Poa New Nib Policy Question

[bstnnyc]

Hi Everyone,

 

I sent my Copernicus to MB to get a Broad nib installed in place of the Fine nib, which I have been using for the last couple of years. I want to have the nib changed because I really love this pen, and want to enjoy using it daily, but have not been using it as much lately since I prefer Broad nibs when not using a pen for note-taking and now have other pens that are much better suited to daily note-taking. Since the pen was a gift from my parents, I was hoping to keep the nib for sentimental reasons.

Montblanc US just came back to me to let me know that, even though I will need to pay the full fee (close to 400$), they consider this service a nib exchange and will be unable to return the original nib to me. I have gone through the threads on nib policies on FPN and Fred's very helpful thread on Policy of removed parts, but, since I couldn't find a definitive answer for POAs, I wanted to reach out to see if anyone has any recent experience with a new nib requested for an old POA or any updated information on MB's nib policy.

 

Thank you for your help!

 

 

[Pravda]

I just recently got my Catherine The Great back from an exchange of a M nib to a OBB. They keep the old nib and don't return it. Standard practice throughout the years from what I hear.

[zaddick]

Why not pull the nib out yourself and send it in w/o the nib and feed. Price should be identical.

Edited April 3, 2017 by zaddick

[Pravda]

  On 4/3/2017 at 11:52 PM, zaddick said:

Why not pull the nib out yourself and send it in w/o the nib and feed. Price should be identical.

That's a very clever idea never occurred to me! Sneaky, but hey if it works

 

Reminds me of an anecdote that happened to me 2 years ago. My NOS 146R came with a small scratch on the cap. Went to purchase a new cap, which I was very happy to learn that they had in stock here in Dubai.

 

They looked at my old cap and said 'sorry we are not allowed to replace parts for aesthetic reasons'.

 

I told them to give me a second.

 

Went outside cracked it and then came back and told them 'Hello, my cap is cracked I would like a new one'.

 

They laughed. More importantly, they never tried this **** with me again

[aksaiyo]

  On 4/4/2017 at 8:02 AM, Pravda said:

That's a very clever idea never occurred to me! Sneaky, but hey if it works

 

Reminds me of an anecdote that happened to me 2 years ago. My NOS 146R came with a small scratch on the cap. Went to purchase a new cap, which I was very happy to learn that they had in stock here in Dubai.

 

They looked at my old cap and said 'sorry we are not allowed to replace parts for aesthetic reasons'.

 

I told them to give me a second.

 

Went outside cracked it and then came back and told them 'Hello, my cap is cracked I would like a new one'.

 

They laughed. More importantly, they never tried this **** with me again

😂😂😂😂 this is hilarious! But now I know to send my pen in without the parts I want replaced 😏

[Chrissy]

  On 4/4/2017 at 8:02 AM, Pravda said:

That's a very clever idea never occurred to me! Sneaky, but hey if it works

 

Reminds me of an anecdote that happened to me 2 years ago. My NOS 146R came with a small scratch on the cap. Went to purchase a new cap, which I was very happy to learn that they had in stock here in Dubai.

 

They looked at my old cap and said 'sorry we are not allowed to replace parts for aesthetic reasons'.

 

I told them to give me a second.

 

Went outside cracked it and then came back and told them 'Hello, my cap is cracked I would like a new one'.

 

They laughed. More importantly, they never tried this **** with me again

 

Yes, this has always worked. I have a friend at my favourite Montblanc boutique, who bypasses the 'aesthetic reasons' and gets parts replaced for me. I always wondered if he has to damage them first, but what I don't know doesn't hurt me.

[Chrissy]

  On 4/3/2017 at 10:57 PM, bstnnyc said:

Hi Everyone,

 

I sent my Copernicus to MB to get a Broad nib installed in place of the Fine nib, which I have been using for the last couple of years. I want to have the nib changed because I really love this pen, and want to enjoy using it daily, but have not been using it as much lately since I prefer Broad nibs when not using a pen for note-taking and now have other pens that are much better suited to daily note-taking. Since the pen was a gift from my parents, I was hoping to keep the nib for sentimental reasons.

 

 

If you want to have your nib exchanged so that you can write happily with the pen, then that's fair enough, and it's a great idea. But surely it's the pen as a whole gift item, that is sentimental to you. Not a nib that you don't like. On the other hand, it would be a good idea to remove the nib anyway, if you can. You could easily sell it for a couple of hundred $$$ to give you some return for having to buy a new one. There's not much use in an old, unloved, 18ct gold nib sitting around somewhere then maybe getting lost. I'm sure your parents would agree with this.

[bstnnyc]

Thank you all for your feedback and suggestions!

