How to with the piston filling mechanism

[Seney724]

3 hours ago, CS388 said:

My first suggestion would have been to lubricate the piston - then I read this:

 

 I heard a small tink when I unscrewed it completely near when I finished cleaning it. That’s when I screwed it back on and it was just loose completely. 

 

It sounds like something has broken.

I'd guess that the spindle has cracked (not fully broken). It may no longer be returning the piston to the very top of the barrel, hence the gap. This may have happened if the piston was getting stiff in the barrel

 

From your description, I don't think you are doing anything wrong.

 

I don't know where you are, but if you are near a Montblanc dealer, take it in and get their opinion. 

I find most of them friendly and the advice is free.

 

Good luck.

Yes, I quite agree.

My only other thought is that perhaps the helix needs to be reset into the piston rod.  If the helix is not set quite precisely then the piston rod will not fully retract or will fully retract before the turning knob has screwed all the way down to the barrel.  

Regardless, it seems to me the only way to sort these all out and know is by removing the piston.  An easy thing to do if you have the correct tool and know what you are doing!

Good luck!

[Laurion96]

7 hours ago, CS388 said:

My first suggestion would have been to lubricate the piston - then I read this:

 

 I heard a small tink when I unscrewed it completely near when I finished cleaning it. That’s when I screwed it back on and it was just loose completely. 

 

It sounds like something has broken.

I'd guess that the spindle has cracked (not fully broken). It may no longer be returning the piston to the very top of the barrel, hence the gap. This may have happened if the piston was getting stiff in the barrel

 

From your description, I don't think you are doing anything wrong.

 

I don't know where you are, but if you are near a Montblanc dealer, take it in and get their opinion. 

I find most of them friendly and the advice is free.

 

Good luck.

Thank you. Nobody in my state is knowledgeable on MontBlanc’s, officially. The only official dealer in my state sells jewelry and has no idea anything on pens in general, just sells them. Closest one would be in Texas, about a day away. I am not knowledgeable on how these instruments work inside so I will send it off. I’m new in my career so I’d rather focus on that than learn a new skill to take it apart.

[Seney724]

1 minute ago, Laurion96 said:

Thank you. Nobody in my state is knowledgeable on MontBlanc’s, officially. The only official dealer in my state sells jewelry and has no idea anything on pens in general, just sells them. Closest one would be in Texas, about a day away. I am not knowledgeable on how these instruments work inside so I will send it off. I’m new in my career so I’d rather focus on that than learn a new skill to take it apart.

There is absolutely no need to have to get your pen to Montblanc. 

There are some very capable, extremely well qualified people who can do the kind of work it needs. 

It sounds like you are in the southwestern part of the USA, correct??

[CS388]

5 minutes ago, Laurion96 said:

Thank you. Nobody in my state is knowledgeable on MontBlanc’s, officially. The only official dealer in my state sells jewelry and has no idea anything on pens in general, just sells them. Closest one would be in Texas, about a day away. I am not knowledgeable on how these instruments work inside so I will send it off. I’m new in my career so I’d rather focus on that than learn a new skill to take it apart.

 

Okay, if it's not convenient to 'drop into, a shop, I'd agree with Seney724's advice.

 

There are plenty of good pen technicians in the USA and they will get your pen working faster than sending it to Germany (Montblanc repairs usually go to Hamburg) It will also be more economical.

The big advantage is that these technicians will address and fix the specific problem with your pen, whereas Montblanc would fully service the whole pen, which isn't always necessary.

 

Other members from the USA will probably chime in with recommendations - or you may be better starting a new topic, asking for recommended US technicians?

 

Good luck with your career.

[Laurion96]

52 minutes ago, CS388 said:

 

Okay, if it's not convenient to 'drop into, a shop, I'd agree with Seney724's advice.

 

There are plenty of good pen technicians in the USA and they will get your pen working faster than sending it to Germany (Montblanc repairs usually go to Hamburg) It will also be more economical.

The big advantage is that these technicians will address and fix the specific problem with your pen, whereas Montblanc would fully service the whole pen, which isn't always necessary.

 

Other members from the USA will probably chime in with recommendations - or you may be better starting a new topic, asking for recommended US technicians?

 

Good luck with your career.

Thank you for the recommendations, I will check that out. I’ll check with people in the pen club I found for some nearby people. That is good to know about not sending it over to them. I’m not the most knowledgeable as you can tell, but I appreciate learning more. The technical stuff I plan to learn eventually, but since I just started the career I want to focus on that.

[Laurion96]

1 hour ago, Seney724 said:

There is absolutely no need to have to get your pen to Montblanc. 

