u/Adventurous-Age9279

I found this pen way in the back of a little-used desk drawer today. I don’t remember where or why I got it; it’s from way before I started collecting pens, though, so I think I must have gotten it from a work event or something.

Google says it’s a Starwalker Metal and Rubber ballpoint. Does that seem correct? And, if so, does this look like a legit one? (As an aside: the barrel does not feel like rubber to me - it feels like resin/plastic. Or, if it is rubber, it’s a very hard non-tacky rubber.)

Second, assuming it is legit: does anyone have experience with/opinions on MB ball points? I’m not a huge fan of ballpoints - all of my “real pens” are fountain pens or rollerballs. I mean, there’s nothing wrong with ballpoints and they certainly have their place; they’re just not my preference. But I’ve never used a Montblanc ballpoint, so I’d be curious to hear from those who have used them as to your thoughts on the writing experience.

In short, I wonder whether it’s worth buying a ballpoint refill (the one in there currently is dried out/empty) to try it out, or whether to just try to sell it.

Thanks for any thoughts and insights!

Folks, for your enjoyment, I present to you my newest acquisition: the Montblanc Sakura 333 fountain pen. 

I’m essentially speechless. It’s utterly, extraordinarily stunning. (And ordinarily, I’m not someone who particularly likes either pink or rose gold, let alone both together. But it works *very* well here.) Because I was short on time, the pictures don’t do it justice. But I will someday grab my real camera and take some more formal pictures

(Note: the notebook shown in the pictures didn’t come with the pen - it’s a Moleskin sakura notebook. Moleskin isn’t my favorite paper for fountain pens by any means, but it’s serviceable, and I happened to come across it shortly after ordering the pen.)

I do have a question for y’all. I am grappling with whether to ink and use this pen or instead leave it un-inked and just have on display. I went through this when I first starting collecting fountain pens. I ultimately decided that, because my whole interest is specifically in “functional art” (with pens as well as other items that I collect), it would be weird for me personally to have a functional art object but never use it. Example: some people buy limited edition bike frames to hang on their walls as display objects. I don’t do that: I use them (carefully: I don’t go riding on rough trails with them, but I do regularly ride them under appropriate conditions). To each their own, of course.

But here’s the thing: although I got a relatively good deal on this pen compared to what it normally sells for, it still was rather expensive. I have one other limited edition pen (the Montblanc Einstein) that‘s of roughly the same value that I do have inked, use regularly, and occasionally carry with me; but unlike this one, while it’s also a limited edition, it’s far less limited (4810 versus 333). In addition, the Einstein is made of metal, not porcelain. And as you’ll see from one of the attached images from the booklet, it comes with a stern warning basically saying “Hey, dummy: this thing is a limited edition made of porcelain! There ain’t no replacement parts; and if you break something, we might not even be able to repair it. Proceed with due care.” So, given both of those facts, this pen isn’t ever leaving my house. And here’s the thing: most of my long-form writing occurs *outside* of my home. That is: I tend think and write best, and therefore most frequently, at cafes; less frequently, at my office at work. Since most of my writing is long-form work-related writing, this means that if I inked it, I would only use it rarely since it’s not leaving my house. That said: (1) I do do some writing at home - mostly short sessions of journaling and some creative writing for my own enjoyment; and (2) inking this pen only to use it rarely does strike me at first blush as silly and contradictory, but using it only rarely also makes it less likely that I’d damage it, so it would have some benefit, I guess.

I’d be curious as to your thoughts. What would you do given the parameters and constraints above

I went to Yoseka Stationery in Brooklyn for the first time today! It was great; I highly recommend it. The space is smaller than I would‘ve thought from pictures online. As a point of comparison, it’s about the same size as The Paper Mouse in Boston (Newton), but laid out differently. But, like The Paper Mouse, it has a well-curated selection of pens, paper, and ink. (A whole lotta inks! Which is mostly what I was there for.) So I didn’t feel it was lacking for anything that I might be looking for. And I know for sure that they have a lot more in backstock than there’s room to have on display, because I heard at least half a dozen customers ask for certain things, and the clerks said “we don’t have X out on display, but I’m pretty sure we have it downstairs.” And they did, every time! (In my case, there was literally only one ink I was looking for that they didn’t have; but the clerk kindly offer to make me a generous (free) sample bottle from the one remaining open bottle they had on display.)  The employees were all very helpful and very friendly. All in all, a great experience! I only bought a few things because I only needed a few things, but I’ll definitely be buying from them again, either next time I’m in the city or online. 

The only “notes” I have are:

1. I didn’t see a wheelchair/accessible entrance. (Because I don’t have a disability myself, I didn’t look particularly hard for one; they very well may have one that just wasn’t obvious.)
2. I got there 10 minutes before they opened and there were already two people in line ahead of me waiting to go in. And 10 minutes after opening, it started to get busy and a wee bit crowded. If, like me, you’re averse to crowds, I definitely wouldn’t go on the weekend or holidays, when I can only imagine it would be even more crowded. (I was there on a Wednesday afternoon and it was hoppin’!)

Oh, and the inks shown in the picture, from left to right are:

Ink Institute Jadeite; Nagasawa Kobe #10 Mikage Gray; Nagasawa Kobe #51 Konocho Midnight; Ink Institute ShadowSnow; and a sample bottle of Nagasawa Kobe #16 Nada Brown.

(And a cool tote bag)

I’m on a 10 day work trip in Philly and NYC so I’m hitting up various fountain pen and paper stores along the way. I’m currently on the NYC leg and picked up some inks I hadn’t come across before or haven’t had a chance to try yet at the West Village location of Goods for the study. (They also had a decent selection of Iroshizuku inks, but I’m all stocked up on Iro at the moment.) I’ll be going to Yoseka later in the week. I won’t be going to Fountain Pen Hospital because I affirmatively do not need any new pens. 😊)

Starting at top left, the inks are:

Diamine Forever Skyline

Sailor Satellite Crayon Project Amani Oshima

Sailor Shikori Yonaga

Nonble Calico Ink set (which might not end up being colors I’ll use all that often; but I love calico cats and it was relatively cheap; honestly, I’d have bought it for the box regardless of which colors it had!)

IWI Great Heat

I’m looking forward to trying them. I have a pen with me that’s filled currently with an ink I don’t love (pen is shown in last picture; but the writing shown was with other pens); any suggestions on which of these new inks I should fill it with?