Something old, but likely not quite vintage yet.

[jar]

It's been a year or three since I inked up one of my Montblancs; I'm down to one pen inked and have been using it exclusively for a few weeks so it seemed like time to let one out to play for awhile. They were all shouting except one of the smaller ones that just sat quietly in the case, maybe depressed because the bigger pens always got more play time.

Perhaps I sympathized with the little guy since I was always the one chosen last when growing up, often even after all the girls were chosen and the doggies and once after the other team chose "that fence post over there" so out it came and I inked it up with an ink that also seems to have a complex and not able to decide what color it really was, Noodler's Zhivago.

You can see the little guy on the far right in this picture.


http://www.fototime.com/C7697AAA46FD813/large.jpg


It's one of my older 146s, likely made sometime in the 50s or 60s and an export model, with Masterpiece instead of Meisterstück. The pen is made from celluloid and as you can see from the picture slightly shorter than the modern 146 Legrand.


http://www.fototime.com/04199A28D619309/medium800.jpg


It is fitted with a 14C two tone nib:


http://www.fototime.com/73F15427EABC9C8/medium800.jpg


and the early ebonite ski-slope feed:


http://www.fototime.com/472831A94BC75B1/large.jpg


it's moderately wet and has some flex, the old lined inkview window and the Snowcap has the classic yellow tint of old celluloid:


http://www.fototime.com/9D074A91313941A/standard.jpg


so I used it for a day, filled several pages in one of my journals and gotta admit, it's as nice as I remembered.


http://www.fototime.com/1320C9DAEEF7B90/medium800.jpg



http://www.fototime.com/E738BA9DDED3C42/medium800.jpg

[jar]

It's interesting to compare the Montblanc 146 with some contemporary pens. In the 50s when this pen was made it sold for 54 Deutschmarks, about $13.00 US.


http://www.fototime.com/B39E41FD6107EAA/xlarge.jpg


That was a little less than the price of the entry level Sheaffer White Dot Snorkel of the same period that sold for 15.50 US and just slightly more than the open nib non-White Dot models.

The 149 sold for a little less than the Sheaffer Crest Snorkels.

[fountainpenkid]

And what is ironic is that the Meiserstruks are now worth multitudes more than that once top-of the-line crest snorkel...lol!

[jar]

And what is ironic is that the Meiserstruks are now worth multitudes more than that once top-of the-line crest snorkel...lol!

Yes, but that is also partly due to supply. Sheaffer made a BUNCH of snorkels while at the time, MB was a relatively small player in the world of fountain pens. I may see a half dozen fifties Montblancs show up for sale every year but literally thousands of snorkels. That's partly attributable to the robustness of the Sheaffer pens from that era but it's also just plain volume.

Marketing also played a part and perhaps if Sheaffer had continued to be marketed like MB the situation would be different.

[CS388]

Nice review. Thanks.

Finally got one of these - well, finally own one. (It's currently on it's way from Germany to the UK)
It's been a lo-ong search. Years, in fact. Not that rare, but getting the right pen at the right price took the time.
Fully expecting to be disappointed, having built up my expectations over this time - but fingers secretly crossed for a gem.

Thanks.

[jar]

Nice review. Thanks.

Finally got one of these - well, finally own one. (It's currently on it's way from Germany to the UK)
It's been a lo-ong search. Years, in fact. Not that rare, but getting the right pen at the right price took the time.
Fully expecting to be disappointed, having built up my expectations over this time - but fingers secretly crossed for a gem.

Thanks.


That's great. Be sure to let us know when it gets home.

[cedargirl]

It's been a year or three since I inked up one of my Montblancs; I'm down to one pen inked and have been using it exclusively for a few weeks so it seemed like time to let one out to play for awhile. They were all shouting except one of the smaller ones that just sat quietly in the case, maybe depressed because the bigger pens always got more play time.

Perhaps I sympathized with the little guy since I was always the one chosen last when growing up, often even after all the girls were chosen and the doggies and once after the other team chose "that fence post over there" so out it came and I inked it up with an ink that also seems to have a complex and not able to decide what color it really was, Noodler's Zhivago.

You can see the little guy on the far right in this picture.



Wow some nice pens. Excuse my ignorance, but what's the triangular pen in the middle?

[jar]

That's a standard size OMAS 360.

AbE:

Here it is next to the smaller Mezzo version. The Standard is a piston filler while the Mezzo is cartridge.

http://www.fototime.com/2353D1E9E0DC7A4/medium800.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/47D0BA14B0F56AE/medium800.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/4644364D6F0B601/medium800.jpg

[cedargirl]

Thanks.

Interesting pen. I know nothing about Omas pens - clearly.
I'll have to investigate.