I'm looking to replace my present crossword puzzle pen which is a Rotring 600. I've decided that a Pelikan 215 is the right call because it's got a metal barrel and thus has the heft, but not the bulk of the Rotring.

Here's the problem. I'm pretty sure I can find (or order) an EF nib for the 215, as nothing larger will do for crosswords. However, I'm less enamored of the steel nib of the 215. Is there an EF nib available for a Pelikan 250 that I could then swap? This would give me the subtle flex of gold, but still allow the weight of a 215. Are there other options? I do a lot of crosswords and so dedicating a pen to the task is only just.

Hey MartiniPundit,

Yes, you've definitely got some options here. The m250 nibs are available in EF, and they will fit your m215 just fine. However, that's a monotone gold nib, which depending on your aesthetic, might not suit the all-silver trimmed m215. The other option (which is what I now have in my m215) is an m400 nib. These are also available in EF and are two-tone, which looks great not the m215 body. I have the black m215 with this nib, and it's wonderful.

Hope this helps!

Ryan,

Did you find that the gold nib felt different on the m215 than a steel nib? I am planning on getting a fine nib to replace the steel medium nib on my black m215, and I've been thinking of getting one of the two-tone 14k nibs. But then I keep thinking that I'm probably just being goofy, and that it would be just as good of a writer with a standard steel nib.

Was the 14k nib worth the extra cost?

TMann

Ah, thank you very much. I hadn't thought of a 400 nib. I knew it was a good call asking the question "out loud" as it were.

Now the only remaining question is which color to get the 215 in? I lean towards blue/black ...

Hey TMann,

Well, it depends. I find, on the whole, that the m400 nibs are finished more consistently than the m215 nibs, so the quality is consistently better. That said, if you get a good m215 nib, my answer would be no - I don't notice much of a difference between gold and steel. And if there's one thing I've learned from buying a lot of Pels, it's to buy from a nibmeister. Buying from someone like Richard nullifies any factory carelessness, so then an m215 nib would likely be great. In fact, I find the Pel steel nibs to be rather springy and not lacking from the gold in that department. I do, however, really like the appearance of the two-tone m400 nib with my m215. It makes it look like a really class pen - but is is worth the money? Who knows....

Hope this helps.

Hi, TMann! I'm not Ryan, but for what it's worth, I thought the M215 F nib was utterly smooth but it was somewhat stiff (though not as stiff as my Lamy Safari F). The M steel M215 nib seemed less stiff to me, although it was probably just as stiff but perhaps more forgiving in feel because the larger sweet spot of the M. Does that make any sense?

Anyway, with that in mind, I can compare that experience with the 18K 2-tone F gold nib that came with my M620 pen (which is different from the M400 nibs, I guess). My M620 gold F does not feel as hard to me as the steel M215 F nib did. Having read many posts here that suggest that there is no difference in feel between steel and gold nibs, I was surprised that I had a definite impression that the steel F felt stiffer than the gold F on my modern Pelikans. I did compare them side-by-side. That is why I sent my F steel M215 nib back to Chartpak for the M. Maybe my experience is just an anomaly, though.

Thanks for the input. I think that the current state of my PayPal account will dictate which nib I end up getting. But I am a sucker for shiny gold and silver nibs, so I suspect that I'll end up getting the m400 nib...

TMann

Just be careful. I keep hearing horror stories about Pelikan EFs. I'd never use one, but...

I have a pair of 215s that came with fine nibs and were decent writers OOTB, although one has sported a custom nib for a year. I can't say that they are any stiffer than other 2xx gold or steel nibs. They are not in the same league as an 800 nib.

I also have factory EFs on an M200 (a bit of tooth but has never skipped or had other problems) and a really dandy EF on an M625 that is wider than the one on the M200. I don't use EFs a lot anymore but the 625 is perfect for me with a small journal and has stayed in the rotation since I got it. Neither of them is as narrow as the EF on my lone Snorkel.

I like the M400 nib idea. The two-tone nibs replaced by custom nibs might be great for sprucing up several 2xx pens that have been neglected of late.

Bill


[edited for missing word]

I'm not sure I followed things here. Is there a soft or springy fine Pel nib that would fit an M2xx?

Not really. Either you notice the difference between the gold nib and the steel nib, or you don't. Certainly you could have one customized for more flexibility, but the pen has to be worth that extra expense to you first.

Thanks, David. I understand now.

we can classify pelikan nibs to 3 kind:

a new 600s'
b 700, 600 old style, 400 old/new style, 200s'
c 100, 150

Hi,

Not quite, we have other pens liked the P1 and M30, M60 and Pelikanos.

The gold and steel nibs...Well, it reall does not seem to matter since you will not get many advantages with having a gold nib. As long as they are finished properly, they should both write nicely.

I do occasionally stock Pelikan XF nibs that are reground to my specification and the specifications of people who want them. I also sometimes, try to keep Pelikan Stubs which I always regrind properly.

I have a monotone silvertone 18K nib that goes into my M425. Pelikan does not sell that nb separately though.

Dillon