My new Pelikan M200 arrived in the post today. It's a marble green one with a fine nib and I've just filled it up with some Diamine Steel Blue ink to give it its first test drive.

It's a lovely smooth nib, but I didn't find the pen all that comfortable in my hand. I just didn't seem to have a comfortable grip on it and so found myself pressing down harder thatn I should be. I've also ended up with an inky finger. When I was using Parkers at school I always used to end up with ink on my finger, but it's something I've not encountered with vintage Conway Stewarts or Parkers.

I'll give it time to see if I get used to this pen, but right now I'm feeling a bit disappointed. I'm wondering if the pen isn't suited to me, or if it's just that I've been tending to use pens with hooded nibs recently and maybe that's why I don't quite feel comfortable with this pen. I had been really quite excited about this pen arriving, especially as other people seem very taken with these pens, and because it was my first "real" modern fountain pen buy for many years.

Hi Carrie,

Sorry to hear about that.

Considering your other pens, like the CS and the Parker 51, this pen should fit in well, size wise, so you shouldn't really have any troubles.

Are you maybe holding the pen fairly straight? If you do, try to relax your grip, and see if you can somehow hold it comfortably under an angle of about 45-60 degrees, and let it just glide over the paper. Also, this will force you to hold the pen higher up on the barrel, preventing you from getting ink on your finger.

See how it feels then... Thinking about it, it sounds liek you may hold the pen like a ball point pen, so just try a little higher on the barrel, and holding it under a less steep angle. A ballpoint you would normally hold under an angle of 80-90 degrees, because it doesn't write, otherwise. There is no need for that with a fountain pen, which should make it more comfortable to write with.

I've found that many people, whether they like fat pens or thin pens, can write comfortably with the M200. Of course there are exceptions, but I sincerely hope you're not one of them. It is so nice to have these (cheap) interchangeable nibs, and experiment a little with nib sizes and types...

HTH, warm regards, Wim

Interesting, Wim and Carrie.

I got an M200 back in December and loved both the shape and size of the pen (and the nib, of course). For the last couple of months I've been spending a lot of time with a thinner, lighter flexible-nibbed pen. Increasingly, the M200 feels very clumsy in my hand -- whether posted or not -- while my thinner pens feel fine. Probably some kind of non-conscious kinesthetic adaptation...


-Arnav

I'm probably in a very similar position. I've used Parker Reflexes all my life in school and got a Pelikan M200 and found it very difficult to write comfortably. The nib seemed very large to me and I felt myself bending it as my hand was higher up then usual.

I'm finding it easier and easier to write more easily with this beautiful pen however it's taking a lot of practice. I think in my case it's just one of those transition things.

Good Luck :c)

Perhaps it will just take a bit of time. From what I remember of these pens the nib is quite big though not as ridiculously HUGE as many modern pens . That probably requires a different angle of writing from your other pens.

The only Pelikan I have is a Go! which is wonderfully smooth and reliable and holds a lot of ink but - purely in my personal opinion - seems as characterless to write with as a rollerball.

You might try dedicating this pen to a single purpose, such as note making, or journalling. I often do that with a new pen to get used to it. Different inks and different papers will make a difference too. Finally, you could have the nib customized sometime, for a totally different nib experience. Just a few ideas. I actually love big nibbed pens, although I don't consider Pelikan nibs to be big. I also write at a high angle to the paper, and sometimes this makes a big difference in how a particular nib feels to me or how it performs.

I've been trying some letter writing with this pen and I still don't feel comfortable with it. The nib feels fine and writes very nicely, no problems about ink flow or anything. It's my actual hold on the pen that doesn't feel right, whatever I do it seems to dig into my finger when I'm writing. I think it feels just a bit too clumsy. Maybe it's just too wide for me, I've tried to see if I can adjust the angle or height that I'm holding the pen at, but nothing feels comfortable. I've been giving it a try, but I do tend to think that my next post about this pen could well be to offer it for sale

Can you elaborate a little more on how, and exactly where, you are holding the pen? Is it the screw thread tht is digging into your hand or is it the bottom end of the section (right where the pastic starts above the nib)? You are not the first person not to feel comfortable with the M200. But if you give a few more details about your grip and what you are feeling, you may get a few more helpful suggestions here.

