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Mont Blanc pens


DUNKS
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Hi anybody got one? Are they really any better than normal pens or just a status symbol. What makes a biro worth £350?

 My dermatology consultant has the £750 fountain pen and I have written with it. It's nice but £750?

I would like to get my granddaughter an unusual present for getting her Masters degree and was considering a pen. What are your thoughts?

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I have two MB rollerball pens - when you have to sign a document with a client its not big and clever to use a BIC biro to sign off tens of thousands of business (a bit like the guy that turns up in the customer car park driving a Fiat 500 when his/her competitors are in BMW/Audi/Mercs - will the perception of the other person go against you)

I bought both from ebay "used - nearly new condition" for about £100 each - I only bought the second 'cos I lost the first and then found it again (didnt bother claiming)

I think they are smoother to write with and better ergonomically than many pens BUT the first one I bought and lost is much more comfortable (for me) than the second which is a tiny bit skinier and depending on the thickness and colour of the refil it really improves the readability of my scrawl

I also think a lot of the newer ones are too fat and ugly (pot kettle) for my liking

Notwithstanding "losing" the first pen for a while you also tend to take care of a MB pen

BEWARE - there are fake everythings on ebay so make sure what you are buying is legit - I never buy refils from ebay always a proper high street jeweller they are not that expensive anyway.

D

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I have a few fountain pens and just feel there is something about writing with them. I always used to sign my business correspondence with one, black ink. Still use one for my sporting diary and private letters. You do have to be satisfied that it has a smooth writing nib.

Have a look at the Parker 75 ciselle in sterling silver. They are a lovely pen, feel good and are nice and slim. You can get the equivalent ball pen or pencil at around £150-200. I do feel it is something she will treasure.

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Fountain pen is great if your handwriting is good or better and there are many top makes similar to MB but it's a personal taste, however, any pen over £30 is it feels nice to 'you' is worth it. . . . there are also many offers if you look around but remember to price the refills too

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I love a fountain pen, but a very good friend who i served with bought me a leather journal with our Corps cypher on and a Mount Blanc pen last year, I thought it was going to be a bit "fat" for me but i have to say it is a joy to write with it flows so smoothly.

PXL_20210429_172852181.jpg

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I have several fountain pens including 2 Mont Blancs.  Personally, I think they are grossly over rated.  You can get much better pens for less money.  Picture shows a couple of Mont Blanc fountain pens, couple of ball points and a pencil.

Two much nicer (in my opinion) Parker 51s from the 1950s are also shown, a 'Flighter' (which is in stainless steel) and a gold plated one.

336466FF-7B3E-4A2B-9FBE-9CA865452FE7_1_105_c.jpeg

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Just now, MirokuMK70 said:

Undeniably the most stylish writing implement  ever made.

Write beautifully as well.  I had one my mother had that had a broken barrel (dropped?) that I used for years in my school days and I can't remember what happened to it.  The ones I have now were bought second hand some years ago.

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5 hours ago, DUNKS said:

I would like to get my granddaughter an unusual present for getting her Masters degree and was considering a pen. What are your thoughts?

My thoughts are that you should first ensure that your grand daughter even enjoys writing with a fountain pen. 
Some people love it, others can’t wait to chuck theirs in the bin as soon as they leave school and write with a ball point or a pencil like a normal person.

If she’s just finished her masters she’ll have spent the last few months slaving over a keyboard, not doing much hand writing

5 hours ago, Downforce said:

 when you have to sign a document with a client its not big and clever to use a BIC biro to sign off tens of thousands of business (a bit like the guy that turns up in the customer car park driving a Fiat 500 when his/her competitors are in BMW/Audi/Mercs - will the perception of the other person go against you)

Can I ask which industry you work in? Profilagcy like that tends to not to go down well in my little corner of the engineering world.

