The term 'Classic' designated in the 1980s the former second line below the Meisterstück and is therefore not a Meisterstück. 'Classique' has stood since the 1990s for the smallest Meisterstück variant and is part of the main line. 'Generation' is the successor of the earlier 'Classic' line. The designations are not synonymous but mark different product lines and eras.
Unabridged posts from the archive of the German fountainpen.de forum. E-mail addresses and telephone numbers have been removed. The posts are in German.
Hello everyone,
My name is Charisse,this is my first time to post a question here.:blush: This is one of my favorite forum to learn the facinating world of fountain pen; therefore,I hope someone can help me figure out about the Montblanc "Classic" (or "Classique"?) in 1968.
What makes me confused about the title "Classic" is because I have read that Montblanc introduced a new series of high-class pens "Classic Meisterstück" in various color in 1968.
But when I saw another pen produced by Montblanc in 1968 which also has a title with "Classic"
http://cgi.ebay.de/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=14000&it…
Then,I am a little bit confused...:S
1. Is this the "Classic" of the "Classic Meisterstück" series?
2. Was this "Classic" FP also made in various colors?
3. When this "Classic" is not the "Classic Meisterstück" of 1968, in what years did Montblanc introduced this product line?
4. Is the "Classic Meisterstück" of 1968 the same model and size as "Meisterstück Classique 144"?
I am sorry if my questions seems quite silly. But I do hope to figure out the difference between these two "Classic" title.
It will be also of great help if someone knows where to find the answer of my questions.:)
I think a picture of "Classic Meisterstück" 1968 series can resolve most of my doubts, but I cannot find one so far.
Thanks for the help!
Charisse
Hi Charisse,
Yes, it sounds quite difficult and confusing but if you write it down it is easy:
"Classic" is the former second line of Montblanc, not a Meisterstück, and was named "Classic" within the 80s .
"Classique" is the small Meisterstück (since the 90s).
"Generation" is the former "Classic", which had to be renamed because of the new names for the Meisterstück lines.
Why did Montblanc do it? - Well, that\'s because somebody thought that French sounds more stylish, I think. It happened with the introduction of the "LeGrand" line, befor that there only was the 144 and 146 and 149 but only one size of complementary pens like the 164 ballpoint, the 165 pencil and the 163 rollerball. And with the introduction of the bigger complementary pens they probably wanted a name and not only numbers to call the difference. And as the 144 was the classical size they called it "Classique" and renamed the "Classic" to "Generation".
Got it?
Best regards,
Axel
P.S.
In 1968 there was no "Classic" at all. The Meisterstück fountain pens just had the numbers 12 and 14 with the "bishop hat" cap ring. Same size as 22 or 24 with two cap rings in the second line and as 34 and 32 with one cap ring in the third line.
All fountain pens between 1959 and 1969 had the same two sizes, just the cap rings (and the quallity of the nib as well as some gold ring applications for the Meisterstück pens) were the difference. The design was made by the late Albrecht Graf Goertz, who died last year. I was lucky to meet him on some occassions.
The same classification with the clip rings were taken for the following pens in 1969/1970. And only the second line with the two cap rings survived in the 80s and became the "Classic" line.