 

The MB associate called and gave me a bit more information. I did not mention the nib-less pen idea to her but she explained that MB has different nib policies for the LEs and regular lineup. I saw that Chrissy noted this regarding WEs and the UK policy, and it looks like the US has the same rule. She said that MB returns the original nib as part of the new nib request for the standard Meisterstucks, Bohemes, Starwalkers..., but not for limited edition pens. She stressed that Germany is pretty strict about this now.

 

Has anyone tried sending in a nib-less POA or WE recently? I wonder if this means that they would refuse a new nib request if the nib is missing on one of these pens.

[thygreyt]

that would be a great idea...

 

If anyone has done it, post up!

[BillH]

Perhaps the reasoning for not returning the loose original nib with the exchange on the LE/WE/POA's is to make the "Iridium nib" guys' lives a little harder? Just a noob guess...

[Chrissy]

  On 4/4/2017 at 7:18 PM, bstnnyc said:

Thank you all for your feedback and suggestions!

 

The MB associate called and gave me a bit more information. I did not mention the nib-less pen idea to her but she explained that MB has different nib policies for the LEs and regular lineup. I saw that Chrissy noted this regarding WEs and the UK policy, and it looks like the US has the same rule. She said that MB returns the original nib as part of the new nib request for the standard Meisterstucks, Bohemes, Starwalkers..., but not for limited edition pens. She stressed that Germany is pretty strict about this now.

 

Has anyone tried sending in a nib-less POA or WE recently? I wonder if this means that they would refuse a new nib request if the nib is missing on one of these pens.

 

I haven't ever tried sending in a nib-less POA or WE. But it is possible that Montblanc does apply different policies to them, because they just don't make so many.

It makes you wonder what they do with them though.

As an example, I've recently seen a Copernicus for sale, and it currently has a B nib fitted. I wouldn't want a B nib. I would only want an F nib, so I'm not at all interested in buying it. But imagine if Montblanc received your pen and that pen. Would they just swap the nibs over and charge both owners a massive amount of money for a new nib each?

[penparadise]

  On 4/4/2017 at 8:29 AM, Chrissy said:

On the other hand, it would be a good idea to remove the nib anyway, if you can. You could easily sell it for a couple of hundred $$$ to give you some return for having to buy a new one.

 

I think that this is one of Montblancs main arguments for not returning the "old" nib of a limited edition. Montblanc just want to keep the quantity of nibs equal to the limited editions.

[CS388]

If you're sending it in for a nib exchange - and it hasn't got a nib - then there's nothing for them to exchange.

I think the nib removal before service is a fun idea, but I'd be very surprised if it worked?

 

On the other hand, I can't see why the original nib isn't returned, if that's company policy across the other lines?

Of course, if they are re-using them, due to scarcity (eg) then that's fair enough.

 

Keep us informed.

Good luck.

 

  On 4/4/2017 at 10:46 PM, penparadise said:

 

I think that this is one of Montblancs main arguments for not returning the "old" nib of a limited edition. Montblanc just want to keep the quantity of nibs equal to the limited editions.

 

Ah. Now that makes sense.

 

Thanks.

[bstnnyc]

My F nib is definitely well loved at this point haha, so I'm hoping they wouldn't try giving it away to someone else unless they have some serious magicians tucked away at the Hamburg office!

 

I'm leaning towards asking for my pen back and waiting to see if anyone has any luck going the nib-less route. I'm also thinking of waiting until the next pen show where I can see Mr. Masuyama and ask him to turn it into a smooth, stubbish fine. I know it won't be a true MB Broad, but his magical powers will give it the little line variation it needs to be more interesting. And, as a worst, if it still doesn't feel right, in a year or two, I can always send it back to Hamburg for "an exchange."

[zaddick]

Greg Minuskin or John Mottishaw can retip the pen and stub it for you. I can't recall the cost. Minuskin will have a much shorter turnaround time though.

 

I have seen some POA pens retiped to about 1.3 or 1.4 mm stubs. It would be a lot cheaper than a new nib.

[bstnnyc]

Thank you for the recommendation! I know it makes sense to do it, but I usually don't love the look of retipped nibs, because I tend to stare at them a little too closely. I'm in my 30s and still working on the OCD, but somehow it keeps getting worse... and this is only the tip of the iceberg

[zaddick]

Yes, the big retip can look a bit like press-on fake nails. But if you only go up to B or BB it can probably stay pretty factory looking. Another thing I have seen done is clipping the tines a bit to gain more width and then retipping. Just ideas to kick about.

[bstnnyc]

haha that's one way to put it! You gave me a good laugh as I work the late night shift at the reference desk Thank you again for all of the suggestions. I will keep you posted on the next steps. I just checked Susan Wirth's pen show calendar and if DC ends up happening the weekend of the 12/13 vs the 5/6, Nicolaus will most likely get a little Masuyama makeover.