 

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Hi I asked and got a Mont Blanc Rollerball when leaving a job! it was a good choice

that was over 29 years ago I use it for important signings when I want to make an impression lol

if you get one (btw much more useable than the ink pen) use MB refills more choice as to size of nib as well as colour of ink

cheers

gdadphil 

 

ps there are bona fide traders in MB pens eg https://www.dylanstephenpens.co.uk/?s=mont+blanc

 

Edited by gdadphil
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11 hours ago, udderlyoffroad said:

My thoughts are that you should first ensure that your grand daughter even enjoys writing with a fountain pen. 
Some people love it, others can’t wait to chuck theirs in the bin as soon as they leave school and write with a ball point or a pencil like a normal person.

If she’s just finished her masters she’ll have spent the last few months slaving over a keyboard, not doing much hand writing

Can I ask which industry you work in? Profilagcy like that tends to not to go down well in my little corner of the engineering world.

 

Profilagcy  - Hmmm.... Just to clarify - I personally dont give a toss, some people spend their money on their kids schooling, some people spend their money on their house, clothes, pets, pens, watches, designer handbags, holidays, (guns?) and I dont think it's my place to put my values on what someone else does, unless they winge to me that they have no money and they seem to have spent lots on something random (like an x-box or a piece of art) - but it's clear to me that managers in IT and procurement roles absolutely do have a certain expectation that a professional person will act, dress in a certan way and drive a certain range of cars. I'll explain why...

I have a good friend (IT Contractor) that bought himself a used newish Jag when he got told he was going to need to work at a different site and had to travel about 200 miles a day if they extended his contract and he argued that he would need to buy a new car if he was doing huge mileage and the IT Manager that signed off his 12m contract sacked him on the spot when he saw him arrive in a nearly new Jag, and confided to an admin assistant later he wasnt prepared to have anyone who worked for him have a better car than he had. Thats pretty narrow minded. Reminds me of the Monty Python/Two Ronnies "I know my place" sketch.

That said I dont think the point I was trying to make is specific to industry, it was more about being predjudiced based on a small view of someone else (and to be fair that is an instinctive thing humans do) - I personally know a builder that went bust after buying himself a historic RR for about £5K and everyone stopped using him, presumably because they thought he was charging too much, which is a poor assessment.

I have also had the heated discussion about what represents value - I bought a (very expensive at the time) watch in 1980s/90s and its still on my wrist now despite having owned others since I love that watch, it's excellent at keeping time and very comfortable - so its cost me about £20 a year to buy it - is it better to buy throw away plastic watches every 6-12m ? I dont think so I'd rather buy something I really like and keep it.

Back to the original question - is a good expensive (fountain/rollerball) pen something she will cherish for years - depends on the person in question but I would think probably.

D

Edited by Downforce
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What I really wanted was opinions on the quality of the MB pens. I think I can sort out whether it would be a suitable gift or not. She has just finished nine years of UnI getting various teaching degrees Now has her masters in Psychology and has her own brand new office to practice in. Yes a pen would be a welcome present.

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Just now, DUNKS said:

What I really wanted was opinions on the quality of the MB pens. I think I can sort out whether it would be a suitable gift or not. She has just finished nine years of UnI getting various teaching degrees Now has her masters in Psychology and has her own brand new office to practice in. Yes a pen would be a welcome present.

That made me chuckle!

Yes, a decent quality pen would be something to treasure and to remember you and your wife.

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I’m a good pen fan, and think they make excellent gifts. I bought my OH and daughter expensive fountain pens in Venice. They love them, although my daughter doesn’t do a great deal of writing nowadays. 
I still have my Dads Parker fountain pen he was given as a 25 years service present back in the 1970’s. 
As for the ‘dress to impress’ debate, I can see the reasoning behind it, but only if the quality and professionalism lives up to that image. 
A mate of mine ( whom I often subbed to ) designed and manufactured bespoke solid wood fitted kitchens and furniture. He is a multi millionaire now, but even as a wealthy bloke back then he would often turn up in his battered Transit van and price a job on the back of his fag packet! If clients hadn’t already seen his work elswhere I doubt they would have been impressed. 😀

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8 minutes ago, Downforce said:

IT Manager that signed off his 12m contract sacked him on the spot when he saw him arrive in a nearly new Jag, and confided to an admin assistant later he wasnt prepared to have anyone who worked for him have a better car than he had.

