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Montblanc safety pen no. 2, black 1920–1930

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Safety pen No. 2, black, 1920–1930

Black hard rubber, round, without clip and without cap ring; round cap top with a ribbed edge and a large white star; on the cap “MONT BLANC” with the mountain and a small air hole. Gold nib “MONTBLANC” with the 2 in the star, “14 CT” and a heart-shaped breather hole.

Key facts

Production
1920–1930 according to “Collectible Stars” I; the page formerly gave 1921–1929 — the dates the Diary gives for the 2 lg (for the 2 k: 1920–1929); the page title formerly gave 1908–19201
Size
volume I distinguishes 2 k (15.3 cm), 2 (17.5 cm) and 2 lg (19.0 cm), all Ø 1.2 cm1
Filling system
safety pen: filled with a pipette, the nib is turned out and retracted again by turning the end of the barrel2
Nib
14 ct gold nib “MONTBLANC” with the size in the star and heart-shaped breather hole — 1924–1929 according to volume I; 18 ct for France3
Dimensions
17.5 cm with the cap posted, Ø 1.2 cm4
Sources and notes
  1. “Collectible Stars” I; Diary (guide: Safety Fillers); text of this page.
  2. “Collectible Stars” I.
  3. “Collectible Stars” I; 18 ct for France: forum post of 26 February 2005.
  4. “Collectible Stars” I; length ±0.4 mm, diameter ±0.05 mm; measured with the cap posted as in the collectiblestars.com database.
  5. “Collectible Stars” I.
  6. “Collectible Stars” I.
Montblanc safety pen no. 2, black – open view
Montblanc safety pen no. 2, black – nib
Montblanc safety pen no. 2, black – closed view

Safety pen no. 2 — nib, cap and later number

The photos show a size 2 safety pen in black hard rubber, one size above the no. 1 and built the same way: filled with a pipette, with a nib that is turned out and retracted with the knob at the end of the barrel. According to “Collectible Stars” I the no. 2 was made from 1920 to 1930.

The nib

The gold nib reads “MONTBLANC”, with the size 2 in the star and the carat mark 14. According to “Collectible Stars” I nibs still read “SIMPLO” until about 1925; nibs marked “MONTBLANC” appeared in 1924. The heart-shaped breather hole was usual in the 1920s; on the Hamburg nib it became round from 1930. The Bohème Je t’aime took up the heart hole again in 2002.

The cap

The cap has neither clip nor ring. The round cap top carries the white star and a knurled edge; the cap is marked “MONT BLANC” with the mountain between the words and has a small air hole. The safety pens of these years had no clip from the factory — clips were sold as accessories and slipped onto the cap.

After 1930

In 1930 the same form was given the number 15; as with the other sizes, the new number stated the shop price in Reichsmarks. From 1935 the three-digit safety pens with clip and cap rings followed, described on the page Safety pens of the 1930s. All sizes of the 1920s are shown in the overview Safety pens of the 1920s.

Not to be confused with

Literature

  1. aJens Rösler, Stefan Wallrafen: “Collectible Stars I — MONTBLANC 1908–1947”. 2014. ISBN 978-3-00-044233-9. On this website “Collectible Stars” volume I. more about the book ›
  2. bJens Rösler: “The Montblanc Diary & Collector’s Guide”. Christians Verlag, Hamburg 1993. ISBN 3-7672-1174-2. On this website “Diary” for short. more about the book ›