Montblanc 149 Broad Nib Concern

[rickap]

Hi,

For those of you who have a 149 with a broad nib, does that nib have a sweet spot? Is it finicky about writing position?

I've got a Montblanc 149, Rose Gold, with a broad nib I received about six weeks ago. I filled it with Montblanc Le Petit Prince Rose Burgundy ink. It wrote a wide line vertically and very narrow horizontally and was moderately wet. After writing out the nib saturation it started skipping on up strokes and left to right strokes and would not make dots for punctuation. I looked at it with a 20x loop and saw baby's bottom. I tried Montblanc Midnight Blue ink and had the same result.

I sent it in for repair and got it back yesterday. The nib looks like it is new with the same grind as the first minus the baby's bottom. The tine gap is prominent to the tip and the flow is heavier that before. But the same problem appears after writing out the nib saturation from filling: it skips on up strokes and left to right strokes and won't make dots.

I've tried different writing angles and some help for a little while but the skipping returns.

So again, for those of you with this nib, do they have a sweet spot I need to find, are they this finicky?

Thanks,
Rick

[bunnspecial]

I've had 149 broad, BB, OB, and OBB nibs from the 1960s, 2010s, and ages in-between. If I only owned a single 149, it would be a B nib.


First of all, all of these nibs are ground with a bit of stubbiness. How much can vary from nib-to-nib, but it's there in all the B and larger 149 nibs.

I don't really notice a "sweet spot" on any of mine, but I've had others use mine and claim that they did or otherwise find them finicky.

I know this is sort of a non-answer, but I suspect that either my natural writing angle is suits them well, or perhaps alternatively I've written with them enough that I tend to just hold them in a way that they work.

Do note also that with the stubbier grinds, you will get directional line variation as you've noticed, and again this depends on the specific nib.

[rickap]

Hi bunnspecial,

Thanks for the reply and the feedback. It helps.

Thinking more about this the skipping usually starts after writing a couple of lines. The ink flow is very wet, too wet, it bleeds through really good paper other pens do not bleed through. I'm still not decided but it may go back for another look.

Again, I appreciate your feedback.

Thanks,
Rick

[Chrissy]

I have a BB nib in mine that I bought second hand and although I haven't written with it very much I don't find it finicky. It writes wet.
As bunnspecial says all of their broad nibs are ground quite stubbish so the writing angle may play a part in your problem if it doesn't line up with the stub grind very well.

When you say you sent it for repair it sounds like you sent it back to Montblanc as you received back what looks like a new nib. If you're in the US then that would probably be dealt with by the "MyJeweleryRepair" company. If you decide you have to send it back again I suggest you estimate your writing angle between hand and paper, and whether you write with your arm and wrist straight or something else and tell them those details. With a stub or stubbish nib the writing angle needs to be approximately matched with yours.

[rickap]

Hi Chrissy,

Thanks for the information. I appreciate all the help.

What I'm finding is the nib is not sensitive to angle, as in up and down, but it is sensitive to rotational angle. With the nib square on the paper it works fine but it does skip some. Rotating it to the right, clockwise, any amount and it just stops, period. It is more tolerant to rotating to the left, counter-clockwise. There's no skipping when going from letter to letter without lifting the pen. The skipping happens after the nib has been lifted to begin a new word, especially with an up- or side-stroke. It also happens when dotting an I or crossing a t, both of which require the nib to be lifted off the paper.

I feel more and more like this is the nib/feed, and not my writing grip. My point right now is whether to send it back for another service or send it back for a nib swap to a medium nib.

I'll keep this updated with what I decide and how it turns out.

Thanks,
Rick

[Chrissy]

Maybe try a different Montblanc ink if you have one? Merely the act of flushing it out and removing any traces of machine oil that might be left on the nib or feed might correct the problem.

[rickap]

The first thing I did when I got the pan back was a flush. I filled it with Montblanc Le Petit Prince Rose Burgundy. I've flushed it again and filled with Montblanc Midnight Blue and after writing out the nib saturation the skipping is back.

I appreciate all the help but this is going back for more work with a detailed description of the problem. I'm sure it will work out fine but Montblanc/MJR needs to do a little more work on it.

Thanks,
Rick

[bunnspecial]

My sympathies on having to deal with MJR again.

My 146C is all but unusable, but I have low confidence in their ability to even recognize a problem(as it does fine for 1-2 lines) much less fix it if they do see the issue. Sending it to someone who actually knows and understands nibs for repair likely won’t be much more expensive than sending it to them.

The fact that we are on the hook for ~$60 round trip shipping for warranty repairs is quite troubling to me. I would say I’s be reluctant to buy a new MB, but then I’d have to eat my words as I bought one last week(although from a retailer in Germany)

[maddington]

I had a 149 Calligraphy which had issues, too. It skipped and definitely had a sweet spot. Kirk Speer from Pen Realm came in and tuned it beautifully. Voila. Now it writes perfectly.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Chrissy]

My sympathies on having to deal with MJR again.

My 146C is all but unusable, but I have low confidence in their ability to even recognize a problem(as it does fine for 1-2 lines) much less fix it if they do see the issue. Sending it to someone who actually knows and understands nibs for repair likely won’t be much more expensive than sending it to them.

