My 5 Most Luxurious Fountain Pens! 

My most luxurious pen cost me $33 brand new in box at full retail price. It was a Montblanc 149. Why so cheap? Well I bought it circa 1964. This really shows what has happened to the dollar over the years. I'm now 84 and my body is going the way of the dollar, but the pen is still in prime condition. I had never heard of Montblanc but saw an ad in Esquire magazine stating that the pen was worth the price. How true!

Hello HJ. Another brilliant video. Pens are like our children. You just cannot pick a favorite but it does bring out the finest qualities in each of them. Love the content of your videos. You give us a different perspective over the other channels that I have seen out there. Keep them coming my friend.

Posh indeed. Those Montblancs are so nice, I do not have anything close to that level. Love the guitar at the end!

Hearing Zeppelin's Over the Hills and Far Away at the end was an awesome surprise! Nicely played!

Great video as always. To me Montblanc Boheme but in the Platinum Crystal version would be the winner. It's a very special and rare pen. I have it for more that 12 years and is still my favorite

Great video! I have to say you have exquisite taste…in writing instruments and your wife! Such a wonderful woman beside the man. She is so thoughtful to choose the most perfect gifts for you. I’m envious of the Egyptomania, for sure and you also make me want to try a MB calligraphy nib. Nice posh pen collection; all keepers! I love that you appreciate what you have and want to give the love and attention they deserve ❤

i love your collection of pens, Hemingway. Stunning pieces you have! I’m solely a vintage collector. If I had to choose a ‘posh’ looking pen, mine would be my 1930 Sheaffer Oversized Balance. Made of pearl and black colored celluloid, there’s a professionalism about it that I can’t get enough of.

Love the Egyptomania pen. It is just elegant and has a unique nib.

Nice picks Tim. Your top 5 are your top 5! I may have chosen a few different ones from my collection...but I own all but the Egyptomania and a few others...KOP, Omas 360, Churchill, Cross with Sailor Nib, Pelikan M1000, Visconti Opera Master, Delta, a lovely Waterman, a few Sheaffers, and the elusive Black Pen Society Knights pen for us Knights..... from Franklin Christoph.

I thoroughly enjoyed this video. I, too, have become enamored by Montblanc pens. Being in many pen groups I read a lot criticisms of MB…not just about problems but costs. Fortunately, I have not had problems. Vintage or modern. I have a “pre-owned” 146 BB that is so thrilling to use. I wish everyone the Montblanc pleasure.

I don't have posh pens, living my simple life. Or simpleton's life, depending on who you ask. But I do have a pen with extraordinary powers and abilities. My Monteverde Innova with a medium nib is buttery smooth and comfortable. Yesterday, I discovered if I flip it upside down it is still as smooth as glass and writes a fine but dark line very suitable for crummy paper. With eyes closed I wouldn't think the nib was upside down. If I have nothing left for stationery save a roll of paper towels, my inverted Monteverde will yet prevail. I think, though, your Montblanc pens outclass Monteverde. Nice writing instruments!

I love Aurora pens. Their nibs are completely distinctive in the way they feel. I've never had to floss any. You know by Montblanc story, so I won't repeat it. I do have several Sterling Silver pens that I would put on this list. Most any urushi pen belongs here.

It blows my mind reading how people bought their Montblancs for $30 (I know it was in the 60s and 70s, but still!)! I loved seeing all the closeups of the pens. Makes me want to hold them and try them out!

Broken record, here, but each episode is better than its predecessor. Great work, T-man.

Lovely, lovely pens! Of yours, to say which I'd love the best is not to say which I might prioritize for acquisition and use! How would I not love a loving gift of a magnificent pen? I might have gone with the Conway Stewart, but the sacs are just to quirky for me. So, Egyptomania, for same reasons as you. Of my own pens, I guess the Yard-O-Led Viceroy Grand Victorian for its magnificent writing, heritage, silver, and craftsmanship. Truly an heirloom of my house now.

How lovely to see the Aurora Optima make an appearance! Mine has arrived, mine is the Viola / purple in and as you say it is expressive and offers that lovely touch of Aurora feedback. Thank you for all the inspiration you bring to the community!

