The second was my Franklin Christoph antique glass 45. The first was with a vintage jade sheaffer flattop. Apropos to this thread I have had a pen commented on three times in my life in a positive way. 'Feeling/looking nicer' is a subjective thing which, as far as anyone else noticing how nice the pen is, comes down to how the pen looks more than how it writes. Now if by 'nice' we mean 'with character' really an italic/stub or flex pen is really not going to have a perfect correlate to a ballpoint. You can also use a felt tip pen in very fine diameters to achieve dark, bold, permanent lines. Fountain pens are generally nicer to use, but that, imo, also has to do with the glide of a fountain pen in tandem with using your arm vs. Regarding gel pens: gel pens are very smooth writers with consistent lines and are largely regarded (at last Uni-ball ones) as being much better at preventing fraud than other pens.ДЄs a product, fountain pens are more likely to skip, bleed, feather, and smear/smudge than a gel pen. Just that from the original argument standpoint: a fountain pen is inherently a 'luxury' item as it is anachronistic and not always the most practical tool to use. I'm not trying to say rollerballs/ballpoints are better than fountain pens (This is /r/fountainpens afterall). If you're wanting a good writing implement, look elsewhere.ДЄbsolutely. If you're wanting a status symbol, MB is for you. An interview with the CEO of MB will explain what was going on in their company here: In other words, they are more or less sold as art pieces and status symbols. Montblanc saw the writing on the wall for the fountain pen and the CEO changed their strategy to account for the change of fountain pens from a utility to a luxury item. This really shouldn't happen with a pen of that price. If you have a look around there is never a shortage of anecdotes of MB pens that write poorly out of the box, and sometimes ones that don't wite at all. If you have a look at their history their prices for each of their pens started increasing in recent decades while cutting corners in the quality. Most of them are essentially a $70 pen with a hugely jacked up price. I probably won't buy another but I'm really happy with the ones I got.ДЄnd it's ok if people don't like them, in my opinion they are expensive, but amazing pens. But then I went to the local boutique to buy some ink and felt the pen, came out with my platinum 146. I thought I would never buy one, it was 'too much'. Feel them, write and then you can really say of they are for you or not. I would look for a boutique and try them out. If I wasn't able to afford them without a huge whole on my wallet I wouldn't. I understand that they are expensive, maybe too much. I have other pens, that I really like, but I always go back to my MBs. Well made, beautiful to look at and my best writers. I have 3, a modern 146 platinum trim with a OBB nib, a 146 R with a Masuyama BB stub and a 74 from the 70's with a EF nib. Montblanc is the most debated brand on this hobby IMHO. As a plus, when I uncap it and the rose gold tri-color nib comes out, I can't help but feel like it's a special occasion every time. Obviously Im not an expert and Ive barely scratched the surface of options out there, but it's remarkable how well the MB holds it's ground as my most dependable writer so far. Have yet to try a conid though and I suspect that's the one that might top it imo. I could go on and on because no other pen that I've tried since I got the MB149 has the total package like it does. It is silky smooth on any paper, ink starts every time pen touches paper, ink flow consistent, not too dry not too wet, posts well, and quality of nib construction can be seen under magnification. More importantly though I got it as a daily writer. My first pen in this hobby was a Monblanc 149 because I wanted to start out at 'the top.' The status symbol is definitely there because everyone who has seen it has positively commented. At first you like because it's world famous, then you hate because it's pretentious and overpriced for what it is, then you love again when you learn more and appreciate the heritage.

Montblanc pen warranty