Falling Out Of Love With High-End Pelikans? (Some Thoughts For Students Considering One)

[lowfiwhiteguy]

So.

 

I've now owned, in the following order:

Pelikan M800 M
Pelikan M805 F

Pelikan M805 w/ Sorowka 0.45mm CI nib

Pelikan M805 w/ Mottishaw 0.6mm Stub

Pelikan M1000 M

Pelikan M1005 F

Pelikan M1005 Demonstrator F

Pelikan M1005 w/ Binder 0.4mm stub (As of last week)

 

These are the only pens I've ever owned and used. I loved the quality of the pen bodies, the precision and smoothness of the piston filling system, the ease with which one can (usually) knock out the nib and perform adjustments on their own... But through my experience over the past year and a half as a Pelikan nut, I've started to realise that maybe these pens aren't for me. Here is why:

 

I am a science student. This is relevant in two ways: Firstly, most of my writing is done in margins, using print, using numbers and symbols, on a wide variety of paper. Of course I own my own quality paper for leisure writing, but I find that as a disciple of engineering, my most enjoyable fountain pen moments are those in which I'm doing actual work and enjoying the pen in the process. My idea of leisure writing is doing a calculus assignment with a FP on Rhodia dotpad. I want a pen that makes my tedious homework more bearable, and allows me to add some conservative yet exciting flair to my work, which my professors have complimented me on. Secondly, being a student means that I am of increasingly limited means since I left the Army to return to my studies.

 

Due to these considerations, I'm finding that Pelikans (or at least the top-tier models which I have owned) generally have selling points which are irrelevant or sometimes even opposite to what my needs require. For instance, a fat, wet nib with a luscious line is what Pellies are known for, but for me, that is absolutely not what I need if I am to use my pen in mathematics or design. I need something with a well-controlled, but smooth, fine point which doesn't choke up when making small, light marks. Additionally, I find that Pelikan nibs, since I've known them, are hopeless out of the box. They all require expensive nibmeister work to write as they should. I can't afford to continue doing this. I'm finding that, even though my M1005 0.4mm Binder stub is absolutely stunning for cursive or print writing in diaries or whatnot... It's essentially useless as a math pen. It's too wet, and the stub profile means I need to pay more attention to making sure my nib is properly aligned, which is hard to do when I'm integrating Gaussians or whatever in a calculus assignment. While I love stubs and cursive-italics, they WILL skip if not held properly, and nothing kills my flow like a half-formed bracket or number. I love the look of it, but its heft and weight and nib character are just not what a student needs. The round points are a little easier to manage in math, but as they are Pelikans, they tend to always run wet, even when I've adjusted them to be as dry as they can without skipping. It's just not in their nature to do that, it seems.

 

I'm no longer interested in having to spend hours meticulously balancing my nibs under the loupe. I'm not interested in rhodium plated nibs or engravings or shiny resin bodies. I want a stable full of workhorses rather than a nest full of Pelikans, and having come to this conslusion makes me sort of sad. I really like the company but their nibs are really not for me, and it's taken a long time to figure this out. Since I was raised in this hobby on Pelikans, the thought of Japanese pens with converters makes me cringe... But as I've discovered, the nib makes the pen, and I feel that Japanese pens are designed from the ground-up to be able to make small, detailed strokes, and that these would suit me best. They also receive praise for their robustness and reliability in writing even out of the box, something I havn't read about stock Pelikans in a very, very long time. Plus, they also are much more affordable... So that's probably where my fountain pen habit will probably take me next.

 

I've decided that I'm going to let this brand new M1005 with Binder 0.4 stub go to a home that appreciates it more for what it is, rather than being owned by someone who wishes it were something else. So if you're a student lusting after one of these pens, I strongly suggest you consider what I've written here, and maybe try one out in a shop if you can, because they are simply not practical enough for me to recommend their use in science and mathematics. They're great for love letters and Christmas cards, though.

 

That's my rant. Once I have a career and time to spare to write actual letters or keep a diary, you know I'll be back for another M1000 in maybe BB for some serious writing bliss... But until then, I can't rationalise owning a Souveraen anymore.

 

It'll be up in classifieds soon if anyone's interested. Writing sample attached.

Edited July 31, 2014 by lowfiwhiteguy

[playtime]

Perhaps a vintage Pelikan? Pelikan did make eef nibs once....

[lowfiwhiteguy]

Perhaps a vintage Pelikan? Pelikan did make eef nibs once....

