The Meisterstück 149 Calligraphy Appreciation Thread

[fpupulin]

Frank C and Detman101: I would not lost hopes. We are still stuck with the Covid, and Montblanc is stuck too. But I guess that the 149 with the Calligraphy nib has been a tremendous commercial success. Not only they sold these pens at a premium when compared to a ”normal” 149, but also sold them to a lot of people (like me) who already own one or several 149s, and was nonetheless willing to pay for them at full retail price!

i sincerely do not think that they will throw away such a “goose that lays golden eggs”, at least as long as there are hundreds of potential buyers still willing to buy it and queue up to get it.

 

They demonstrate to have the know how to produce what I consider the best contemporary flexible nib, and it is not improbable that they will find a way to maintain it in production, even though in a different “way” from a special edition.

 

Pennenut, I read a lot of posts referring to a forthcoming 146 with flexible nib. While it is true that Montblanc already offered one in the Solitaire version if the 146, as Nurmister said, it was a flexible medium nib, and the market clearly expressed its preference - as it was logical to expect - for the extra-fine flexible Calligraphy nib. So, a Meusterstück 146, hopefully standard - nothing fancy - with an extra-fine flexible nib would not be a bad marketing decision...

[MoriartyR]

10 hours ago, Pennenut said:

Does anyone know if Montblanc is planning to release a Montblanc 146 with a number 6 sized flexible nib (the same type of nib as on the 149 calligraphy edition)??

My understanding from social media posts from at least one MB retailer is that this is coming, exactly as you describe. Timing is unknown.

 

[Detman101]

@fpupulinThank you for the encouragement, however, my fear controls my thoughts. I've seen other manufacturers stop producing a great pen simply to make it more rare. Their commitment to narrowing availability overreached their desire for profit. I am thinking of Visconti in this instance. Their "Corsani" line sold better than crack in the 1980s, yet they limited the production of the pen regardless of profit.

[JungleJim]

I think Fritz-Schimpf Stationary in Tubingen Germany has one in stock for the MB list price (since distributors aren't allowed to discount). While I haven't bought a pen from them, I have purchased inks and stationary over the past year and they are reliable. Mr. Sebastian Stolz is the manager there and is very helpful towards his customers.

 

Sorry, I had to remove the link per MB forum rules. Just do a search for the MB 149 Calligraphy at the Fritz-Schimpf website.

[MoriartyR]

Stilograph Corsani has had a few recently. They seem to get them fairly regularly. That’s where I bought mine.

 

[fpupulin]

Also Iguana Sell, a vendor with excellent reputation (I never bought from him, however), has one in stock.

[Frank C]

Thanks for the suggestions. I've looked at these websites. They have the pens in stock. Iguana Sell calls theirs a Flex M, but the photos appear to be the extra fine. I'll let you all know when I get one. I appreciate the encouragement. 

[Nurmister]

Chiming in:

 

La Couronne Du Comte has it available for back-order, and they currently have a sale (until tomorrow) for 20% off on all products. Probably the best price, especially since you're outside the EU (so no VAT).

[fpupulin]

 

Now, I have the pen, but I do not have a treatise at hand......

[gyasko]

15 hours ago, Nurmister said:

Chiming in:

 

La Couronne Du Comte has it available for back-order, and they currently have a sale (until tomorrow) for 20% off on all products. Probably the best price, especially since you're outside the EU (so no VAT).

 

Be prepared for a very long wait if you choose that route.  11 months and counting here…

[Detman101]

1 hour ago, fpupulin said:

 

Now, I have the pen, but I do not have a treatise at hand......

Goodness gracious...that is just soo beautiful!!

[Nurmister]

53 minutes ago, gyasko said:

 

Be prepared for a very long wait if you choose that route.  11 months and counting here…

 

I had no idea, thank you for the heads-up. I made the suggestion as other places aren't even taking orders! Montblanc should make this a regular production pen, but perhaps the nibs are too labor-intensive to produce.

[amberleadavis]

These look so amazing.

[stevesurf]

On 6/6/2020 at 5:39 PM, fpupulin said:

 

 

 

Gorgeous and brilliant: it should adorn the 149-Calligraphy's presentation box top instead of a minimalist representation of that nib's capabilities!

 

OT: Franco, how did you get your image title in the frame's border.  I lost that capability when I moved to Adobe CC 🙀

[Nurmister]

Man, you know how to frame your photos.

[fpupulin]

2 hours ago, stevesurf said:

 

Gorgeous and brilliant: it should adorn the 149-Calligraphy's presentation box top instead of a minimalist representation of that nib's capabilities!

 

OT: Franco, how did you get your image title in the frame's border.  I lost that capability when I moved to Adobe CC 🙀

 

Dear Steve: I have some files that just includes the frame and the texts, "custom made" for the size of my digital images. So I have one for my Hasselblad H5D (50MB, to 6132 x 8176 pixels), and one for my Nikon D200 (3872 x 2592 pixels). I still scan my 6 x 6 cm Hasselblad V negatives and slides, but they already have their own frame on the film...

 

The digital frames are made of a few layers, and their size is about 250 pixels larger and wider than the image (so that, when I put an image on the top of it, the image has a black frame 125 pixels broad). The first is a transparent layer with the black frame, plus the yellow arrows and the text "ORIGINAL FILE 0000 x 0000 PIXELS" (all flatten). There are other two layers of text, which are not flatten and are therefore editable. The first say "NAME", and I change it for the title of the image. The second says ©2021 FRANCO PUPULIN, and I just change the date each new year. The file is saved as a unflatten TIFF.

 

When I have my image ready, I just open the correct file ("FRAME © FOR H5D" or "FRAME © FOR D200"), change the text of the NAME, orientate the image (landscape or portrait according to the image I have to paste), and paste on it the image as the uppermost layer. Then I flatten anything and save the file with the name I want, so that the file with the empty frame is saved unchanged for the next use.

 

I like the effect of the frame, which reminds me the border of the film negatives with their imprints. 

[como]

@fpupulinYour posts always make me want to buy a MB Calligraphy! Even though rationally I know I have beautiful vintage pens that can perform the same if not better, and that I am no Franco 😀😀😀!

[fpupulin]

 

4 hours ago, como said:

@fpupulinYour posts always make me want to buy a MB Calligraphy! Even though rationally I know I have beautiful vintage pens that can perform the same if not better, and that I am no Franco 😀😀😀!

 

[como]

4 hours ago, fpupulin said:

 

 

😀😀😀Thank you! My will is strong and pocket shallow. I prefer it over the other way around 😀!

[Fawate]

Cap wiggling

Sorry if I arrive a bit late in this subject, but I also realised that the cap of my 90th Anniversary 149 also wiggles. In fact,it wiggles a lot compared to two 1990s 149 that I have and I tried to use the same amount of force when capping all the pens. 

After that, I contacted the AD of my city and examined their inventory. Yes, they were very accommodating. All the brand new pens of their store had this characteristic. I was thinking of sending the pen for service, but decided not to do it in the end.

I think that it is the new normal.