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I decided to make a little post showing the fake versus real montblanc boxes. As you all know, the fake pens and boxes are starting to get better and better. They now use "red" precious resin, they engrave serial numbers, they add the "pix" to the back. I mean, cmon, they even goldplate brass! If we are spending a bunch of money on a pen, we should be sure it's the real thing. I don't want anyone here to get taken for a ride. Since the fake pens are so good, one of the easiest indicators as to whether it is a fake or real MB is the actual pictures of the boxes. The boxes might seem "real" at first, but when compared to a REAL MB, there are painfully obvious differences! Below is a comparison of the fake and real box. I will mark the pictures to make it easier to tell which is which... I don't want to accidentally do the opposite! First things first... here is a shot of the real and the fake next to each other. You can immediately see some differences. http://i.imgur.com/LnRDO19.jpg First off, the logo of the fake box is larger, thicker, and more reflective than that of the real box: http://i.imgur.com/VyCEO75.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/Z1gfvKF.jpg In the above picture, you can also note that the material the box is made of is different too. The fake box is a matte material with very deep engraving... it is almost like rayskin. The real box, however, is extremely shiny and the engraving is superficial-- it feels relatively smooth and nothing like "sandpaper"... which is what the fake one feels like. http://i.imgur.com/vQfmMKJ.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/kPA4YFi.jpg Next, let's look at the creme filling in this Oreo! Again, if you are holding one or the other, you might be fooled... but comparing both side by side, the differences are obvious. First off, you can't tell as much in the pictures here... but the filling of the fake Oreo is a pearlescent color. It has hints of yellow and shimmers a bit. The real version has no pearl in it and is, instead, just a shiny, bright white. http://i.imgur.com/OlGeMOV.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/ZBTDaXw.jpg Next is the back of the box. On the fake version, the creme filling is just "painted" on the black material. However, on the real version, the cream filling is actually a separate, white piece of material that goes under the black portions. At the same time, you can see the quality control on the fake is nowhere near that of the real version: the edges end abruptly but, on the real version, you are hard pressed to find a seam (I think they seal the seams off!) http://i.imgur.com/GBIzOgB.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/ukc7DAu.jpg Now, let's start looking at the inside of the box. First things first, you can immediately tell that the fake has a much larger logo and the snowcap is also noticeably thicker (just like on the top of the box). At the same time, it is much higher than the real one as well. The printing might also be "hazy" or faded -- again, quality control! On this fake box, the bottoms of the word "BLANC" are half printed. http://i.imgur.com/PcZOnDq.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/ml40Xva.jpg At the same time, looking at the slot for the pen, you can see that on the fake version, it is MUCH larger. The sides of the slit also have a weird "diamond" shape where the open up and then close back, almost like a nib! The real version, by contrast, is just a small slit and has a much tighter interference fit for the pen. http://i.imgur.com/3L4mnqm.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/UaYyZNF.jpg Here is a better picture that shows, more clearly, the yellow "pearlescent" hue of the creme filling in a fake Montblanc box. http://i.imgur.com/L2jh3sH.jpg Now, does this mean that every fake box is going to look like this? Maybe not (though I am willing to bet that 99.99% will). Also, does it mean that if you have a fake box, you have a fake pen? Again, maybe not... though if someone is selling a fake box as real, they might also be selling a fake pen! The point is that if you are purchasing a pen on ebay or somewhere else and notice that the box is fake, you should pause for a second and put your guard up. Nobody wants to deal with a long, time-consuming return process or with "proving" the pen is fake! Let me know if you have any questions!