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

[Tom Kellie]

Two Bespoke Nibs

[Ghost Plane]

  On 5/3/2018 at 4:05 AM, _InkyFingers said:

Family line up:

 

 

 

Maybe it’s the historian in me, but I love the look of the well worn nib best. A lifetime or more of loving use.

[Uncial]

WALLET WARNING!

 

Reading this thread may result in slipping down a rabbit hole with no apparent bottom. For those with money boxes with a very definite and firm bottom, care should be taken when drooling over OBBB, OBB, (possibly OB) BBB, BB and various 'signature nibs'. Some MB customers have recently reported having been loaned such highly addictive items and have since swapped out 149 medium nibs and are currently awaiting news on a Dostoevsky swap to a BB*. Please be aware that using fancy shading inks when these nibs are 'back in the hand' can result in a further acceleration of the associated madness and much pain in the wallet. This addictive disease is often accompanied by relentless pursuit, swooning, the selling of personal items to pay the bills and an obsessive return to currently owned stubs and music nibs in a vain attempt to stimey the addictive tendency.

 

DISCLAIMER: FPN cannot be held responsible for the pictorial traps laid on this thread by others.

 

*If anyone is aware of whatever saintly soul is the patron of pens and writers that could help with this miracle, your advice and guidance would be greatly appreciated.

[Tom Kellie]

  On 5/3/2018 at 3:21 PM, Uncial said:

*If anyone is aware of whatever saintly soul is the patron of pens and writers that could help with this miracle, your advice and guidance would be greatly appreciated.

 

~ Uncial:

 

The long ago Bishop of Geneva, Switzerland, St. Francis de Sales, is the long-suffering patron saint of writers.

May he apply heavenly healing unguent to your wallet, soothing your pilgrim bruises gained at the shrine of the Grail Pen.

Failing to receive a Dostoevsky BB would be both a crime and a punishment for one who neglected to light a taper for the lost souls seeking the legendary 139R OBBB, said to have been made in an edition of one for none other than Mae West.

Why? When a Montblanc sales representative salaciously flirted with her, she replied: “Oh, Bebe, Be Good”, which he misunderstood as a request for an OBBB in good condition.

A miracle will find its way to you when a long-lost case of Montblanc Racing Green ink is mysteriously delivered to your doorstep by the leprechauns.

Tom K. Devout Believer in OBBBs

[Uncial]

[zaddick]

I want one of those cases or Racing Green. I recall my daughter making a Leprechaun trak in kindergarden. I didn't know I could have kept it for ink collection. Ah well, live and learn. Another important life lesson brought to you by FPN.

[Tom Kellie]

  On 5/1/2018 at 6:37 PM, Reed_thoughts said:

Not as amazing as tom's nibs, but let me share some of mine!

 

 

~ Reed-thoughts:

 

Your image of the three nibs has made a stong impression on me, so much so that I've shown it to several students interested in product photography.

The composition draws me back to enjoy and learn.

The placement of the nibs on the paper is effective. The golden-hued inks on the nibs with gold is offset by the blue ink on the 1912 nib.

So well balanced.

The ink on each nib is especially appealing, as it reflects Montblanc fountain pens in regular use.

When fountain pens are used for writing, they take on the glow of age.

No longer showroom display case perfect, they're living tools sharing the written word.

Thank you for the image, which my students and I admire.

Tom K.

[Tom Kellie]

Yubi on My Half-Birthday

[Tom Kellie]

  On 5/3/2018 at 6:30 PM, zaddick said:

I want one of those cases or Racing Green. I recall my daughter making a Leprechaun trak in kindergarden. I didn't know I could have kept it for ink collection. Ah well, live and learn. Another important life lesson brought to you by FPN.

 

[empliau]

Yubi! Thanks for giving us a photo -- Pekingese regularly turn up in the early novels of the 20th century, and I've always been fascinated by them. He has a soulful gaze. And happy half-birthday! It's Father's day in my house -- my father-in-law's birthday, and the anniversary of my father's death.

 

Thanks for the information on St. Francis - my fourth fountain pen (Pelikan M400) was bought for me in Geneva. So appropriate!

[Tom Kellie]

Pelargonium Exuberance

[Tom Kellie]

[Tom Kellie]

Still Life With Strawberries

[Amit.]

CONGRATULATIONS TOM !!!

  On 5/8/2018 at 5:00 AM, Tom Kellie said:

 

 

[dascott]

Inspired by all you nice folks in this amazing thread, I took the opportunity to try out OBB and BB nibs whilst in the Barcelona flagship store last weekend. I am a persistent F/EF nib user, and rarely use anything but green ink.

See some of my scribbles below (one of several pages), I struggled getting both nibs to flow, with the OBB being the harder of the two. I wonder whether this was my style of holding the pen, my angle of writing, or the pressure I was used to applying, anyhow even my wife, who is not a regular FP user, seemed to manage better than me. The staff were very patient and my indulgent wife was rolling her eyes about how excited I was to try these nibs.

Ultimately, I have still to decide which to go for, albeit I am leaning towards the OBB, simply for the more variability and the challenge of learning how to use/hold it. I may opt for a new 146 or explore a vintage pen with one of these nibs (all my pens up to now are new or NOS).

They even had a bespoke EEF which bewitched me, even though it is about £1000, I guess I should start saving up now.

Incidentally, I also loved the corn poppy red, my first experience of this ink. It will be handy for marking assignments if I am too grumpy to use my favourite green!

 

[zaddick]

Boutique nibs are often badly treated, lightly maintained, and thus often poor examples of the true writing experience.

 

The learning curve for an oblique stub like a 146 OBB is probably 30 minutes. You just need to let the pen rest on the paper in its natural sweet spot and then try to to wrestle it out of alignment. It changes the angle of line variations from the vertical/horizontal to the diagonals. I prefer MB oblique nibs these days.

[Cyrille81]

I went to my reseller this morning and I asked him to find me an Heritage Rouge & Noir Serpent Solitaire 1906 to join my rollerball of this model. I will ask to swap the nib with a BB. Excepted with my Hemingway (that is F or EF) it will be the first nib different than M. It is a shame that we can't received from MB Hambourg directly the desire nib. We have to order the pen with standard nib and send it back to MB to change the nib with the one we want... but I will make do. My next pen if I can find it when I will save the money for, will be an OBB. It will be my first oblique pen.

[Ghost Plane]

  On 5/8/2018 at 5:00 AM, Tom Kellie said:

 

Congratulations!

 

Plus lovely to hear people having fun on the broad side

[Autococker07]

Outstanding and happy to hear it!! Congratulations!

  On 5/8/2018 at 5:00 AM, Tom Kellie said:

 

 

[Kalessin]

Congratulations, Tom!