Hahaha cool, posh pens!! I'm happy to mention that last Saturday I used 2 of the pens on your list: the HS Bronze Age and the Montblanc 146. The MB wasn't really my thing (it didn't have the calligraphy nib btw), but I also tried a vintage MB from the 70's I think and that was very lovely. And the Bronze Age was lovely too. I had to bring it home with me, and am very happy! Although it feels very posh to own 2 Homo sapiens (the other is a demo stones) 😂 I also liked where you said you're a bit of a Montblanc fan boy :)

I did so love the Montblanc Boheme pen after watching your video, so much so my partner bought me a new, never inked one from Izods. Can’t decide what colour of ink to ink it with. We have several Montblanc pens but this has become a favourite already.

Hi HJ! A good line up of poshy pens! Good guitar licks at the end too! Wonderful!

Of those five (seven?) bougie pens I would choose the Egyptomania as well. Nice video!

Having just invested in a 149 after many decades of owning various fountain pens (Parker, Pelikan, Montblanc 146, Pilot and TWSBI), it’s a design icon, writes brilliantly and, most importantly, makes you feel like a million dollars when you use it. You cannot put a price on that feeling.

They are all too beautiful. I just can't choose between them. Another great video!

I love how you adore upscale fountains pens and it is your signature devotion to high craft pens. I think your wife is a treasure for gifting you such amazing pieces of engineering. Great taste! I, on the other hand, am a fountain pen collector on the more frugal side. I am long retired boomer, and must be the luckiest FP collector of all time. Of my cheapest pens, I’ve had only one set of repeated disappointments of which I shall never repeat…by Staedtler, junk. I think it’s fitting that I can find sow’s ears and make silk purses out of them! lol I’m that old suburbia chick from the 70s, long hair, bell bottoms, that just wants to write, paint and garden. Not fancy, just functional. But I thoroughly enjoy living vicariously through pen connoisseurs such as yourself! Have a great weekend Hem! Edit: I would however love to own a Benu!

Good video!😊 the MB 149 & the MB BR....the BR for the reasons you stated...just a nifty pen, so neat...the 149 is an understated classy pen, both in its look & performance...thanks!

i enjoyed watching your special collection 🌼

Although I do not own one, I would have to choose the Egyptomania as my favorite, simply based on the design. I liked the acoustic outro to the video.

The MB Ernest Hemingway was selling for $300. in the early 1990's. A local department store had one but I didn't have the money. I remember my relatively young self looking at it longingly. I think it sells for over $2000. today.

I so enjoyed this video! I love the phrase “posh pen” and I was delighted to see the Conway Stewart Churchill honey noir on the list. Two of my favorite posh pens are Conway Stewart Churchill Heritage pens.

Great video HJ. My top 5 luxurious Fountain pens are as follows: 1.MB 146 w/ Calligraphy Nib, 2. MB Boheme Rouge, 3. Homo Sapien Bronze Age, 4. Conway Stewart Honey Noir, 5. Magna Carta Mag. 600. What can I say, I love flex nibs. See you Tuesday night, and thanks for your list.

Excellent video HJ. I knew you would pick the Egyptomania as your favorite and I agree with your very practical reason. It's unique as compared to the 149. This inspires me to dust off my 149 and use it again after 20 years. Yes I did clean it before putting it away.

I love the Montblanc 149. I do not own one but the aesthetic is such a quintessential fountain pen look. It’s what an excellent fountain pen should aspire to look like! lol. I own a Leonardo Furore Grande with a 14k flex nib. It sits on my leather pen case and it’s truly my go to when I want a luxurious feel. I call it my poor man’s King of Pen. It was by no means cheap, but I feel like the size and writing experience gets me close to what a $1000 pen feels like. Thanks for the video!

Very nice, passionate video indeed! I could have picked a Montblanc Boheme between 1999 and 2006 but I missed the opportunity. Too bad Jim! However, I've an excuse: I had 4 Montbancs149 at that time and 3 of them were NOT writing as they should have. I happened to meet a Montblanc high executive when he visited the town where I was living at that time. The man gladly took the 3 unsatisfying Montblancs to MB Headquarters in Hamburg for inspection. I got them back many months later with absolutely NO IMPROVEMENT whatsoever. The only thing they wrote was: when cleaning your pens, we noticed you haven't used our excellent inks, please do so from now on and you'll be good to go. I was so disappointed that I sold the 3 pens at a very low price. I still have the only 149 which has never let me down. That said, I've always been way more lucky with my 2 Montblancs 146. Have fun & thanks for your great shows!

oooh love these

I'm sure this week, the Pelikan would be on this list, but I'd be hard pressed to say what it would oust from the Top Five. Ftr, it's no surprise that my favourite from your selection is the pocket pen - the Bohème.