This has crossed my mind probably 1000 times lately. It seems that vintage pelikans in XXF are actually quite fine indeed... But for some reason I feel that using such an old pen vigorously on a daily basis is a recipe for disaster. I'm sure they're well-made, but if anything happened to it it would probably be a long and expensive process to have it repaired. I'd love to be wrong, though. I'm looking for something very low-maintenance. The price on vintage Pelikans is definitely within my range though.

Edited July 31, 2014 by lowfiwhiteguy

[playtime]

You'd be surprised how robust a vintsge pelikan can be, especially rhe 100n, 140, and 400/400n/400nn can be....

 

The hard part will be actually finding an eef nib....

[Wolverine1]

Get something like a modern Lamy 2000, or a Sailor 1911 Realo, both are examples of modern, functional FPs. Both are pens used by my friends who are faculty in Mathematics and in Aerospace Engineering respectively. And both still are quality pens as good as any hi-end Pelikan. I keep my M1000s at home for home use only, use a Sailor 1911 Realo or a Lamy 2000 when I am out for work.

[rochester21]

As playtime stated, old pelikans are well made, the actual problem would be finding a good ef nib.

 

Have you tried a japanese pen? Some pilot models(91) have good, precise ef nibs. There is at least one piston filler from pilot as well. Sure, the design might not be as elegant, but we`re talking about performance here

 

As for the Lamy 2000, the ef nib that i`ve tried was very smooth, but it actually wrote like a fine nib, at least when compared with a japanese ef nib. Same applies for pelikan. Sure, there were people here on fpn trying to prove otherwise(by using a certain ink-paper combination etc), but facts speak for themselves.

Edited July 31, 2014 by rochester21

[playtime]

you know, those 400 nibs, feeds, and collars can fit on a M400:).......i;d check Binder's site just to make sure........

[pajaro]

I sold the bigger Pelikans I had, and kept a few M200s and M400s, because they were inexpensive relatively, and they are amusing. The nibs aren't fine enough. The EF M400 made a good medium. This is seen in other European pens also, it's a matter of makers' taste and judgement. The M400 white tortoise I have is a delightful pen to use with a much older fine monotone 14K nib. That older nib actually feels like a fine. I have tried a number of pens lately to find a good EF nib.

[Matlock]

Horses for Courses. If you want an EF nib go for a Sailor (their MF is finer than most European EF) or, as I do, a Parker 75 with neadlepoint (80). If you just want to write love letters and Christmas Cards then keep your favourite Pelikan and send the rest to me .

[Ernst Bitterman]

I'd also look in the direction of Japan; they do some very nice really fine points. You might also ponder letting someone with the requisite skills reshape one of the points you currently have into something more to taste. I had an M800 under my hands a couple of weeks ago with a purported EF point in it; I had it down to a 0.25 mm line and not too wet for slightly feathery paper (which is not to put myself forward, but just by way of example; there are those far more capable than me, and closer at hand for you). It's a less expensive option than many of the avenues of a new pen.

 

If you're big on Pelikans, you might also look at something from the '60s; they're a little slick in their styling, but they're hardy and when they say fine point, they mean it. This sort of critter:

http://dirck.delint.ca/beta/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Pelikan-0408.jpg

[PAKMAN]

Seems like a simple fix would be to buy an xf nib for one of your pens and try it out. Or just buy a Pilot Metropolitan and use it while in school and save the Pelikans for life after school. You will regret getting rid of them, I believe.

[ziptrickhead]

I feel your pain. I very much love my M600 but even the fine nib just writes like a marker on the cheap paper we use at work. Worse is boxes that we have on datasheets that we fill out are TINY so it's not even like I can write larger to compensate for the wetness. Even the steel M200 nibs write with a softness that makes them wet writers and write even broader than what I would like for the EF steel nib. I just went ahead and ground a EF M200 nib to a needlepoint myself. Unfortunately for the larger Pelikans you have, you don't have an option for stiffer steel nibs and the M800 and M1000 nibs have always been known to be softer than the M600 nibs. I'm not sure you could even reduce the flow enough to compensate for the nib writing wetter from the tines spreading. It never hurts to try to get a nibmeister to grind down a factory nib and reduce the flow if you enjoy the pens enough though.

 

And as a reference, I got myself a Sailor 1911m as a work pen with a H-F nib. The Sailor F nib already writes thinner than the Pelikan EF IMO and because it's stiff as a nail the tines don't spread and it's been working out wonderfully.

