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I have been a longtime lurker since last August, when I started using fountain pens, and reading articles here and other's posts have been enough to help me solve a lot of the problems that I've encountered. But now I have a problem that I have found some information on but it is contradicting other posts so I want to ask others from this community for the most up to date information and advice. I have discovered Montblanc's Writer's Edition recently and immediately got hooked. My first purchase was a Dumas with a medium nib, but after inking it up and filling around 10 pages, I've concluded that I can't use a medium nib. From my previous post surfing I thought that the stubbiness of Montblanc nibs would be ok but it is just too thick of a line for my handwriting, so I'm thinking about the nib swap program that they have. So far I have gathered enough info about the nib swap program to know that Montblanc will replace the nib on my pen with my desired nib and if they don't have that specific Dumas nib in stock that they will make one to order. My question is regarding which channel I would go through. I'm in Dallas, Texas and the Fort Worth service center is 11 miles away. But an old post by a former Montblanc reseller specifically said to contact Montblanc service center in Hamburg directly. Does anyone have the most up to date information on who I should contact to get a fine or extra fine nib exchange? Thank you in advance for your help.

I am just beginning research on this MB Dumas Autograph Set and have been over to fountainpen.de which is typically a good first stop on the journey of discovery. They mention that it is known to be a rare set in its own right, but not much beyond that. They have a link to more information, however the link is dead. (I will notify the site.) I would really like to know why MB decided to create an Autograph set which I have to say is really nice. I like the "handwritten" note, and photo as well as the larger book box that contains all the pieces of the collection. I am sure the "handwritten" note is a facsimile, but I must concede it is a very good one that must have taken some effort to create. Linen, watermarked, antiqued or antique paper, same with the ink, and so forth. I am sure it was not inexpensive to fabricate. Could someone point me to any resources that might shed some light on this set? My Compliments!

FPN has some of it's own custom inks, made for them by Nathan Tardiff, aka Noodler's. As always, Noodler's inks have some kind of theme going on with the name, and this one is named after Alexandr Dumas' famous 1850 novel Tulipe Noire. Because it's written in French, it's especially famous in France. Since there is no such flower as a Black Tulip, this ink follows the purple tulip. It's a really great "plum" color. There's really great handling with this ink. It's possible that in the right pen and on the right paper it will shade very well, but I've only gotten "ok" shading. But it's still a nice ink. As usual for me, paper used was MvL=Mohawk via Linen, Hij=Hammermill 28 lb inkjet, TR=Tomoe River. This pic I think shows the ink as a bit darker than it really is. And to much blue. This pic is better at representing the color. Somewhat water-resistant. Due to the dye load, some washes away, but enough is left to be readable.

Just received my bottle of FPN Dumas Tulipe Noire, and can hardly wait to ink up. This is exactly the color I've been searching for! One question: Is there a stain risk in a demonstrator? I'm wobbling between the TWSBI Diamond 580 and the Pelikan m805, but don't want to regret the choice later. Wisdom to share, anyone...?

I've used these two pens so much that the signature on the caps is basically gone. I love it though, it reminds me of a used (but yet beautiful) vintage Fender Stratocaster. Jose

My wife gifted to me a great book on the history of calligraphy, Claude Mediavilla’s Calligraphie – Du signe calligraphié à la peinture abstract. Really a splendid journey through the styles of characters and writing in history, fulfilled with magnificent examples, and a solid manual on how to produce an elegant lettering. It is, without doubts, the best book I ever saw on this matter, worthy any single penny it costs. I am now learning Carolingian, and I made some practice with two 149, fitted with BB and OB nibs (Toffe brown and Parker red inks respectively), a F nib 146 with MB black, a EF Hemingway with Racing Green, and a Dumas with a customised medium italic nib (Mike Masuyama's), filled with Irish Green. The most difficult aspect of Carolingian is, in my opinion, maintaining a very light, almost imperceptible inclination of the characters to the right. The italic nib really helps at producing crispy letters.