There are some very capable, extremely well qualified people who can do the kind of work it needs. 

It sounds like you are in the southwestern part of the USA, correct??

Yes, in Oklahoma. Tolls have also increased so much recently it costs about $25 gas and tolls just for a round trip to the dealer….

[Seney724]

3 minutes ago, Laurion96 said:

Yes, in Oklahoma. Tolls have also increased so much recently it costs about $25 gas and tolls just for a round trip to the dealer….

Yes, if you are in a pen club why not check with your friends about any recommendations they might have for you.

I know and have used a really outstanding fountain pen repair professional who is not far from you.   Feel free to get in touch with me via PM if your pen club friends have no good options to offer you.

Good luck!

[NoType]

1 hour ago, Seney724 said:

Yes, if you are in a pen club why not check with your friends about any recommendations they might have for you.

I know and have used a really outstanding fountain pen repair professional who is not far from you.   Feel free to get in touch with me via PM if your pen club friends have no good options to offer you.

Good luck!

@Laurion96 And this is exactly why I treasure this subforum — @Seney724’s kindness to proffer an abundance of assistance, @CS388’s efforts to provide advice and information, and @Mark from Yorkshire’s input are shining examples of the generosity of spirit of members here, and their willingness to spend time for anyone in need of help!

[Seney724]

27 minutes ago, NoType said:

@Laurion96 And this is exactly why I treasure this subforum — @Seney724’s kindness to proffer an abundance of assistance, @CS388’s efforts to provide advice and information, and @Mark from Yorkshire’s input are shining examples of the generosity of spirit of members here, and their willingness to spend time for anyone in need of help!

Thank you very kindly @NoType.  Speaking for myself and, perhaps the others, I am simply trying to follow the wonderful example you have created for us!

[Laurion96]

1 hour ago, NoType said:

@Laurion96 And this is exactly why I treasure this subforum — @Seney724’s kindness to proffer an abundance of assistance, @CS388’s efforts to provide advice and information, and @Mark from Yorkshire’s input are shining examples of the generosity of spirit of members here, and their willingness to spend time for anyone in need of help!

Thank you, I agree, I was skeptical since it was my first time here, but I’ve read it is a great place to find information for these wonderful writing instruments. It’s been very difficult just googling things. I really appreciate the help!

[DimitriDiak]

On 10/23/2024 at 9:15 AM, Seney724 said:

My only other thought is that perhaps the helix needs to be reset into the piston rod.  If the helix is not set quite precisely then the piston rod will not fully retract or will fully retract before the turning knob has screwed all the way down to the barrel.  

Regardless, it seems to me the only way to sort these all out and know is by removing the piston.  An easy thing to do if you have the correct tool and know what you are doing!

@Laurion96 I also feel that the way you use your piston is fine.  My pistons some new models and many of them older with many years of use are tougher than described here.  Also I absolutely agree with @Seney724 comments.  Let me explain. 

 

It appears that I have had the same concern about one of my 149 pistons.  It seemed to work fine but it would not tighten all the way.  So I asked a friend who has a large collection about it and he showed me how one of his did the same thing and that he was told by a MB assistant that this is normal for some of the new pens and actually advantageous.

 

Not being satisfied with this I built a tool out of thick wire to remove the piston and then reset the helix by giving it a half turn (to one full turn max) and it fixed the gap between the barrel and the knob.  Hopefully this is a simple solution for someone who has experience with pistons.  This was my first time doing this so it is not as difficult as it might seem but I definitely followed the advice of some YouTube videos on how to service a piston.  

[NoType]

On 10/23/2024 at 12:46 PM, Seney724 said:

Thank you very kindly @NoType.  Speaking for myself and, perhaps the others, I am simply trying to follow the wonderful example you have created for us!

You’re welcome.  And I in turn have been trying to follow the example of countless members here, such as @Barry Gabay, @DKbRS, @DimitriDiak, @Feamat, @fpupulin, @Ghost Plane, @Pau, @RMN, @SHIRABOSHI, @siamackz, @Tom Kellie, @PAKMAN, @zaddick, and tens and tens more here who I am surely forgetting — please forgive me — who have made this subforum such a boon to all of us!

[Tom Kellie]

~ @NoType:

 

Thank you for your generous comments in the list above.

 

      Tom K.

[NoType]

4 hours ago, Tom Kellie said:

~ @NoType:

 

Thank you for your generous comments in the list above.

 

      Tom K.

@Tom Kellie If only my appreciation could be recompense enough for all that you and countless others have done and continue to do for this community.  The least I can do is to try to express it.  You are most welcome, and I wish only to add my efforts to everyone else’s.