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I dove down the rabbit hole of 1970s inlaid nibs. To my knowledge, only three sizes were available, fine, medium and broad, on Sheaffer 330s, 440s and 444s. Sometimes the nib size is indicated on the nib unit (printed in yellow or moulded into the plastic), but more often there is no indication other than a sticker on the body that the original owner removed when they bought the pen decades ago. So far, so good. But recently I acquired two 444s, one unmarked but sold as a fine, and the other clearly marked as a B. They don't match my preconceived nib sizes. The fine is closer to what I consider an extra fine (0.4mm), but that's fine with me. However, the B is what I consider a double broad (BB), or even a triple broad stub (BBB), with 1.0mm downstrokes and 0.7mm side strokes. I was very surprised. I was expecting something more like : Fine (~0.4 mm) Medium (~0.5 mm) Broad (~0.7 mm) Maybe I'm wrong and there were more than 3 nib sizes: Extra fine (~0.4mm) Fine (~0.4 mm) Medium (~0.5 mm) Broad (~0.7 mm) Stub (1.0 mm) Where can I find a reference that lists the nib sizes that were originally offered on these pens?

Dear Montblanc Fellow Writers, I am a newbie to the wonderful world of fine fountain writing instruments, so please excuse any ignorance in advance. Not such a long time ago I had developed an itching desire to start writing with a fountain pen. My job and also an open university course provided a good training base for practice. Not wanting to spend a fortune it has been decided to start with something inexpensive; after a long research a Pilot Cavalier was bought and imported from Japan. I quickly realized two main points: first is that I immensely enjoy writing with a fountain pen and second is that the tiny Pilot can be a little painful for my shrek fingers when holding it for a while. So I have ventured out to find a larger fountain pen. I did quite like the fine nib though as it was so precise, so that was my only condition when choosing a new pen. Montblanc fine writing instruments have always been central in my choice criteria, 149 being the ideal size. The only dilemma was that it costs nearly £700 and the variety of the materials (gold or platinum) in nibs. Being a cheapskate I checked amazon and ebay, suprisingly the same models were traded at £550...Having looked more attentively one could deduce that the exact gold detail inlay of the nib was of different shape/position. Some also did not have the serial/unique number, the explanation was given that they had been made before the number introduction. I am still quite uneasy when it comes to making a final decision, but one thing had been set: it is either platinum or red gold nib and definitely from a Montblanc store in London. With my 36th birthday coming up at the weekend, it would make a great gift. The only downside (for me anyway) is that neither can be used with a cartridge. I find it barbaric to dip such a treasure into an inkpot... The shop assistant at Bicester Village quickly dismissed/laughed off my concerns by inviting to buy some special tissues that would take off the excess of ink and clean the nib. He himself had the 90 Edition, and the nib was thickly covered in ink, I guess after a long use it does become normal to stop paying attention... Could anyone assist with their feedback of using either golden or platinum nibs of 149 size? Thank you for finding time to read, folks! Regards, Yevgeny