It seems to be the plastic just above the nib that's causing me trouble by digging into the side of my finger, sort of midway between nail ending and knuckle (hey, aren't I good at descriptions ). If I try to hold the pen higher I feel as if the screw thread is in the way. I know that because the pen doesn't feel comfortable that I'm tending to hold it too tight, but even making a very conscious effort to relax when writing isn't helping.

I'm left-handed, which never seems to help these matters. This pen is just reminding me of how I always had trouble with fountain pens at school, whereas since I started using older pens I've never had any trouble. Maybe it's just modern pens that I don't get on with

Until nib size was mentioned on here, I hadn't appreciated just how much bigger the nib is when compared with the nibs on my Conway Stewarts.

I thought I had left my M200 home, but I just found it in my pen case. Carrie, gripping the pen right where the plastic starts is rather low, but it seems like you are doing it to avoid the threads above? Is the small smooth section between these two areas just too small for you? Do you hold pens in the conventional way? I tend to hold my M200 just above or clearly above the threads, so the rather small section is not a problem for me. It's the overall size that feels a little small.

I don't know if this is something specific to modern pens, but some pens suit a mall fraction of users while other are far more universally useable by people with fairly different grip styles. Examples of the later ar the Parker 75, various Sheaffers, the Aurora Optima (have my eyes on it), etc. I think pens with tapered sections that are smooth from the lowest part of the section to the as high as anyone will ever grip fit that bill. That's why I can easily see why almost no one would find the parker 51 too awkward.

Hi,

The M200 seems to be the only pen that fits me properly maybe because of my hand size. It is the only pen I can hold properly, all the other pens that I have are held differently either because they are too fat or need pressure to write.

Dillon

I keep on reading about all these people who love their M200s, makes me think there must be something wrong with me Anyway, I've tried and I've tried, but I just cannot get on with this pen, so last week I flushed it out and it's now sitting back in its box.

It can't be that I find the pen too bog for my liking. I decided that I did need one brand new pen and so my choice was a Duofold Centennial which I'm very happy with. In size that pen is a complete contrast to all my others, but still manages to feel completely comfortable and a pleasure to write with.

I gave long consideration to both the size and the grip area before ordering the 600. In the end I concluded a slightly larger pen with what appeared to be a slightly more substantial flare to the grip won me over. I have wondered since if the slight difference I noted was significant, particularly after reading the many attestations to the 200 on here. Ideally I should have been able to go to a store and physically handle the pens but was unable to do so. The extra cost for the 600 pales next to the time and expense that would have entailed.

Each pen I have is different. The Optima has even more flare to rest the finger on but is thicker so can fatigue if held too tightly. The Pel 600 has enough flare to keep my finger out of the ink but barely. The Adgio and rOtring are slim grips so a bit of attention to the hold is desirable but they are comfortable.

Given time you should be able to adapt well enough to it.

I just noticed the spread of dates on your posts. Perhaps you arn't adapting to it so well. Interesting to see you are finding that Duofold better. Somehow those higher end pens always seem to feel better. <_< My Aurora Optima would seem to be too thick for my thin fingers but it really feels the best of all my pens. I think because there is more pen there it can be better balanced. I've had my eye on the Duofold for quite a while too.

Definitely not adapting well It's the only pen I've had that I've not felt comfortable with and depending on what mood I'm in, I might write with anything that varies in size from the Duofold right down to a Conway Stewart Dinkie.

I was very nervous about buying the Duofold, even after trying one out in the shop and liking it. For me, it was the thought of actually buying such an expensive pen - even if it was much cheaper on EBay, it was still very expensive for me. It came with a medium nib which was much too broad and wet for my liking, so a quick trip back to Parker, it's got an extra fine nib and I'm completely happy with it. In recent weeks the only two pens I've been using have been the Duofold and a Parker 61 - the latter is always a favourite.

Although i just praised the M200 in another thread for being super-reliable, it is not a great fit in my hands either. A number of other people don't find it to be a very comfortable fit.

Just to revive a very old topic. To those who don't find the size of the M200 comfortable, have you got on with other Pelikans? It still bugs me that I didn't get on with that pen. I really fancied the idea of having a Pelikan with it being a piston filler and the chance to try out different nibs, I also loved how smooth the nib was. I keep wondering if I would get on with a different sized Pelikan, or if weight had something to do with it as well. I'd like to give Pelikan as a make another try, but if I go into a pen shop I can only try out the high end models.

I had a similar problem to you but lost my Pelikan M200 soon after in school . Haven't yet raised the funds to take the plunge into Pelikans again.