I too am a Montblanc fanboy, I love everything they do, pens, leather goods and watches. They have taken leaps and bounds with their watches. The new color recently introduced for leather goods is absolutely amazing, it is called warm yellow. I think the Duffle 142 and a slingbag are offered in that color, I want both pieces. Hopefully more pieces come along soon in that color. I currently have 4 Montblanc pens, but no fountain pen yet.

My Luxury brand of choice has been Montegrappa. I love their materials and their pens are weighty and have amazing fit and finish.

That Egyptomania is beautiful! I haven't seen you talk about Graf von Faber-Castell, they are my favourite pens very similar to MB in that they are first and foremost meant for use but are also impeccable. AFAIK all CC though...

Another wonderful video. Thanks! I have two Montblancs: a 120 cartridge converter that I bought in a German office supply store in 1978 for maybe $30. Has a double broad oblique slightly bouncy nib. (It just might be my favorite nib. The pen body is slimmer than I have grown to prefer.) Its Macrolon like finish I assume was designed to stand opposite the Lamy 2000. The other is a 147 which is a 146 that uses cartridges only and is called “the traveler.” It comes with a lovely leather case that will hold several cartridges. It has a fine nib. I find myself reaching for these two more than others these days I do have three Pelicans, all 800s. I bought a Jinhao 159 to size compare it felt a little large to me so I bought the 800s instead instead of the 1000. I miss the 1000 huge and wonderful nib. The nibs are a broad, a broad Italic, and a medium. The medium is on one of those limited edition, burnt orange. Anything that reminds of a Mont Blanc Hemingway! These have fallen into disuse. The italic seems a little sharp on the edges. And seems to skip on the upstrokes, but I lately have begun to think it was me rather than the pen, and in the meantime, have just not sent it to a nib Meister. I have two Visconti opera. Masters piston Phil, with the alternative metal nibs, whose name I do not recall it at the moment. They were both worked on before I got them by an Ed Meister. But they are a double broad and a double broad stub. I’m thinking of getting them back into rotation. And surprisingly, a Monteverde in Vincia with a black stub nib. I like the way it looks when I’m riding with it and how it writes. Aren’t Fountain pens wonderful? It was much easier when I had one pen and one ink. Would anybody take me seriously if I wrote with a purple ink?

Great video! I think the most interesting of your pens shown here is the Egyptomania. It just has a unique quality to it. The only one of the pens you have in this video that I also have is the Conway Stewart Churchill lever filler. It's my current favourite pen.

It's always interesting to see which pens a reviewer I follow loves. There are pens - and then there are pens we love. I have three Bohemes and each one never fails to bring a smile of pleasure to my face and mood. I don't have a Montblanc Egyptomania, but every time I see a review of one, there's something inside of me that just says YES! So does the Montblanc Franz Kafka, that also costs an arm and a leg....some day, I hope[! My other deep love Is a Scribo Feel. The Feel has that uniquely Italian sense of design, shape and color, and writes so well.

Live the Boheme.

I agree with your winning choice. Great video as per HJ.

I own a MB 149 with the calligraphy (flex) nib. I have the impression the nib is a bit softer than the one on the MB 146 (was able to try out both in the boutique). Nice that you mention also the Aurora: handled that exact same pen two weeks ago, but went for a Scribo instead. Pretty sure I'll revisit the Aurora later on though.

Your MB collection is outstanding.

Now you need to try a Sailor with a 21K nib.

I love mine Montblanc Meisterstuck 149 M nib, great expresivity and great flow, my workhorse when i sketch

All are great pens, but my favorite is the last one since I have its clone - Majohn X1 - which I love !!

I finally got a MB 149 -but in Rose Gold because I think it is prettier for me as a woman. I did so with some trepidation, as I had heard that some get iffy nibs. Not so. It is truly lovely. I got a Visconti Crystal Dream a couple of years ago, and I struggle with it. I am going to put some Kon Peki in it per your recommendation, and see if I can get it to heal itself. I am in love with my Sailor King of Pen Storm Over the Ocean. I have Aurora Optimas in several colors-I will never give them up, they are workhorses. I really enjoy my Pelikans, M800 in red (I put fabulous red inks in that one) and a M1000 in classic green (where all of my green inks go.). Pens above this level are mostly art works-like the Pilot Namiki Emperor series that I appreciate for the body-but I dont have one because we all need something to yearn for.

