Enjoying Montblanc Pens — Broad, Oblique, Extra Fine, Le & Bespoke

[Tom Kellie]

Montblanc Fountain Pen Enthusiast

[Tom Kellie]

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/332969-demand-for-flex-nibs-do-people-want-them/page-1

~ The above thread — and the quote from it — was an absorbing read for a couple of hours.

From the various viewpoints presented, contemporary flexible nibs and the interest in them was placed in context.

Such a thought-provoking thread is an example of the high value of comments by Fountain Pen Network's members.

It's a thread that may be well worth visiting.

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

http://www.coolhunting.com/design/montblanc-le-petit-prince-collection

~ In the above article, Montblanc Creative Director Zaim Kamal explains the rationale behind the merchandise collection associated with Le Petit Prince.

The large images show details of the pens as well as cufflinks. I finally understand what the design motif is, and why Montblanc selected it.

Mr. Kamal also explains the reasoning behind creating blue Meisterstück pens.

It's an interesting read, sharing the underlying feelings behind the creative process which resulted in a major release of new pens.

Tom K.

[adim]

  On 4/7/2018 at 4:25 AM, Tom Kellie said:

 

http://www.coolhunting.com/design/montblanc-le-petit-prince-collection

~ In the above article, Montblanc Creative Director Zaim Kamal explains the rationale behind the merchandise collection associated with Le Petit Prince.

The large images show details of the pens as well as cufflinks. I finally understand what the design motif is, and why Montblanc selected it.

Mr. Kamal also explains the reasoning behind creating blue Meisterstück pens.

It's an interesting read, sharing the underlying feelings behind the creative process which resulted in a major release of new pens.

Tom K.

 

 

Great read, thanks for sharing, Tom! You can really feel the passion and attention they put into designing this collection.

 

In their pictures, the blue looks purplish, at least in the cufflinks, I was hoping for a darker shade. But I'll definitely check out the collection at the local boutique and hopefully get the resin "146".

[Tom Kellie]

  On 4/7/2018 at 5:59 AM, adim said:

Great read, thanks for sharing, Tom! You can really feel the passion and attention they put into designing this collection.

 

In their pictures, the blue looks purplish, at least in the cufflinks, I was hoping for a darker shade. But I'll definitely check out the collection at the local boutique and hopefully get the resin "146".

 

~ adim:

 

I'm glad that you liked the article. It provides a useful insight into the thinking which goes into planning a major collection.

The blue is in the darker shade, but not excessively so. I'd often wondered what a Meisterstück in charcoal or darker blue might be like. Now I know.

Montblanc Creative Director Zaim Kamal expresses a comprehensive vision for this collection.

One can't help but think that in 2019 and 2020 there might be new surprises, in terms of design and color.

Thank you for your nice comment.

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

[Toll]

  On 4/7/2018 at 4:25 AM, Tom Kellie said:

 

http://www.coolhunting.com/design/montblanc-le-petit-prince-collection

~ In the above article, Montblanc Creative Director Zaim Kamal explains the rationale behind the merchandise collection associated with Le Petit Prince.

The large images show details of the pens as well as cufflinks. I finally understand what the design motif is, and why Montblanc selected it.

Mr. Kamal also explains the reasoning behind creating blue Meisterstück pens.

It's an interesting read, sharing the underlying feelings behind the creative process which resulted in a major release of new pens.

Tom K.

  On 4/7/2018 at 12:36 PM, Tom Kellie said:

~ adim:

 

 

I'm glad that you liked the article. It provides a useful insight into the thinking which goes into planning a major collection.

The blue is in the darker shade, but not excessively so. I'd often wondered what a Meisterstück in charcoal or darker blue might be like. Now I know.

Montblanc Creative Director Zaim Kamal expresses a comprehensive vision for this collection.

One can't help but think that in 2019 and 2020 there might be new surprises, in terms of design and color.

Thank you for your nice comment.

Tom K.

Tom, that is wonderful article (and a neat website). I marvel at the creativity and planning that goes into a project like this. Montblanc must be unparalleled, in the pen world, for its creative resources. Impressive!

[Tom Kellie]

  On 4/7/2018 at 2:17 PM, Toll said:

Tom, that is wonderful article (and a neat website). I marvel at the creativity and planning that goes into a project like this. Montblanc must be unparalleled, in the pen world, for its creative resources. Impressive!

 

 

[Tom Kellie]

~ At the university where I'm employed there is a small contingent of engineering students from Pakistan who are studying Mandarin and written Chinese.

They're genial, stopping to talk with me, as there are more or less no other “foreigners” in this area, aside from two colleagues from India.

My interest in fountain pens has sparked friendly questions. In return I asked about how they wrote Urdu.

They mentioned the Dollar brand 717 italic nib pen, a piston filler with large ink capacity and a left oblique broad nib.

