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Thread: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authentic?

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    Default Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authentic?

    Hi all,
    I received a Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen as a gift and despite the official-looking box and certificate, there is no retailer stamp or ID # in the certificate. Attached is an image where the clip ID is as well as a photo of the nib and I was wondering if someone with experience could give me some insight if they believe it to be authentic? It seems like on some of the retail websites where they have images of this pen there is an area in the body where you can see the ink level, whereas the body of my pen has no transparent region to see the ink level. Also, the pen itself doesn't feel that heavy which I would expect from a Montblanc. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks.

    IMG_1750.JPGIMG_1749.JPG

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    There is no way to tell if that is authentic based on the pictures.

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    The serial number hasn't been duplicated so that's a good start, and the nib doesn't look like an obvious fake. However, we can't tell whether it's a 146 Le Grand from those pictures. We would need to see the whole pen

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by Chrissy View Post
    and the nib doesn't look like an obvious fake.
    Yep. I'd actually go a little further. The nib looks authentic to me.

    I haven't kept up with the counterfeiter's capabilities, however. Is this a piston filled pen? Have they succeeded in making counterfeit piston-filled LeGrands?
    --
    Mike

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    I wasn't 100% certain if I wanted to go that far. I have heard that piston filling pens have been faked but I've never seen a fake pen with a Montblanc style piston. In fact I've never seen a photo of one either.

    I have a feeling this pen will turn out to be either a 147 or a 145 C/C.....

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by mhosea View Post
    Have they succeeded in making counterfeit piston-filled LeGrands?
    Yes and also fake 149s that are piston filled and even transparent so you can see the full piston.

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    The cap appears to be from a Starwalker series while the nib seems to be from a Meisterstück .

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Thanks for all these replies to my post.

    It is piston-filled pen and after doing some more research I think if authentic it would be under the Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Classique (Classique as it is slimmer and lighter weight and also doesn't have the transparent area to see the ink level) as seen here: http://www.fahrneyspens.com/Item--i-105977S

    I think the Le Grand (not Classique) version from this family of pens is bigger and has the transparent portion of the body to see the ink level. http://www.fahrneyspens.com/Item--i-105973S

    I am a bit more reassured it is authentic but will probably take it to a local pen shop that has a certified Mont Blanc section to ask if real. Thanks again for all the help.

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by fp525 View Post
    Thanks for all these replies to my post.

    It is piston-filled pen and after doing some more research I think if authentic it would be under the Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Classique (Classique as it is slimmer and lighter weight and also doesn't have the transparent area to see the ink level) as seen here: http://www.fahrneyspens.com/Item--i-105977S

    I think the Le Grand (not Classique) version from this family of pens is bigger and has the transparent portion of the body to see the ink level. http://www.fahrneyspens.com/Item--i-105973S

    I am a bit more reassured it is authentic but will probably take it to a local pen shop that has a certified Mont Blanc section to ask if real. Thanks again for all the help.

    The Classique series in not piston filled but rather a Cartridge/Converter filled pen.

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by jar View Post
    The cap appears to be from a Starwalker series while the nib seems to be from a Meisterstück .
    The cap looks like a typical Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond series cap.

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by fp525 View Post
    Thanks for all these replies to my post.

    It is piston-filled pen and after doing some more research I think if authentic it would be under the Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Classique (Classique as it is slimmer and lighter weight and also doesn't have the transparent area to see the ink level) as seen here: http://www.fahrneyspens.com/Item--i-105977S

    I think the Le Grand (not Classique) version from this family of pens is bigger and has the transparent portion of the body to see the ink level. http://www.fahrneyspens.com/Item--i-105973S

    I am a bit more reassured it is authentic but will probably take it to a local pen shop that has a certified Mont Blanc section to ask if real. Thanks again for all the help.
    It's as I suspected the 145 or Classic (not 144 Classique) model if it has the band in the centre, and unscrews there to take either a converter or a cartridge. That isn't the same as a piston filler. The 146 or Le Grand has an inbuilt permanent piston that you operate by turning the end cone of the barrel, and an ink view window in the barrel. Once you mentioned that as missing, it tended to rule out the possibility of it being a 146 Le Grand.

