Help With Some Older Montblanc Inks

[luminesce]

I took a punt on some Montblanc inks going on trademe (a local version of ebay).

What's turned up in the post are some older style bottles with no ink names anywhere, and colours that I don't associate with Montblanc ink.

 

 

 

 

 

Any ideas on:

a: whether these are legitimate

b: what they are called

c: how old they might be

 

Thanks for any help,

Elizabeth

[Pterodactylus]

As they have "W. Germany" on them they are at least more than 20 years old (before 1990s German reunification).

[luminesce]

well spotted! I hadn't twigged to that

[Beechwood]

The trouble with bottles is that they could contain anything, they never say no, especially the MB shoe which is such a useful shape, holding drawing inks just as well as a FP ink.

 

I hope its a genuine MB FP ink but the colours arent in my memory

[dragonaura]

Ah so you were the one who bidded on them D: I forgot to bid ); They look like very nice colours. I've found trying to find the names for the colours difficult. I've found some real treasures on range though

[dragonaura]

Ugh meant trademe instead of range in the last sentence. Stupid auto-correct. Sorry for the double post, haven't figured how to edit on a phone

[Pterodactylus]

The trouble with bottles is that they could contain anything, they never say no, especially the MB shoe which is such a useful shape, holding drawing inks just as well as a FP ink.

 

I hope its a genuine MB FP ink but the colours arent in my memory

I wouldn't be such skeptical, the inks look good.

If the seller was one with a good reputation (enough positive feedback) it's probably ok.

 

Which such a mindset you never ever can buy vintage ink or bottles outside an official authorized shop of the manufacturer.

[Bigeddie]

I would suggest that the one on the left is Montblanc Turquoise and the one on the right is Sepia (which has a surprisingly red tone), I have half bottles of both picked up through sales of pens. The middle one I would guess is Ruby Red but I have never seen a bottle.

 

Check out this thread (thanks to Darius) and see if you can compare.

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7295/12219525664_8a599a7c99.jpg

Old Montblanc inks by Bigeddie100, on Flickr

Edited January 31, 2014 by Bigeddie

[Randal6393]

Hi, Elizabeth,

 

Welcome to FPN.

 

Pros:

1. You now own three beautiful ink colors that seem to write well and be well-behaved.

2. You have three more Montblanc shoes for re-use when you use up the current ink.

 

Cons: None, that I see.

 

Enjoy,

[Bo Bo Olson]

Could be Sepia, have 1 1/2 bottles from when they discontinued.

 

I'd thought the last color looked more a burgundy/ Bordeaux, in my sepia's brownish--reddish less..

 

[luminesce]

Thanks everyone!

From the link in Bigeddie's post I'm guessing I have turquoise and ruby red. I think the darker red looks more like bordeaux in the bottle. The writing test was with a dip pen so super-saturated.

I'm rather chuffed. I'm a bit surprised at how watery these are. I'd assumed inks this age would have distilled a little, but there's no indication of that. The joys of proper glass bottles I guess. There appears to be no sediment in any of the bottles either.

I'm also surprised at these bright Montblanc colours. Having become consumed by fountain pens only recently, I associate Montblanc with conservative, darker colours.

 

 

Elizabeth

Edited January 31, 2014 by luminesce

[Bo Bo Olson]

In I'd been in a bottom feeding frenzy of cheap pens, the gee, €20 is 5 over my limit, I missed getting many of the old MB inks. At €12 a bottle. Getting only Sepia....instead of the then most hated ink in the world Racing Green.

I hadn't understood, shading much, and was totally ignorant of murky inks, like Racing Green.

Now I have 3 murky greens of the 35 or so murky inks.

 

The advice from the MB haters and they were everywhere was to buy the ink, toss it for the bottle only.

The pens were not liked either. Being so 'noobie' I'd never tried a brown ink, got Sepia...and found it a nice enough ink. Then I got Toffee and Sepia went to cobweb corner for a while....quite a while, I was slowly getting into inks. After reading a good thread on Sepia inks, I found a bottle on German Ebay for €19 plus mailing. A 'fair' deal. So now have @ 1 1/2 bottles. I like that sepia, a much different sepia than my grayish R&K Sepia. I can see getting many of them from other companies.

 

Sigh, having 'enough' blue blacks did not get the old 'good' MB Blue Black...when it was around.

 

I got lucky at a German flea market and got one 5 pack of cartridges from 4001 Pelikan in an Orange....very nice color, two grays, a rose, a lilac & turquoise. Both grays are good, I like the silver gray most. Only turquoise is still made.

 

"Watery"...should be good shading inks, if you have any good 90g paper. Oxford Optic also in the Red & Black notebooks is a very good British paper, made in Spain, and northern Germany too....don't know if you have that around, down south where you are.

 

Saturated, very lubricated, or vivid supersaturated inks do not shade as well as the "wishy-washy-/watery/pastel" inks of Pelikan, MB, Herbin and a few others.

I chase shading inks, but one should have some of both. Paper is of vast importance. Good paper allows your nib and ink to dance. Poor paper is a swamp.

Edited January 31, 2014 by Bo Bo Olson

[BiggieD]

Last one looks exactly like my bottle of MB Bordeaux from the late 1980's and also matches this writeup:

 

http://fpquest.wordpress.com/2012/10/04/ink-notes-montblanc-bordeaux/