[christinaofvermont]

lowfi,

 

Based on a different thread, did you not just recently receive that M1000 with the 0.4 mm stub? Let it lie quietly for a bit. Speaking from personal experience, there are a lot more pens that I have bought and sold and regretted afterwards than not, some more acutely than others. At least give yourself the chance to not have that shame-faced experience of having to buy the same pen twice.

 

If you still want the Pelikan piston factor, why not try the M200 range and get some swappable and more affordable steel nibs from the same source you've tried already, Mr. Binder? His work with the Pelikan steel M200 range nibs is exquisite. I've had in the past a XXF and a XXXF (both steel) that were every bit as competent for marginalia as say, some extra fine Pilot nibs. If not the 200s or 400s or plain 600s, and since you seem to favor the heft, you might try a M640 model. You can even put one of those steel M200 nibs in it, though it looks mighty peculiar...

 

My heart is for Pelikan, but looking at your situation coldly, a Pilot VP with an XF nib Binder-tuned might be your most facile choice for math stuff. Once you do the syringe-filled cartridge bit for a while, it is not that bad. Well, except for having to explain your needle kit.

 

Me, I'd never give up my solid blue M605 (that is, again, I'm an idiot) with the Binder gold XXF. I found out I need it to be happy, simply put.

[Bo Bo Olson]

215 has some heft, in it has a brass body...not cap. So if you post it, it will not be over powering heavy.

See what Richard can do for you with a new 215 and a XXF nib.

[lowfiwhiteguy]

Thanks everyone for your input! Kristiina, that was some great food for thought... Right now I have final exams coming up so I'm going to try to put this out of my mind. I live with bipolar disorder and sometimes when my brain is going 1000 miles a minute (as it has been recently) these sorts of predicaments cause me unreasonable amounts of stress, such that I literally can and have lost sleep over it. For my own sake I'm just going to put it on the back burner if I can for a week or so and see how I feel about it later on.

Thanks again!

[carlos.q]

215 has some heft, in it has a brass body...not cap. So if you post it, it will not be over powering heavy.

See what Richard can do for you with a new 215 and a XXF nib.

+1

Check out richardspens.com and the alternatives he offers for XXF and finer Waverly nibs.

You should also consider your choice of inks. IG inks will give a tighter line with less spread than dye inks.

[da vinci]

I would be interested to know why you are letting this one go as opposed to one of the other pens for example the 0.45 CI or one of the fines?

 

Is this nib particularly wet or skippy or have some other negative (when compared to the others from your personal perspective)?

[lowfiwhiteguy]

Edit: After slightly adjusting the feed, it writes flawlessly, better than anything I've ever owned. 0 hard starts, 0 skips, it just goes and goes. Huge relief! I still want a Nakaya, though, so this is going up for sale. I can confidently say that whoever gets this pen will not be disappointed... It's just simply not practical for my purposes.

Edited August 1, 2014 by lowfiwhiteguy

[Sasha Royale]

Please tell use what you want your fountain pen to do. Let's try to find a remedy, please.

 

Do you still like the large, heavy pen ? Your writing with the stub, in personal correspondence, is very

pleasant to read. Don't you agree ? I don't want you to abandon your beautiful set of Pelikans. Would

swapping a couple of nibs and choosing a dry-writing ink solve the problem ? Selling just one of the

Souverans would finance it. I fear re-selling your precious Pelikans will be a monetary "blood bath".

 

As points of reference, would FPN members offer estimates of prices will to be paid for some of the pens?

NOT how much you believe the pen is worth ! How much would you be willing to pay ? NOW. I know that

you believe yours is better and worth more, but LOOK !

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pelikan-Fountain-Pen-Souveran-M1000-Black-Green-M-/271562683655?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f3a65b507

 

Not intended as an offer. Not intended as an insult. How would you feel about 2700 pounds for the lot ?

Are they worth more ? Perhaps. I actually HAVE $4000 is discretionary money, and a set of Souverans.

[Guy007]

 

Not intended as an offer. Not intended as an insult. How would you feel about 2700 pounds for the lot ?

Are they worth more ? Perhaps. I actually HAVE $4000 is discretionary money, and a set of Souverans.

 

Sasha, he's sold all of the pens above and only has the "Pelikan M1005 w/ Binder 0.4mm stub" left, which he's fixed and is going to keep.