Hello. My Montblanc 149 and my P.C 823 are my babies, they will never leave me.💖🦘 Cheers from Australia.🤗

I find it hard to define 'posh' in this context, but my two most expensive pens are both Kawecos, but I do have an OMAS in the post (which cost me 100GBP less).

No Pelikan 800? My tortoise stripe with a custom cursive italic nib is my number one, even over my MB 149 and 146.✒️🖋️

Although I am skittish about piston fillers, these are fabulous pens !

For me the Egyptomania and the 149 for sure

Thanks, HJ. If I had the money to buy any of those choices, I would buy the Egyptomania.

Hey HJ! Just subbed to the channel. I've been going back and watching some of your older videos as well, and was wondering if you are in the fountain pens subreddit. I think a lot of the topics you cover in your videos and lists of pens for different categories (pocket, dark academia, etc.) would be of interest to people there, and could start conversations there that would be of interest to a lot of people. Keep it up!

HJ- for e my top 3pen choices are as follows : Mont Blanc 149, the Pelikan M1000, and the modern Parker Duofold Centennial, circa 1996 or so. What do you think about my choices? Wonderful video, as always, HJ.

HJ, have you ever seen Peter Greenaway’s movies? Your videos kind of remind me of them. You put so much in the scene to look at. I love it!

You need the top Japanese pens in your life. I used to be a Europhile until I tried Namiki, and Nakaya, and Pilot, and Sailor. Much more luxurious and far better writers in my opinion.

Please tell me you fill that Cartier with Oxblood.

Another great video,mind would be the Aurora optimum.,frank in Oswego,ill

President Kennedy carried a MB 149 but used it only for his signatures, or so I once read.

Hi HJ probably the first time I’ve seen the Egyptomania up close. What’s up with all the scratches? Is it video quality? Bought used? Loving wear a tear? Please let me borrow that Cartier pen 🔥

I like your comment about "us" cleaning our pens too much. As someone who never learned that it was "necessary" to clean fountain pens at all, and didn't, at all, for like 40 years, I have a very relaxed attitude to such compulsive ideas. I must admit though, that when I once removed (pulled) the nibs from a couple of Parkers, they were very 'glued' into position by old ink deposits. I wrapped them in soft copper and very slowly pulled and pulled. And it went well. But people less expert in tinkering than I could easily have ruined it. But no, as long as you use the chemically same kind of ink, (there are 6 different types), there is IMO no reason to clean the pen. It just wears the pen, though occasionally you might, just to avoid parts becoming 'glued' into place. There is also the consideration to avoid any "exchange of fluids" between pens and ink bottles. For that reason I wash parts that need to be dipped, but just water, and I never pump ink back and forth when filling. I know your pens well of course by now. I have some of them. And I note that this video was made before you took delivery of your M1000. 😉 "Luxurious" is a special attribute. I feel it, but I have never thought much about.

I’m baffled by the love of the writing experience of Mont Blanc fountain pens. I tried the Egytomania, not impressed. I bought 146, unimpressed compared to others in my collection. And most annoying is the build design/quality. The cap wiggles when screwed on and when posted. I know some other brands do this, but none I own. I expect more for the money and for Mont Blanc. I love MB inks. I love my SE MB ballpoints. What fountain pens do I have that I enjoy or treasure more? Caran d’Ache Leman, Pelikan M600 Art, and Waterman Caran At the end readers of this, you do you. If the MBs do it for you, I happy for you. Just wanted to voice of disillusionment.

No Pelikan M1000? Why not?

Apparently, people are happy believing Montblancs are flawless… Well, it's up to you guys, no gatekeepers here either!

Other than learning more about pens, what I am getting about your videos is that it is OK to write slower! I’ve been berating myself about how ugly my penmanship - and mistakes-ridden! - has become over the past decades but now I realize it’s the speed that I’ve been going.

Good day Hemmingway, at timestamp 4:30 you display tarot cards. Why is that?

Where is his accent from?

Could you please talk a little about new Kaweco Piston filler 🙏

Second!

That's an interesting video, thanks. Have a few comments, if I may. First off, I don't consider these pens to be luxury ones. All of them are just premium basic pens. Do you truly believe, that a simple black pen is a statement of a good taste? Nowadays, as we hardly ever write, having such basic pens just stopped making sense to me. I do understand, half a century ago those things had a real function. Now a pen is either unique and collectable or utterly pointless.

There is really nothing to compare to my Montblancs.... In my Humble Opinion...... When are you going to talk about Guitar collections? 😎