How long does it take for nib exchange?

**alperozt** · October 24th, 2022, 12:58 PM

I have purchased a couple of Montblanc pens from an authorized dealer and they sent it to Germany for nib exchange (F-->BB if it matters). One is a Glacier Solitaire, the other is JFK. Has anybody sent a Montblanc for nib exchange recently? How long did it take? It's been over 3 months for me, but I am not sure if this is a reasonable timeframe.

Thanks,

**FredRydr** · October 25th, 2022, 06:36 AM

It’s been several years since I had a Writers Edition return to Hamburg via a USA boutique for a nib swap, but I recall it took about three months. And that was before Covid was invented.

**alperozt** · October 25th, 2022, 11:44 AM

Well, then my current wait is not too uncommon. Thanks.

**alperozt** · March 15th, 2023, 05:55 PM

If anyone reads this and is interested, pens arrived yesterday Jul 20 —> Mar 14. Almost like ordering a Nakaya…

**TSherbs** · March 15th, 2023, 08:10 PM

Wow

**Ed333** · March 22nd, 2023, 01:43 PM

Can the average pen owning layman switch out a. MontBlanc nib, or is this best left to the experts? Just curious....I know I should practice this sort of thing on less expensive pens.

**Chrissy** · March 23rd, 2023, 06:07 AM

Originally Posted by Ed333

Can the average pen owning layman switch out a. MontBlanc nib, or is this best left to the experts? Just curious....I know I should practice this sort of thing on less expensive pens.

That is a very good question. I consider myself an average, pen owning, layperson but I know that my Montblanc pens were made before the time when Montblanc made 149 and 146 pens with end user removable nib units similar to those used in Pelikan pens. I don't know how to tell whether any particular 149 or 146 is modern enough that it has a nib that was designed to be un-screwable and therefore easily changeable so even if you buy a pen new to you, you may not know the difference.

However, I happen to know that those nib units in older pens do need a special tool to enable the "average, pen owning, layperson" to unscrew them. This is a tool with an almost semi-circular end that has metal lugs that stick out and these need to be inserted into the existing gaps between the feed and the section before the nib unit can be unscrewed. Different models have their gaps in different positions relative to a clock face. Even though I have such a tool, I've still never risked trying it out because the lugs on the end of the tool are so thin (like pins) that I feel it wouldn't take much to break them off and then they might end up inside the section. That would be something I might be unable to fix....