Your mate got off lightly.  That's the kind of narrow-minded ****knuckle you definitely do not want as a boss.

I agree with most of what you say - I suppose by profligacy I was more referring to all these Identikit Over-priced repmobiles  you alluded to (Audi/BMW/Merc) in primer gray or black that for some reason sales and marketing types assume confer status.  No, they tend to confirm you're willing to pay an extortionate lease or lose your shirt as they depreciate faster than a parked 747, with similar maintenance costs.

And yes, of course we all spend money on things others consider frivolous - guns especially. 

There was a thread on here recently about game bags, and people seemed to be trying to outdo each other as to who could spend more on a fancy stitched piece of leather, that, after all, carries dead things which invariably leak blood, feathers and fur.  My £7.99 special off ebay can be wiped clean and comfortably holds as many bunnies as I'm willing to carry.

5 minutes ago, Scully said:

He is a multi millionaire now, but even as a wealthy bloke back then he would often turn up in his battered Transit van and price a job on the back of his fag packet!

I too have worked for a successful builder who operated like that.  Not quite fag-packet, in fact I think a lot of what set him apart was precisely his ability/vision to price up complex jobs and come in on time/budget.

Back on-topic....

12 minutes ago, DUNKS said:

Yes a pen would be a welcome present.

Excellent.  Have seen fancy pens being given as gifts and barely appreciated.

But then my writing instrument of choice is a Pental 'Graphgear 1000' in 0.5mm calibre, so I will restrain from further heathen comments and let the PW penophiles give their insights 😁

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17 minutes ago, DUNKS said:

What I really wanted was opinions on the quality of the MB pens.

Based on the ones I have pictured above - quality is OK, but value for money not all that good - much must be spent on brand image advertising. 

There was a quality issue - they were/are made of what they call 'precious resin'.  Not quite sure what it actually is  - but when I had my first one (1980s?) - it was notoriously prone (Google will confirm) to cracking - and my first was replaced due to a crack.  I think that applied more to older pens.  I believe there are much better value 'high end' fountain pens around, but it depends on what 'style' you like.  Parker, Lamy, Pelican, Faber Castell and many others all make high grade pens.

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1 hour ago, udderlyoffroad said:

No, they tend to confirm you're willing to pay an extortionate lease

 

Ironically my wife's brand new black Audi A5 (delivered a week or two before lockdown - DOH!) was chosen specifically because she needed to travel to customer sites and not offend the sensitive greener customers with her previous car Land Rover Discovery 3.0 SDV. That said, at £199pm its going to take a lot of lease monthly charges to catch up with the last £3K service of the Disco when the inlet manifold had cracked.

 

This section is "Off Topic" isnt it 😉 ?

Seems the consensus of everyone that loves MB is they are good but (probably too) expensive, but get one she likes MB or otherwise I'd say the big decision is fountain pen vs. rollerball.

D

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Have a read on some own forums for what is good. Then buy her one.

There is a great hack for a certain mont blanc roller ball cartridge with a much cheaper but nicer to hold pen.  I forget what it is now.

I don't for one minute think because your signing contracts you need a super expensive pen. A nice looking pen will do the job fine and not look scruffy or embarrassing.

If mont blanc is your thing great, I've never been one to follow the status symbol train of thought. Though I do agree it's horses for courses to a point. You wear a suit to a wedding or funeral, using the appropriate writing instrument is only right, as to cost, that's a different matter.

 

Just to add Dunks it's a gift that will mean more than just a pen to her. 

It's also a gift that she will remember of you when she uses it.

My mother in law bought me some lovely unusual gifts from a ceramic trinket box with a with Winston Churchill painting on that I love, to a nice cross pen I only use when writing in my shooting journal or gamebook. When used fondly remembered. 

Edited by figgy
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