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by Chrissy View Post
    Once you mentioned that as missing, it tended to rule out the possibility of it being a 146 Le Grand.
    Right. Not that any more evidence on that score is needed, but the taper on the grip section looks too severe for the 146 family.
    --
    Mike

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Sorry, I am new to fountain pens - I misspoke when I said it is piston-filled; there is a cartridge converter with Montblanc insignia inside. Is it okay to use the nib dunked in ink and twist the converter to draw ink into the reservoir?

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by Chrissy View Post
    I wasn't 100% certain if I wanted to go that far.
    I know what you mean. They've had the pattern down for awhile now, but getting the stamping to look right on steel when it's supposed to be gold is, I think, not a trivial thing to do on the cheap. Usually they end up looking more shallow, and I don't mean the ones that are obviously laser etched rather than stamped (those are easy). Obviously if it's plated steel, then the plating is actually inverted, with the platinum plating being no plating on the fake. Unplated stainless steel is a subtly different color than platinum or rhodium plating, but this can be hard to evaluate in photo, obviously. Cheap two-tone nibs often have sloppy boundaries (hard to color inside the lines), but unfortunately, one cannot count on the genuine nibs to be be perfect.

    I'm sure they could make formidably accurate nib copies if they'd just resort to using genuine gold and comparable plating. But I think that would raise the manufacturing cost by a few tens of dollars, at least.
    --
    Mike

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by fp525 View Post
    Sorry, I am new to fountain pens - I misspoke when I said it is piston-filled; there is a cartridge converter with Montblanc insignia inside. Is it okay to use the nib dunked in ink and twist the converter to draw ink into the reservoir?
    Yup, that is how it fills.

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    Default Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by mhosea View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by Chrissy View Post
    I wasn't 100% certain if I wanted to go that far.
    I know what you mean. They've had the pattern down for awhile now, but getting the stamping to look right on steel when it's supposed to be gold is, I think, not a trivial thing to do on the cheap. Usually they end up looking more shallow, and I don't mean the ones that are obviously laser etched rather than stamped (those are easy). Obviously if it's plated steel, then the plating is actually inverted, with the platinum plating being no plating on the fake. Unplated stainless steel is a subtly different color than platinum or rhodium plating, but this can be hard to evaluate in photo, obviously. Cheap two-tone nibs often have sloppy boundaries (hard to color inside the lines), but unfortunately, one cannot count on the genuine nibs to be be perfect.

    I'm sure they could make formidably accurate nib copies if they'd just resort to using genuine gold and comparable plating. But I think that would raise the manufacturing cost by a few tens of dollars, at least.
    I have a cheap fake 144/145 type from years ago, and I've always wondered if an authentic nib & feed would fit inside the grip section. Au authentic converter doesn't fit, so I suspect the answer would be no. I just never thrown it away.

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    Default Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authentic?

    I would recommend checking if the diamond is real. In the situation where a diamond cannot be examined individually (as is with the MB diamond which is set in resin) the surest way to tell would be to expose it to ultraviolet light. Any money verifier flashlight or uv flashlight would work. If the stone shows fluorescence(in the blue spectrum) it is a diamond. I don’t think anyone would put a real diamond in a fake.

    I did this with my authentic MB Diamond Classique just as an experiment during my diamond appraisal courses and the fluorescence was present.

    EDIT: I just now realised this thread is over 12 months old.

    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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    Cool Re: Help determine if Montblanc Meisterstuck Diamond Legrand Fountain Pen is authenti

    Quote Originally Posted by mhosea View Post
    I'm sure they could make formidably accurate nib copies if they'd just resort to using genuine gold and comparable plating. But I think that would raise the manufacturing cost by a few tens of dollars, at least.
    And would require more expertise... I still can't believe that, as lore relates, Visconti only introduced Palladium nibs to their pens as a result of rising gold costs.

    Quote Originally Posted by Irinka View Post
    EDIT: I just now realised this thread is over 12 months old.
    lol...

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