarWalker black metal! It has saved me from embarrassment several times.

One more question. I know that the 144 is a small pen. Do you use it with the cap on top of the pen, making it a little longer?

Just note, not all MontBlanc pens can hold the cap on the back of the pen. Actually, most MB pens can not fit the cap this way when writing.

...Incidentally, if problems do arise, you can always send the pen to Mont Blanc for a service (via an authorised dealer)...

Totally true. About 2 years ago (a little bit less, maybe) I bought a used MB pen from an eBay seller. It came damaged (the cap was broken and the body had several scratches), and when I took it to my local MB Boutique, they sent it to Germany to repair, it was returned to me looking completely new.

Just be sure the seller includes the original certificates of authenticity.

 

[AVBeatMan]

It's arrived and is beautiful. Pen is in perfect condition. Lovely.

 

[AVBeatMan]

It's arrived and is beautiful. Pen is in perfect condition. Lovely. View attachment 633299 View attachment 633300

I don't find it too small either.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

It's arrived and is beautiful. Pen is in perfect condition. Lovely. View attachment 633299 View attachment 633300

I don't find it too small either. View attachment 633303

Oh, bravo. It's gorgeous. I'm delighted for you - you'll have fun. That is exactly the pen I have - and write with daily.

No, I don't think it is too small - and I think you will find it extraordinarily comfortable to write with.

 

[AVBeatMan]

I couldn't get the ink to flow at first. Held the nib under a slight tap and that released the ink. Maybe I should give it a good flush? Seems very clean, looks unused.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I couldn't get the ink to flow at first. Held the nib under a slight tap and that released the ink. Maybe I should give it a good flush? Seems very clean, looks unused.

That should be fine.

However, I would suggest that when you are next in the kind of large city that will have a pen shop of the sort that is also an authorised dealer of Mont Blanc, I'd bring it in to them, explain how you bought it, and ask them to check that everything in it is fine and working as it should. I doubt you would experience any difficulty in getting them to do that; if there is anything wrong that may need tweaking, repairing, replacing, - though I doubt that, looking at the pictures you posted - they would advise you accordingly.

Good luck with it, and enjoy using it and writing with it.

 

[AVBeatMan]

That should be fine.

However, I would suggest that when you are next in the sort of large city that will have a pen shop of the sort that is also an authorised dealer of Mont Blanc, I'd bring it in to them, explain how you bought it, and ask them to check that everything in it is fine and working as it should. I doubt you would experience any difficulty in getting them to do that; if there is anything wrong that may need tweaking, repeating, replacing, - though I doubt that, looking at the pictures you posted - they would advise you accordingly.

Good luck with it, and enjoy using it and writing with it.

Thank you. And will do.

 

[AVBeatMan]

Been doing a little research about authentic and fake Mont Blanc pens. I'm glad to say I'm pretty confident mine is a genuine MB. I was a little worried as I couldn't for the life of me see any serial number on the clip band. I had to take a picture in the correct light with my iPhone, then zoom in on the picture (my eyes are getting old!). Another article said that the cap should "nicely" push home on the pen (it does). Then, and lastly, someone said that if "you hold a strong flashlight up to your pen body or cap, you should see that the resin body material has a deep red coloring and is slightly transparant... thats always been one of the first things I look for on a MB... have yet to see a fake that isn't opaque black plastic." Again, I can see the red hue through the body. Phew! Anyway, a few more pics.

 

[kellen]

Been doing a little research about authentic and fake Mont Blanc pens. I'm glad to say I'm pretty confident mine is a genuine MB.

Depending on the year and model it should say "PIX" under the clip as well. Looks real to me.

 

[AVBeatMan]

Depending on the year and model it should say "PIX" under the clip as well. Looks real to me.

Yeah, I can't see that but read that if it was manufactured in the 80's (I think) it might not have the PIX. Unless I just can't see it?

 

[bunnspecial]

For reluctant starting pens, I've found that gently "tapping" the nib on a sheet of paper several times will usually start them.

As a more extreme measure, a good sharp shake will usually get even the most reluctant pen going. Generally I raise the pen up, then bring it down sharply with an abrupt stop at the end. Just be sure that you a. have a firm grip on the pen and that b. there's nothing/no one/no flooring in the immediate area that will be harmed by a drop of ink.

Cartridge pens that are "dry" are notoriously difficult to start as the entire feed and nib assembly will be dry and you have to wait for those to fill before the pen will write. Tapping and shaking can help dislodge air bubbles that are present and speed the process along. You should find that if you install a new cartridge immediately upon emptying the old one, it should pose no problems. In addition, bottle fillers GENERALLY don't have this problem as ink from the bottle will saturate the feed and more or less act as an ink supply(as in a dip pen) until the reservoir can make its way down.

 

[AVBeatMan]

Forgive me if this has been discussed before but I was just wondering what you all use your lovely fountain pens for? I use mine to write my journal, something I've done since 1978. It's something I enjoy doing and write every day. It's just for me and I don't have any intention of letting anyone else read it. For the last 10 years or so I've used Moleskine.

My journal changes all the time and might be just lists of things I've done or seen, to my own feelings, to thoughts on a subject (this weekend I've been writing about my new Mont Blanc) to plans for the future. I found/find it particularly valuable to read of the time my wife was ill and the time shortly after her death. I'm not sure how it helps but it kind of reminds me of the good times and the bad times and how on earth I got through it with 3 small kids.

