No. 4 Safety, 314 Nib

This safety filler was made sometime between the 1920s and early 1930s. This pen is rather special because it has a rare nib on it. According to Collectible Stars I, this "314" nib came in size 2, size 4, and size 6, and they were made for carbon copy paper.

To me, this implies that the nibs were rigid in order to withstand more pressure without splaying. This might explain its unique design with the short tines.

This pen is from the personal collection of Ariel Zuñiga - a generous contributor on FPN, seminal Montblanc collector’s books, and now this website. Watch out for a series of reviews of truly rare pens thanks to AZ’s generosity!

It is believed that all black octagonal safeties from the 1920s were also available in mottled red and coral red, but they are rarer to find.

The octagonal pen or "achtkanthalter" series was advertised for those wanting an "elegant and shapely" writing instrument. You can find more examples of these beautiful shapes on our website (No. 4J, No. 6 silver overlay).

Look at that beautiful accommodation clip! From what I understand, these clips were not sold with the pen, but instead, the client was free to purchase one separately if they wished.

Safety fillers are a wonderfully intelligent filling system if you ask me. The nib unit rests inside the barrel when the pen is capped. After uncapping, a turning knob at the bottom of the pen is used to extend the nib unit and lock its collar against the section so that no ink can flow out of the barrel. Because of the fact that the nib unit is always submerged in ink, this pen was advertised as never suffering from hard starts!

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