With all the positive support for Pelikans on this board, I've been poking around sites that sell them (darn you, FPN - I thought my itch had been scratched for a while, but even with a small pocketful of new pens, I'm thinking about Pelikans and how I don't have one!).

Anyway, at the bottom of this nibs.com page is a pen I initially just glanced at and then found I've had to go back to look at again and again. The old school tortoiseshell with brown cap and section is just beautiful!

I'm pretty into the modern black w/ silver trim look these days (I'm seriously considering an M805), but the brown M400 just makes me want to pick it up, hold it, and feel it warm to my touch. Ah... paired with an espresso brown handmade leather journal... My imagination has me sitting in a den in a club chair or at a mahogany desk, fine single malt at hand, penning my memoirs with a pen like this .

Was this colour combination ever made in other sizes (the M800 for example )?

Have you seen other pens out there with a similar deep, rich brown?

Ryan.

Hi Ryan,

Pelikan did make a tortoise shell 800, but it was a very small number of pens (about 1000, I believe) and was made for the Spanish market. They are hard to find and are quite pricey when you do. I don't think that there was ever a 600 in tortoise, but I could be mistaken.

It might be worth noting that the M200 was also available in tortoiseshell for a while. Pop a gold nib on and you have (nearly) an M400 .

Martin

I have both the M400 in White Honey and an M400 in Tortoise.
I much prefer the Tortoise.

What size were the Tortoise that Levengers sold about 8-9 years ago?

I also like the brown cap and the tortoise barrel combination. Unlike the new 400s, the logo on the cap is engraved and there's no metal trim next to the nib. Havana brown goes well with it.

J

I believe it was an "upgraded" M200 with a gold nib (but don't quote me on that ).

Martin

Now I wish I'd saved those old catalogs.

IIRC for what Levenger's was selling it for it should have been a M800!

i could be wrong but I believe the 200 "tortoiseshell" is essentially a brown marble rather than looking a lot like tortoiseshell. Nevertheless, I liked it but never got around to buying one. I think Regina wanted $75 for one and I really didn't want to spend that much on a 200-level pen. It did not have a gold nib in this case.

For all Levenger's absurd costs and sometimes absurd concepts (really, who needs a leather, monogrammed paperclip?) I have gotten some good deals in their outlet. A circa junior for $16 ($23 with S&H). A leather 2-pen case for $12.

My M200 tortoise is pretty much the real thing. It's a little darker than the old M400 tortoises (tortii?) as I have one of these too but the colour depth is the same. I'll post a pic when I have time. I would compare with a new M400 tortoise/white but we seem to be sold out at the mo' .

It's currently sporting an 18k nib off an "old" style M600 and does a very nice job too!

Martin

well, my memory may be shakey or may be of a different pen. it may be that Levenger's version was different from the $75 version I've seen also.

I still think they should make a brown marble 200 now. or somehow incorporate browns/golds into a 200 design. Loooove my white tortoise (as you can tell by my avatar.)

How much is a Brown tortoise Pel 400, used in excellent condition?
J

I stole, er won mine on eBay (still with the "14C Fine" sticker on the barrel) for $60.
Mint condition, old style, black cap and fill knob, embossed Pelikan on top of the cap, one cap ring and no barrel rings.

I've never bought a vintage pen before, so I really don't know where to start looking, but I did come across this page - there are three different brown M400s - at the top, bottom and centre of the page. I don't know that I like the rounded style so much, and of the other two, I like the colouring of the one at the top of the page, thought that could just be the images.

Are these prices fairly representative?

Ryan.

Regarding the pens on that link I just posted, with a closer look, are the top and bottom black caps, and is the centre pen the only brown? Digital images are irritating sometimes.

Ryan.

Try Rick Propas' site:

The Penguin

I see that he currently has a few 400NN's in tortoise for $205. I don't have any connection to Rick other than he's a friend of mine and he sells really nice (well restored) pens.

have fun,
Chris

Jeen,

I have the Pelikan M400 in tortoise (from Nibs.com, as it happens) and it's one of my favorites. I would argue that Pelikan Brilliant Brown is the perfect ink for the pen. I also use Brilliant Brown in my Piazza Navona; in both cases the ink just seems right for the pen.

Regards,

Ryan, the Pelikans at Penopoly include a mixture of vintage and new. The one at the bottom of the page is more acurately a 400NN, made from 1956 through 1965ish. It's a great model, but if you don't like the style, well, hey there are others out there too.

The other two are preceded by the letter M to indicate a modern production. The one at the top is the iconic M400 otherwise known as a workhorse for its utter dependability. However, I'm thinking the center one is another model, perhaps a Levenger, perhaps a 200 series, because it doesn't have the gold derby like the top one. Curiously, it does have a gold nib. Perhaps others can clarify for you.

Digital photos can be frustrating, but they all have brown caps.

Overall, I'd say the prices are average, but yes, you really should check out Rick Propas's site. It is totally awesome!

Hope this helps.

Dorothy

I sit corrected.
My M400 Tortoise does indeed have a brown cap, section, and barrel end.
Subtle, but noticable when held against a black one.

Dorothy, thanks! I was wondering about the differences in the derby (though I had no idea what to call it ).

So if the one at the top is an M400, meaning modern, when did Pelikan stop production on the modern brown/tortoise shell M400s?

Out of curiosity, will a modern nib fit into a vinatge pen?

Ryan.

When did Pelikan stop production on the modern brown/tortoise shell M400s? Well, that's a good question. I'm not sure, but the Penguin has an M400 in tortoiseshell on his site and he dates it to the 1990s. The Penopoly M400 at the top of the page is marked "West Germany," so I'm thinking early 1990s on that one (before the Berlin wall came down and Germany was re-unified). But don't quote me on those dates - they're purely ballpark! But I bet Rick Propas could tell you!!!

As for the nibs, I know that some vintage nibs will fit into some modern models and Rick can do that for you. But honestly, I've never thought of putting a modern nib in a vintage Pelikan because I loooove those old nibs so very much! I find them much more fun than the new ones. Just my 2¢.

Dorothy

PS From time to time there is talk about Pelikan producing the M600 or M800 in tortoiseshell, and if they ever do, they'd have a long line of customers waiting to snap them up!! It's such a classic, don't you think?