What especially caught my attention was an offhanded reference to a ‘qalam’, a sharpened bamboo reed pen used to write Urdu, Arabic, Persian, and Turkish.

They laughed, saying that the “qalam” was the ancestor of the “crazy nibs” which I used.

Having never heard of a “qalam”, I sought more information. There's so much about which I know nothing!

When using refined Montblanc nibs, I'll be thinking of the gorgeous refined calligraphy produced by carefully sharpened bamboo reed “qalam” pens.

For the next Bespoke nib, perhaps I should make a little joke, teasing Axel Nier by requesting a “qalam” nib.

Tom K.

[dubhe]

I thought it might be nice to see three colours of 149 together, with their B, OB, and BB nibs.

This might be the last time I have them together as I am listing two of them to start a fund for something special...

[Ghost Plane]

  On 4/7/2018 at 4:22 PM, Tom Kellie said:

 

~ At the university where I'm employed there is a small contingent of engineering students from Pakistan who are studying Mandarin and written Chinese.

They're genial, stopping to talk with me, as there are more or less no other “foreigners” in this area, aside from two colleagues from India.

My interest in fountain pens has sparked friendly questions. In return I asked about how they wrote Urdu.

They mentioned the Dollar brand 717 italic nib pen, a piston filler with large ink capacity and a left oblique broad nib.

What especially caught my attention was an offhanded reference to a ‘qalam’, a sharpened bamboo reed pen used to write Urdu, Arabic, Persian, and Turkish.

They laughed, saying that the “qalam” was the ancestor of the “crazy nibs” which I used.

Having never heard of a “qalam”, I sought more information. There's so much about which I know nothing!

When using refined Montblanc nibs, I'll be thinking of the gorgeous refined calligraphy produced by carefully sharpened bamboo reed “qalam” pens.

For the next Bespoke nib, perhaps I should make a little joke, teasing Axel Nier by requesting a “qalam” nib.

Tom K.

Thanks to Salman (SMK here on the board) I know how to cut these. Hang onto those pics as that’s the writing effect I’m after. Only in English. I’m a big fan of calligraphy, whether I can read it or not, and would love MB to offer right obliques in the same sizes as left.

[thygreyt]

Tom,

 

The reed pen is the reason for my user name.

 

Thanks for sharing!

[empliau]

Tom: re the qalam - I wonder if that comes from the Latin calamus, a reed, which was cut into a stylus and later a pen.

[Tom Kellie]

  On 4/7/2018 at 9:38 PM, dubhe said:

I thought it might be nice to see three colours of 149 together, with their B, OB, and BB nibs.

This might be the last time I have them together as I am listing two of them to start a fund for something special...

 

~ dubhe:

 

Several minutes ago I was looking through the FPN Classifieds where I saw your listings for the OB and the BB.

I wondered what they looked like — well, here they are!

Thank you for sharing this triple portrait. Seeing these three together is a rare treat.

I hope that they'll soon go to new homes where they'll be treasured, so that you're able to proceed to your next special pen.

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

  On 4/7/2018 at 10:46 PM, Reed_thoughts said:

Tom,

 

The reed pen is the reason for my user name.

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

~ Reed_thoughts:

 

What a surprise to know this!

I've never known if Reed was your:

• surname

• personal name

• alma mater (Reed College in Portland, Oregon)

Now I realize that it was connecting to something altogether unexpected.

Had I not been reading about “qalam”, I'd have no notion about the significance of a reed calligraphy pen.

The graceful yet bold strokes produced by “qalam” are remarkable.

You've chosen such a meaningful nom de plume.

Thank you for confiding this.

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

  On 4/7/2018 at 9:51 PM, Ghost Plane said:

Thanks to Salman (SMK here on the board) I know how to cut these. Hang onto those pics as that’s the writing effect I’m after. Only in English. I’m a big fan of calligraphy, whether I can read it or not, and would love MB to offer right obliques in the same sizes as left.

 

 

~ Ghost Plane:

 

Without my having stated it, you may have answered the question in my mind.

I'm glad to know that you share my appreciation of any type of fine calligraphy.

In the past week I've been fortunate enough to encounter excellent posts by SMK.

What I've been asking myself is what sort of oblique nib might be best suited for such writing?

Left or right oblique?

Are you saying that a right oblique might offer special qualities?

Montblanc's Bespoke nibs offer a substantial latitude in what's possible.

The Bespoke Small Signature and Signature nibs are wide. What might be an optimal configuration?

I ask just for fun, but with strong interest in what you might reply, as fresh nib possibilities interest me.

When told “that can't be done because...” I never know how to respond.

Most of the finest life science students I've taught were those who ventured where others had told them “it won't work because...”.

Tom K.