I also like to look back over the years, be it one year or 10. It's sometimes funny to discover it was in fact 4 years ago that you did something or visited somewhere when you thought it was only a few months ago!

Anyway, that's me. My journal. What about you?

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Mine is always in use.

On the phone, I take notes - prior to making calls, or when someone phones me.

Professionally, I minute meetings, or take notes at talks that are of interest; or make notes when I am to give a presentation.

Otherwise, I take notes when seeing doctors, or others; make shopping lists. Jot down ideas for articles I may wish to write, or presentations I have to make, or books - of I see a review of a book that intrigues me - and that I may wish to read, all of that is written down..

In other words, everything. My pen is used to write absolutely everything. And yes, diary entries, too.

 

[Ulenspiegel]

One more question. I know that the 144 is a small pen. Do you use it with the cap on top of the pen, making it a little longer?

It is a wonderful Meisterstück from the mid, late 1990s. (I have one in my collection). I use it with the cap as it distributes the weight better.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

It is a wonderful Meisterstück from the mid, late 1990s. (I have one in my collection). I use it with the cap as it distributes the weight better.

Do you use it regularly?

To @Medz1 - it is a lovely pen - I have two, both used regularly: In fact, mine accompanies me everywhere: The thing is, the more you write with it, the more you will enjoy using it and become comfortable and easy and relaxed using it.

 

[Ulenspiegel]

@Scepticalscribe
Yes, S, it is my favorite. And as a fountain pen afficionado you know very well that a pen becomes/writes better and better with years.

P.S.: LOL. Have not read the part of your post addressed to Medz1 containing the same thought. Sorry.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

@Scepticalscribe
Yes, S, it is my favorite. And as a fountain pen afficionado you know very well that a pen becomes/writes better and better with years.

Mine too.

As it happens, I have a number of other (Mont Blanc pens), but that black 144 Meisterstuck is by far my favourite.

And yes, I agree; it does get better and better - and writes better - with the years. I have had my 144 for several years now, and I love it.

 

[AVBeatMan]

It is a wonderful Meisterstück from the mid, late 1990s. (I have one in my collection). I use it with the cap as it distributes the weight better.

Well, so far, after around 48 hours, I been using it without the cap just fine.

I'm a bit weary of using it with the cap on top as my Waterman tends to leak ink into the cap.

 

[Ulenspiegel]

I have been using mine since 1995, no leaks. It's a Montblanc.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Well, so far, after around 48 hours, I been using it without the cap just fine.

I'm a bit weary of using it with the cap on top as my Waterman tends to leak ink into the cap.

Trust me; your Mont Blanc won't do that.

I may have mentioned that I bought a lovely Waterman (in Heathrow around the time of the Millennium), and, while it looked lovely - and was lovely - it never wrote with white the fluency or ease of my Mont Blancs.

Now, to be honest, time for some disclosure : For a very ong time, I had assumed the the hype surrounding Mont Blancs was just that, a degree of hype, the sort that dropped from the lips of those wedded to plutocratic self indulgence.

Then, I inherited one, from an aunt who had died, as no-one else wanted it - and, oddly enough, it was not a fountain pen, but a battered elderly ballpoint (a pen I never use). I was stunned at how well - and easily, and fluently, and effortlessly, - the thing wrote, and how nicely and comfortably balanced it was in my hand.

The thing is, most fountain pens - and I have been writing with them since I was a teenager, - pay less heed to ergonomics than they might; many of them are just not as well made as they might be - some version of this technology has been around now since the late nineteenth century.

What I have found (leave aside the looks, and the brand) is that the Mont Blancs are comfortable, and beautifully balanced when you use them for writing - they just work, and work really well for that for which they were designed.

And yes, I love to use them. And write with them.
[doublepost=1464565277][/doublepost]

I have been using mine since 1995, no leaks. It's a Montblanc.

Exactly. And I agree completely. Just above, I have said the same thing at greater length.

To @Medz1 - it won't leak: Mine never have. Not ever.

 

[cambookpro]

For reluctant starting pens, I've found that gently "tapping" the nib on a sheet of paper several times will usually start them.

As a more extreme measure, a good sharp shake will usually get even the most reluctant pen going. Generally I raise the pen up, then bring it down sharply with an abrupt stop at the end. Just be sure that you a. have a firm grip on the pen and that b. there's nothing/no one/no flooring in the immediate area that will be harmed by a drop of ink.

Cartridge pens that are "dry" are notoriously difficult to start as the entire feed and nib assembly will be dry and you have to wait for those to fill before the pen will write. Tapping and shaking can help dislodge air bubbles that are present and speed the process along. You should find that if you install a new cartridge immediately upon emptying the old one, it should pose no problems. In addition, bottle fillers GENERALLY don't have this problem as ink from the bottle will saturate the feed and more or less act as an ink supply(as in a dip pen) until the reservoir can make its way down.

I've found that a couple of my hard-starting pens were due to 'baby's-bottom' problem, where the nib has been over-smoothed so that a small gap is present where the tines should be flat with the paper. Due to the surface tension of the ink, this leads to them not starting on the first stroke. You can usually see it through a loupe.

Weirdly this seems to happen more often on more expensive pens - a Visconti I tried, an Omas I tried and my Parker Sonnet all had these issues. The Sonnet ended up needing minor adjustment by someone more experienced than me.

Of course, it can also be due to a lack of ink flow, but I've found that if it still occurs whilst fully inked, it's likely to be a nib problem. Just one of those idiosyncrasies which make FPs fun...