Montblanc Vintage 1950–1959 Twist pencils of the 1950s

Besides the Pix push pencils, Montblanc also offered twist pencils in the 1950s: 20 and 21 with the “Reflex” imprint, 22 and 23, 222 and 223, the 24 and the slim OO2 and OO4. According to “Collectible Stars” volume II all twist pencils of this period take 1.18 mm leads.

How the mechanism works

Montblanc launched its first twist pencils in 1924; the chronologies of the Diary and the model catalogue give the same date. Inside runs a thin metal pin as thick as the lead. Its rear end is bent, passes through a spiral and engages in the slot of a tube; turning the spiral pushes the pin forwards or backwards, depending on the direction. The mechanism is regarded as reliable but does not tolerate overwinding — it then breaks.

Twist pencil or Pix

Only the push pencils were called “Pix”; a twist pencil is not a Pix (forum post of 22 November 2006). The number index in “Collectible Stars” volume I treats it the same way. The Pix pencils of the 1950s are therefore described on a page of their own (see “Not to be confused with”). Until about 1960 a numbering rule also applied to the Pix: the first digit gives the line, the second is a 7 (forum post of 16 September 2005) — 172, 272, 372. The twist pencils of this period do not follow it.

The models

“Collectible Stars” volume II lists these twist pencils:

• 1949–1950: the 22 and the 23, both with a broad, curved gold clip, and as counterparts the 20 and 21 with the imprint “Reflex” — shaped like the 22 and 23 respectively but without an engraved star
• 1951–1957: the 22 with a broad gold clip and a cap ring, and the twelve-sided 23 with two narrow rings
• 1954–1958: the sturdy 222 with gold clip, centre ring and gold tip, in black, burgundy, grey and green, and the twelve-sided 223 with a narrow gold ring
• 1958–1959: the 24 with a twelve-sided turning knob

On the 223 and the 24 the number is on the barrel end. For the 222 the collectiblestars.com database considers a small Danish production likely; it is also shown in a Danish Montblanc catalogue (Penexchange forum post of 10 November 2024 (thread “Montblanc 222 selten?”)). For the numbers 22 and 23 the database also lists prototypes in export colours such as dark red, grey, green and turquoise in thermoplastic. They are undated, and whether they belong to the pencils of the 1950s is open.

The slim OO2 and OO4

The OO2 and OO4 are made of hard rubber and carry an engraved star and the imprint “MONT BLANC”. The OO2 is 8 cm long, the OO4 12 cm, both 0.7 cm thick; the collectiblestars.com database gives the same dimensions. “Collectible Stars” volume II dates both to 1952–1967. Volume I also knows an older run without engraved star (1927–1947), in which the 004 was slightly longer at 12.3 cm. According to a forum post of 3 December 2006 the small OO2 was mostly supplied with a notebook.

Same number, different pen

Several numbers stand for entirely different pens at other times:

• 22 and 24 are fountain pens of the second line in the 1960s; the collectiblestars.com database also knows a pre-war 24 in hard rubber.
• 222 is a push-knob filler in the 1930s, a desk pen in 1961–1969 and a fountain pen of the Classic range in 1981–1982.
• 20 also denotes a Danish pre-war Meisterstück, a desk pen of the 1970s and a Ballograf ballpoint.

Twist pencils of their own were made in Denmark, among them the numbers 40 and 46; they are listed with the Danish production.