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View Full Version : Help me identify a Montblanc model no.



set2374
September 12th, 2014, 02:57 PM
I received a Montblanc rollberball pen as a birthday gift from a client a while ago. I was not really interested in pens. The box and papers disappeared after a move, so now I have no idea which model it is and I don't recall how much it cost (or what it is worth today). I never really liked the pen much because it didn't post firmly and the cap would fly off the pen. I found too small to comfortably write with unposted, so it has been a box queen most of its life. I would like to sell it at some point, but I have no idea how to price it. I brought the pen to the MB boutique on Long Island a month ago. It was an underwhelming experience to say the least. The sales people seemed to know more about (and were more interested in) selling watches, leather goods and jewelry than pens. I wanted to try out a starwalker with a fine nib. They didn't have any starwalker testers, so the salesperson gave me a 146 fine and told me it wrote the same (just as all MB's do--so he claimed). I am hardly an expert, but it doesn't take a fountain pen guru to see the nibs are completely different. Sorry for digressing, but these geniuses could not tell me what the reference number and apparently didn't have the ability to look it up by its serial number. Hell, what's the hell is the purpose of having the reference no. on the clip then if they can't use it to authenticate the pen and tell me what model it is???

Based on the serial number, it looks like it was made in 2006 (but I don't have a loupe handy) so I might be reading it wrong. I tried to get it in the pictures, but I wasn't having much luck with my Nexus 5 camera. When I have a loupe later today, I'll see if if I can give you the rest of the serial number. Here are the pictures:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-xdYqfGAURts/VBNSqTSSqOI/AAAAAAAAtR0/d-52gpkyhbw/s800/IMG_20140912_160126.jpg
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-0CEAvCfvUlE/VBNSnNhVdjI/AAAAAAAAtRY/I9WOwsIHPsg/s800/IMG_20140912_160224.jpg
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-FYPXwVwx0WI/VBNShLIsmlI/AAAAAAAAtSg/PsVnXO6GXQ8/s800/IMG_20140912_160431.jpg
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-gMloGKCYg1s/VBNSP4oe_lI/AAAAAAAAtSo/BMhKYE_Fur4/s800/%255BUNSET%255D.jpg

Hopefully one of you MB maestros can help me figure out what I have sitting in my box.

set2374
September 12th, 2014, 03:10 PM
F--k me. I just got a loupe and it's serial number XY2006108. I just looked googled the serial number and, guess what??? It's a fake!!!! Man!!!! That sucks!!! I was hoping to sell it and get a MB 146. Now, I have a pen that's worth $10, which I guess is the value of the real MB cartridge that I put in it a year ago. No ref. no. needed now and, yes, now I feel like a true idiot myself. I guess I am now qualified to work for my local MB boutique.

jar
September 12th, 2014, 03:36 PM
Yup, has many of the hallmarks of a fake. One key is the crude bend and finish of the clip. That serial number was even used on other versions of the roller ball.

BUT... the serial numbers on an MB don't tell the user very much and even for Montblanc they have only limited value. A serial number (newer fakes use serial numbers that change) is not much use when it comes to authentication. Knowledge and known samples for comparison are your best help.

mmahany
September 12th, 2014, 04:43 PM
It's actually a pretty good fake. I have the exact same model (although authentic) and it's fairly accurate.

The most obvious sign it's a replica (at least for me) is the fact that it's too shiny. Unless you never use the pen and still polish it every day, an authentic sterling silver pen is going to dull over time. I have five sterling silver Montblanc pens and no matter how hard I try none of them are going to look that presentable.

set2374
September 12th, 2014, 11:38 PM
It's actually a pretty good fake. I have the exact same model (although authentic) and it's fairly accurate.

The most obvious sign it's a replica (at least for me) is the fact that it's too shiny. Unless you never use the pen and still polish it every day, an authentic sterling silver pen is going to dull over time. I have five sterling silver Montblanc pens and no matter how hard I try none of them are going to look that presentable.

I would love to see a picture of the genuine article. For silver findings and any non-plated metal with polished finish, I like to use cape cod cloth for a quick swipe followed followed by a good rub down with a micro-fiber cloth. I takes the tarnish off in seconds without damaginw surrounding material. Work the process a little longer and you can take out scratches too. I use it all the time on my watches. :-)

mmahany
September 13th, 2014, 09:45 AM
I don't have the pen with me here in my office, but I found an old picture on my photobucket. Sorry it's not better quality. Hopefully, the picture is good enough to see the pattern on the barrel which is much more subtle. From memory, the serial number is much more precise on the clip as well.

I'll try to remember to take better pictures when I'm back at my house, but this was the best I could do for now.


http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b186/mmahany/montblancsterlingsilver163_zpsc0438625.jpg (http://s19.photobucket.com/user/mmahany/media/montblancsterlingsilver163_zpsc0438625.jpg.html)

Sailor Kenshin
September 13th, 2014, 10:23 AM
F--k me. I just got a loupe and it's serial number XY2006108. I just looked googled the serial number and, guess what??? It's a fake!!!! Man!!!! That sucks!!! I was hoping to sell it and get a MB 146. Now, I have a pen that's worth $10, which I guess is the value of the real MB cartridge that I put in it a year ago. No ref. no. needed now and, yes, now I feel like a true idiot myself. I guess I am now qualified to work for my local MB boutique.


O noz....

No reason, though, for you to feel like an idiot. How were you to know? The people at the boutique, well, maybe.

KBeezie
September 13th, 2014, 11:08 AM
F--k me. I just got a loupe and it's serial number XY2006108. I just looked googled the serial number and, guess what??? It's a fake!!!! Man!!!! That sucks!!! I was hoping to sell it and get a MB 146. Now, I have a pen that's worth $10, which I guess is the value of the real MB cartridge that I put in it a year ago. No ref. no. needed now and, yes, now I feel like a true idiot myself. I guess I am now qualified to work for my local MB boutique.


O noz....

No reason, though, for you to feel like an idiot. How were you to know? The people at the boutique, well, maybe.

Course I seem to notice a trend that people receiving pens as a "gift" especially from a Client, that the pens end up being fake usually. Just like the Starwalker the other day that someone said they received from a neighbor for work they had done.

set2374
September 13th, 2014, 04:33 PM
This client was someone I had done work for and didn't charge them. This was a thank you/birthday gift. For all I know, they paid full price from a scammer on the bay. Oh well,..... At least I didn't buy it. I'll wait for a nice 146 to pop up on the sales board for a fair price. ;-). That will be my first real Montblanc.

Chrissy
September 25th, 2014, 03:42 PM
Sorry that you received a fake for work done/birthday. There are lots of them around.

There are likely to be more around on the run up to Christmas so please be careful out there.