Edited April 8, 2018 by Tom Kellie

[Ghost Plane]

Since obliques are just stubs turned in different directions, different angle obliques make it easier for fountain pen users to change the variations of horizontal to vertical lines without having to perform gymnastics with their paper and pens.

 

I love wide obliques as the horizontal to vertical ratios shift, giving distinction to my humble scrawl. Hence my BB and OBBB selection for the Skeletons. I wanted daily writers, but not the boring focus on filling out forms that seems to drive so many nib selections. These float along for hours and the script is easier to read than that of similar sized ball nibs.

 

It’s the same streak of artistry that led me to colored ink instead of black, blue, red hive mind choices.

[Tom Kellie]

  On 4/8/2018 at 1:38 PM, Ghost Plane said:

Since obliques are just stubs turned in different directions, different angle obliques make it easier for fountain pen users to change the variations of horizontal to vertical lines without having to perform gymnastics with their paper and pens.

 

I love wide obliques as the horizontal to vertical ratios shift, giving distinction to my humble scrawl. Hence my BB and OBBB selection for the Skeletons. I wanted daily writers, but not the boring focus on filling out forms that seems to drive so many nib selections. These float along for hours and the script is easier to read than that of similar sized ball nibs.

 

It’s the same streak of artistry that led me to colored ink instead of black, blue, red hive mind choices.

 

~ Ghost Plane:

 

What you've eloquently expressed is sound thinking, from my point of view.

I share your outlook, if not the depth and breadth of your overall fountain pen experience.

What remains unsettled in the murk of my thinking concerns left oblique vs right oblique nibs.

It may be self-evident that I'm committed to wider nibs, and to obliques. That's likely to be reinforced within the coming week.

I'm not bright enough to grasp the left oblique vs right oblique differential. Are Montblanc's current standard nib exchange offerings all left obliques?

If so, for writing flowing calligraphy in Turkish, Urdu, Persian, Arabic and Kurdish, would a right oblique be preferable.

For writing in 中文, written Chinese, all of my pens work, although they're no substitute for a 毛笔 or brush pen.

To my great surprise, the 149 Platinum OBBB writes 中文 with flair, including smaller strokes.

If you don't mind, would you please tell your thoughts about the possible benefits of using a right oblique broader nib for non-Western calligraphy? Thank you.

Tom K.

[Ghost Plane]

I’ll have to defer to those experienced in the right to left scripts. The Persian Diversion was content to borrow my 1.3 Visconti stubs back in the day, but he was a left-handed overwriter, which made his Farsi and Arabic flow beautifully to my uneducated eyes.

 

All MB are left footed, given the corporate focus on Western alphabets with average right handed users writing left to right. Given their near absolute failure to market those nibs, then complain about lack of demand, it’s no wonder the opposite variant is bespoke only.

 

A few times a year, someone posts on the board asking about options for Hebrew or Arabic. Inevitably they are referred to Dollar or a custom grind.

[Tom Kellie]

  On 4/8/2018 at 12:57 AM, empliau said:

Tom: re the qalam - I wonder if that comes from the Latin calamus, a reed, which was cut into a stylus and later a pen.

 

~ empliau:

 

International search engines have been compromised where I work and live, therefore I sought the assistance of several kind former students who now work overseas, far from here.

Their investigation uncovered an entire family of cognate words and antecedents for “qalam”, including the Latin “calamus” which you had kindly pointed out.

The oldest root turned out to be the Classical Greek “Κάλαμος”, or “kalamos”, meaning a reed, or a reed pen.

A Greek myth told of a youth, Kalamos, who drowned himself in the Meander river when his friend Karpos drowned during a swimming competition.

After his death, Kalamos was turned into a water reed, with rustling leaves perpetually making the sound of lamentation for his lost friend.

The Greek Kalamos was then used to describe reeds, especially those used as pens, and also to express deep affection.

19th Century American poet Walt Whitman wrote a section of “Leaves of Grass” called “Calamus”, directly related to both reeds growing in clumps and affection.

The myth and the word entered other languages, including Latin “calamus”, Hebrew “kulmus” or quill, and Sanskrit “कलम” or “kalama” meaning reed or pen.

Later the term was adopted in Arabic as “قلم”, or “qalam” meaning pen or reed pen, which in turn influenced East African Swahili with “kalamu”, meaning pen.

Contemporary English words related to the above include:

• Acorus calamus, or Sweet Flag, a perennial wetland reed also known as calamus.

• Calamari or squid, from the Latin “calamarium” or pen case and ink horn.

• Calumet, from the Old French “chalemel” for reed, with calumet referring to Native American ceremonial pipes with reed-like stems.

In Ornithology, the hollow shaft of a feather, i.e. the quill, is formally designated as the calamus.

Thanks to your very helpful comment, this etymology and associated terms became known.

With Appreciation,

Tom K.