The fact that we are on the hook for ~$60 round trip shipping for warranty repairs is quite troubling to me. I would say I’s be reluctant to buy a new MB, but then I’d have to eat my words as I bought one last week(although from a retailer in Germany)
This sounds troubling to me too and I would be very unhappy if I bought a brand new pen from Montblanc and even had to spend $60 once to actually try to get it to write properly. :( That comes under Quality Control and should happen automatically when it's made and before it ever leaves Montblanc.

[bunnspecial]

My sympathies on having to deal with MJR again.

My 146C is all but unusable, but I have low confidence in their ability to even recognize a problem(as it does fine for 1-2 lines) much less fix it if they do see the issue. Sending it to someone who actually knows and understands nibs for repair likely won’t be much more expensive than sending it to them.

The fact that we are on the hook for ~$60 round trip shipping for warranty repairs is quite troubling to me. I would say I’s be reluctant to buy a new MB, but then I’d have to eat my words as I bought one last week(although from a retailer in Germany)
This sounds troubling to me too and I would be very unhappy if I bought a brand new pen from Montblanc and even had to spend $60 once to actually try to get it to write properly. :( That comes under Quality Control and should happen automatically when it's made and before it ever leaves Montblanc.

Still haven't taken care of it and I'm not sure what I'm going to do on it...but yeah the whole service situation in the US honestly makes me think twice about buying anything now.

At least with the Italic Edge I just bought, I'd not be surprised if Fritz Schimpf tested my pen before they sent it out to me. There was a letter addressed to me in the box pretty obviously written with an Italic Edge nib. It was a lovely burgundy colored ink(probably one of Fritz Schimpf's house brand inks), and I saw the same color ink on a paper towel that I used to clean condensation off the nib. Of course too for what those pens cost and the fact that they only made 100 of them, I'd have expected Montblanc to get them perfect before sending them to Fritz Schimpf.

Still, though, even though the Italic Edge was ~1.4x the cost of a regular 149, none of these are exactly inexpensive pens. The Calligraphy nibs are also made in much lower volume than the standard 146 or 149 nibs, and the pens carry a $100 or so premium...

[noahenholm]

If you are looking for inexpensive dip pen nibs (https://artltdmag.com/best-calligraphy-nibs/) for writing, this Trustela calligraphy nib set should be a good choice. It comes complete with 18 different dip pen nibs with different styles and sizes that offer more flexibility and variety.

[rickap]

An in-progress update.

I sent the pen back to the service center. They have ordered a new nib from Germany.

This has happened to me twice now and to me the problem is Montblanc, not the service center. I bought 149 in 2019 from a reputable retailer and it was very scratchy. I sent it to Fort Worth and it came back worse than when I sent it in. I sent it back to them and they ordered a new nib. It's been fine since. Same with my current 149 with broad nib except I don't have it back yet. So the problem is the nibs coming from Montblanc and not the service center. Two in a row at that price is in unacceptable territory.

More to follow....

Rick

[Chrissy]

Thank you for the update. :) Just out of interest is MJR charging you for shipping both ways for both of these repairs/replacements?
After all this is a brand new and under warranty pen.

[rickap]

Thank you for the update. :) Just out of interest is MJR charging you for shipping both ways for both of these repairs/replacements?
After all this is a brand new and under warranty pen.

No. I was only charged for shipping for the first trip. They sent prepaid shipping for the second, just like the Fort Worth repair center did in 2019.

Rick

[Chrissy]

Thanks. Good to know. :) :thumb:

[rickap]

Final Update.

I got the pen back from MJR. They replaced the nib this time, not the first visit as I thought. They told me they had to order it from Germany.

The skipping problem is gone. The new nib fixed it.

This nib is sensitive to rotation. It tolerates some right rotation but left rotation causes it to stop writing. I have a tendency to rotate the nib as I write but with careful, determined writing this one is working fine.

Thanks for all the tips and suggestions above. They did help.

I point at Montblanc on this. MJR did what they could given a problem nib from Montblanc. This is the second I've had and for the cost of the pens the nib problems are very disappointing.

Once again, thanks for the help.

Rick

[rickap]

I spoke too soon on the final update in October. The pen started skipping again. It would skip after writing out the ink saturation in the feed, once the feed started getting ink from the reservoir. It would skip after lifting the nib from the paper to start a new word or to add punctuation. It went back to My Jewelry Repair a third time. They replaced a consumable and sent it back. It still skipped and it hard started as well. I finally got with Montblanc about it and they were unable to do anything about the repair. I requested a refund, returned the pen and received the refund.

Thanks,
Rick

[Chrissy]

Good to hear that you finally got a refund. :)

[FredRydr]

What a sad state of affairs for such a venerable brand (venerable until Richemont got hold of it).

[mikeycpa]

What a sad state of affairs for such a venerable brand (venerable until Richemont got hold of it).

What specifically did Richemont do wrong? Besides the point, I had clients that worked there out of the Coral Gables office that were fired. One was with Cartier, one with MB and one with Baumé Mercier. They thought they were doing well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[mikeycpa]

CHANGED TO NEW THREAD

[dr_kevy]

No. A Mb nib should not skip.

Ask for a new nib unit or change the width. Your AD should be accomodating.

MB customer service can be atrocious from the service centre. I suspect training and culture. Even the AD manager bemoaned their lack of professionalism for a luxury brand. Especially as clients shoot the messenger when head office or service centre is being obtuse.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk