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Hi all, I was idly browsing an auction site here in the UK when I found a listing for an upcoming auction of a Montblanc L139. It has a 14k nib with what looks like a left-foot oblique grind. I know nothing about Montblanc pens, but I do recall seeing a previous discussion in which members wrote admiringly of the L139. As such, I though that I would post a link to the auction on this board. The pen is listed in an art/antiques auction that is taking place in an hotel in Krefeld in Germany. They are accepting online bids for the items. The auction is scheduled to take place on 18th September 2021. The auction’s website is here. The pen has the lot number 795. The specific page in the online catalogue that relates to the L139 can be found here. The pen’s cap band appears to have ‘Masterpiece’ engraved on it (as opposed to ‘Meisterstück’) which seems odd to me, but for all I know it’s correct. As I said, I know nothing about these pens, so I have no idea whether the pen is genuine, how old it is, etc. At least the pictures on the auction website appear to be good enough for any fans of the L139 out there to be able to judge for themselves. I am not selling the pen, and nor do I work for (or know anybody who works for) the auctioneers, the hotel, or the website. Anyway, I hope that this post is a useful one. Cheers, M.

There is a pen auction that I contributed to by sorting out the pens and helping with pricing. It may be of interest. https://www.millerandmillerauctions.com/catalog.aspx

There is a pen auction that I contributed to by sorting out the pens and helping with pricing. It may be of interest. https://www.millerandmillerauctions.com/catalog.aspx

Hi! I'm thinking about buying a Parker Vacumatic from an online aution. But despite my feeble attempts at learning more about Vacumatics, I couldn't come up with an appropriate value for this piece. The seller only provided the 3 pictures below - I don't know the dimensions, nor usability of the pen. The clip is sprung and there is a shadow on the left side of the nib that made me think that maybe it's damaged. The price is now at around 20€ and will maybe go up. The question is: Do you think it's worth the current price tag and maybe a bit more? Thank you for your thoughts. https://imgur.com/a/F0B744f

Hi gang! I'm not exactly new here, but I'm new in the sense that I've changed my affiliation. I formerly posted here as Director of Fine Writing Instruments for Bonhams Auctioneers. Bonhams is no longer hosting pen auctions, and I've moved on to San Francisco's PBA (Pacific Book Auction) Galleries, as Director of Pens and Comics (yes, I get to sell pens and comic books at auction for a living - dream job! ). PBA has staged over 600 rare book sales since 1992, and I'm looking forward to selling great pens there! Bonhams generally enforced a minimum low estimate of $500 for pens, and PBA will allow me to offer pens valued at $200 and up, so our sales should have more breadth and diversity than my old Bonhams sales. Anyone who'd like to receive our debut pen catalogue should PM me their full contact info. Anyone with interesting pens to consign should likewise PM me. Cheers, Ivan

Hi gang, I hope it's ok to make this announcement here (I formerly made similar announcements here in my Bonhams days). I was Bonhams Auctioneers' pen specialist through December of last year, when I sold over a million dollars in pens in Bonhams' final pen auction and attendant private treaty sale. Bonhams decided to stop hosting pen auctions, and now I've landed my dream job for PBA Galleries auctioneers in San Francisco, as PBA's Director of Fine Pens and Comics. My debut pen sale for PBA will be held in San Francisco on July 19th, 2018. Bidders can participate in person, online or by absentee bid. We're accepting consignments for the sale through June 1st, although there's been a groundswell of enthusiasm for the debut sale, and although I've only been on the job for two weeks, I've already accepted about $100K in consignments. So there's a good chance that the sale will fill up early. We're looking for great pens of all kinds, valued from $300 to $300K. We're especially interested in: Modern Limited Montblancs (in particular, Writers Series, Patron of Art Series, and Special Editions)Early American eyedroppers, especially Parkers and WatermansVintage MontblancsVintage overlay pens, especially Toledo and Nielo overlaysNamiki pens (vintage and modern). Pre-war Dunhill-Namiki Emperor pens are of special interest Anyone who'd like to consign should PM me, as should anyone who'd like a complimentary copy of the catalogue. Cheers, Ivan

Dear Pen Pals, I formerly posted here as Director of Fine Writing Instruments for Bonhams Auctioneers. Bonhams is no longer hosting pen auctions, and I've moved on to San Francisco's PBA (Pacific Book Auction) Galleries, as Director of Pens and Comics (yes, I get to sell pens and comic books at auction for a living - dream job! ). PBA has staged over 600 rare book sales since 1992, and I'm looking forward to selling great pens there! Bonhams generally enforced a minimum low estimate of $500 for pens, and PBA will allow me to offer pens valued at $200 and up, so our sales should have more breadth and diversity than my old Bonhams sales. Anyone who'd like to receive our debut pen catalogue should PM me their full contact info. Anyone with interesting pens to consign should likewise PM me. PBA is primarily interested in modern limited editions (especially Montblanc Writers Series, Patron of Art series, and Special Editions / Atelier Privées pens), as well as key vintage pens (especially early American eyedroppers, chiefly Waterman and Parkers, plus pre-war Montblancs and Namikis, Toledo overlays, rare pen-related ephemera, and anything fascinating and cool). Cheers, Ivan

Hello all! These questions come from my recent frustration ... basically Recently (few days ago) I tried to bid on three pens on eBay. I am a newb on eBay, and I thought it will go smoothly. I know how much specific pen is worth, I know how much I'm willing to pay and overpay (in this case). However, I lost on all bids. In the last seconds!!!! Now, since it is about vintage Waterman's pens, I consider this to be pen related topic/question. Question 1: How do you win in an auction??? It cannot be that I'm that slow. Question 2: if there is an auction going on for a pen, and there is like... 5 days left - can I offer $$$ to seller directly and forgo the bidding drama? If she/he accepts ok, if not - ok too. Question 3: I've noticed that some of the auctions on eBay bring the price of certain pens at least 1/3 if not 2/3... 100% higher than conventional value of the pen (on the market) is. Does this affects the market price? Reason I'm asking Question 3 is - if a precedent is set for ... let say Waterman 52 (common pen around) with decent flex, and pen gets sold in an auction for 100 USD or 200 USD more than price floating around the interweb, will this mean all Waterman's are slowly (or quickly) going up in prices? Thank you !

A friend of mine who also likes fountain pens put me onto a local auction house, Scammells, some time ago. The auctions are 9am on a Monday, so were rather inconvenient because I had to go to school and my funds weren't abundant, but I graduated a bit over a month ago and I've been going each Monday. They usually have at least one pen a week and you can pick up some great bargains. I won a Parker Slimfold there about 3 weeks ago for $30 that I've been using as my daily writer since, very nice nib. My friend got himself a Montblanc of some description in new condition for $70. I rather enjoy the thrill of the bidding. They have all manner of interesting things there for collector types. Does anyone else prow the local auctions for pens? I usually take a bottle of ink and give them a small test to make sure the nib is up to scratch, pardon the pun.

I popped into Scammell Auctions as I usually do on a Monday since school has wrapped up. There was only one pen this week, listed in the catalogue as "Dash". I couldn't find anything on Dash pens and put a post here to see if anyone could identify it. They let me into the gallery to have a closer look and it was in fact a Dasi Pen. I have done a little bit of research and they were apparently the first Australian fountain pen manufacturers, first out of a shed and later a shop in Sydney. This appears to be mass produced, but I've located the son of one of the blokes who started it - he runs an online pen shop - so I'll give him a call in the next few days and see if he can shed any light on it. The nib says it's a Dasi Shorthand. The nib is a little scratchy, but could easily be rectified. I only paid $15, so it was a steal as far as I'm concerned. I'm not totally enamoured with it so I might end up selling it or giving it to someone. If anyone knows anything about them, I'd be interested to know. I can't find where to add the ink. It has no lever and the top section does not detach.http://i.imgur.com/S7QBIlQ.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/OHCQfR7.jpg

Hi gang, It's getting to be that time again! Bonhams June 16th Fine Writing Instruments sale is just two months away, and I'd like to offer free catalogues to the first ten FPN members who send their requests to me at ivan.briggs@bonhams.com. Please include your first and last names in the email, as well as a postal address (we cannot deliver to PO Boxes). Bonhams pen catalogues are ordinarily $30 for American clients and $50 for international clients, and they are fully illustrated and intended to be useful reference works, so this is, I hope, an attractive offer. Once the catalogue is ready, in about five weeks, I will add a pdf link here. The sale will feature about 200 lots of modern and vintage pens. It will be of special interest to Montblanc fans, as it will include the biggest selection of rare Montblanc Ateliers Privés special editions ever offered in one sale, as well as some rare and wonderful vintage MB's. The sale will also showcase a spectacular selection of vintage and modern limited Dunhill-Namikis, including a pair of incredibly rare Dunhill-Namiki A-grade Emperor pens from the 1930s. Here is a list of the Montblanc Ateliers Privés pens in the sale: 75th Anniversary 18K Gold Skeleton, limited to 75 examples. Estimate: $40,000-60,000 Abraham Lincoln "Signatures for Freedom," limited to 50 examples. Estimate: $20,000-30,000 Albert Einstein 18K White Gold Skeleton, limited to 99 examples. Estimate: $20,000-30,000 Antoni Gaudi 18K Gold Skeleton, limited to 128 examples. Estimate: $15,000-25,000 Axis Mundi 18K Gold Skeleton, limited to 101 examples. Estimate: $18,000-24,000 Caspar David Friedrich 18K White Gold, limited to 65 examples. Estimate: $20,000-25,000 Charlie Chaplin 18K Gold Skeleton, limited to 88 examples. Estimate: $30,000-40,000 Cristobal Colon 18K Gold Toledo, limited to 92 examples. Estimate: $20,000-30,000 Diego Rivera 18K White Gold Skeleton, limited to 70 examples. Estimate: $18,000-24,000 Fortune 88 18K Rose Gold Skeleton, limited to 88 examples. Estimate: $20,000-25,000 Franklin D. Roosevelt "Signatures for Freedom," limited to 50 examples. Estimate: $20,000-30,000 Frida Kahlo 18K Gold Skeleton Cap, limited to 70 examples. Estimate: $18,000-24,000 Genghis Khan 18K Gold, limited to 88 examples. Estimate: 25,000-35,000 George Washington "Signatures for Freedom," limited to 50 examples. Estimate: $15,000-20,000 Heritage 2012 Titanium, limited to 333 examples. Estimate: $8000-12,000 James Madison "Signatures for Freedom," limited to 50 examples. Estimate: $20,000-30,000 Joan Miro Lacquer & 18K Gold, limited to 76 examples. Estimate: $15,000-25,000 Johannes Gutenberg 18K Gold, limited to 42 examples. Estimate: $12,000-16,000 John Lennon 18K Gold Skeleton, limited to 70 examples. Estimate: $30,000-50,000 Kong Zi [Confucius] 18K White Gold, limited to 88 examples. Estimate: 15,000-25,000 Leonardo da Vinci 18K Gold Skeleton, limited to 74 examples. Estimate; $12,000-18,000 Magical Black Widow 18K Gold Skeleton, limited to 88 examples. Estimate: $20,000-25,000 Max Reinhardt 2010 Edition, limited to 30 examples. Estimate: $8000-12,000 Musee du Louvre 18K White gold Skeleton, limited to 89 examples. Estimate: $12,000-18,000 Pablo Picasso 18K White Gold, limited to 39 examples. Estimate: $50,000-60,000 Pablo Picasso 18K Yellow Gold, limited to 91 examples. Estimate: $30,000-50,000 Paul Klee 18K Gold Skeleton, limited to 79 examples. Estimate: $25,000-35,000 Rouge et Noir 100th Anniversary, limited to 100 examples. Estimate: $4000-6000 Sir Winston Churchill 18K Gold, limited to 53 examples. Estimate: $25,000-35,000 Statue of Liberty 18K White Gold Captop, limited to 50 examples. Estimate: $15,000-25,000 Tchaikovsky 18K White gold Skeleton, limited to 130 examples. Estimate: $12,000-18,000 Cheers, Ivan

I won an auction on that big auction site today... 6 bottles of Aurora Black 6 bottles of Aurora Blue 4 bottles of Waterman Blue 3 bottles of Waterman Black Some Waterman cartridges Also some pen display stands, which I really wanted. Quite a few people gush about Aurora black, and now I can try some! Nobody talks about the blue, which I find odd. I'll try it too! I have Waterman blue already, but now I'll have lots. I don't have Waterman black. Lots of fun. No pun intended. If anyone particularly needs a bottle of one of those, we might work something out.

i just won an auction, and there was a mysterious thirty pound jump in the bidding just before the end. Even when checking the bid history for automatic bids that gap was still there after a whole series of incremental increases. No reserve was advertised on the item. And there is another auction going on right now from this same (top-rated plus) seller in which exactly the same thing happened, and it was that same amount, thirty pounds. Incremental bidding has continued after the jump. No reserve warning on this one either. What gives? if there is a reserve, shouldn't that always be apparent? is there a way for people to bid invisibly?

Well, I have to take a deep, deep breath before saying this... As I have more or less resigned myself to a non-Parker 51-fulfilled future, I decided to turn my attention to the only other vintage brand (not including Sheaffer) that appeals to me: Wahl Eversharp. Not all pens from this brand excite me, just a handful of models really - and I don't know why. I just like the look of them I guess. Anyway, after conferring with my benefactors I was given permission to put up the donated funds - originally earmarked for the will-o-the-wisp P51 - toward something else. So, over the last few days I had a look around and spotted a couple of interesting Eversharps on our favourite auction site. Despite stating that I should not get involved with the auction process, as I am really too stupid to use it, I threw caution to the wind and plunked down a couple of bids. As the saying has it, sometimes when it rains, it pours. Upshot is that somehow I ended up winning both! This is the first time I have ever won an auction, and I hadn't really planned on buying both pens, but there it is. I have a Skyline (gold ring cap) and a Symphony (with Loewy cap) heading in my direction. The seller said they were not restored but the pictures seemed okay to me. No doubt they will probably need new inside bits thus showing what a true dumbass I can be and doubling the price, but there's nothing I can do about that right now except consider sending them off to one of the excellent restorers from FPN. I feel a little better about Fleabay now, though not enough to make me stop feeling like I am prodding a rattlesnake with a stick that is 2ft too short. Any advice on this foolish and unexpected acquisition is welcome.

okay, i got a bit crazy again and went all in for two lots of assorted pens and pen parts in two separate auctions online. one of them, from the US, cost me next to nothing—$20 for the lot, including free shipping. the lot includes an intriguing wooden pen (no, it’s not one of those big and pricey 1980s german wooden parkers, but it does seem to have a clip and its maker took the trouble of turning the butt so that the cap should post; might be an interesting bit of folk art); and some vintage caps and barrels, and a box of pencils, nibs, etc. http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll296/penmanila/USPens_zps051e0105.jpg the other lot, from the UK, is costing me quite a bit—around 5 C's when auction premium, taxes, and shipping are all added up, but i’m hoping there’ll be some pens there that will all make it worth it. i had only one smallish and grainy pic to go by, and i could see a green sheaffer touchdown (maybe), a blue conway stewart set, what could be a parker 61 (or a DJ 51, hard to tell from just the barrel end, but i’ll keep my expectations low and say a 61), maybe a blue parker 21, an english duofold, a silver pencil,and a gold-filled pen i can’t make out, nothing special. http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll296/penmanila/UKPens_zps3ebc1ad7.jpg but then, in the foreground, is this fat woodgrain pen with what looks to be a wide gold band. this, of course, is what i’m basically paying for, and i don’t even know what it is, although it vaguely resembles a swan eternal 48 that i already have; it also seems to have a gold ring around the top of the cap. in any case, i’m a sucker for vintage woodgrain, so if this is a complete pen, with all the parts in there and a good nib and no cracks, i’d be in pen heaven. there’s a swan box in the background and a parker one as well (can’t make out what the blue one is) and i don’t know if there are still pens in them, but i’ll assume they’re empty. it’s going to be a long month waiting for these pens to come in. meanwhile, speculations are welcome--tell me what you see! (isn’t gambling an exhilarating—and a terrible—thing?)

Some years back, I treated myself to a MB Slimline to cheer myself up after losing a job. Now I would like to get a different fountain pen to use as a rembrance for this current, better time. What's the best way to sell the Mont Blanc so I can afford a Newton pen? Check ebay and see what others are going for? Any suggestions will be appreciated. I'm new to all this so bear with me while I get up to some speed.

There is a *restored* Esterbrook J on eBay that ends in ~25 minutes and is currently at $8.50. http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-ESTERBROOK-MODEL-J-FOUNTAIN-PEN-/221339232291?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3388d8a823 I have a Copper, so I don't *need* it. Someone else might, though.