Consumption Item 33: 1950s Vintage Pelikan 400

[Breck]

If anyone has trouble making out the writing, let me know and I'll transcribe it.

 

It's hard to believe, but there's no other review of the 400 in the index. However, bdngrd wrote a review of the streamlined 400NN in green stripes here.

 

I love the tortoise finish, and think I could happily continue to limit my Pelikans to such. My ink budget doesn't lend itself to tracking down rare Pelikans, but I think even if/when my budget is enhanced, it'd be nice to focus on a single color within a single maker's line. For now, that's just cloud talk, though.

 

Anyway, enjoy, and apologies for my absence of photography skills:

 

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/CI331.jpg

 

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/CI332.jpg

 

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/CI333.jpg

 

The postscript should read a -0.5 to the Nib/Performance rating, not -1.

 

Other than that, dusting this pen off and using it for a week before the review was enough to convince me to start using my 3-pen case rather than my 2-pen case for non-pocket pens. I do not like to be without this one. Simply a great pen.

[QM2]

Very nice review, but -- ahem -- where are the photos of the pen?

I want photos of the pen!

Please : )

 

QM2

[Breck]

Silly me. Here are the shots from the auction. BTW, the seller was penwoffa on eBay. No affiliation, but s/he was very easy to deal with, great communication, good packaging, quick shipping, etc. I think others around here have dealt with him or her as well.

 

Here are the really good photos:

 

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/4001.jpg

 

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/4002.jpg

 

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/4003.jpg

 

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/4004.jpg

 

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/4005.jpg

 

There's enough light left, maybe I can take a couple of snaps of my own, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[QM2]

Whew, anxiety attack over.

 

Hey, that is a seriously nice pen! The nib is wow, the tortoise material goes perfectly with the gold trim, and even the piston knob is fetching! That is a great find, I am envious! Please give me a holler if you decide to sell it down the line.

 

 

 

Edited April 13, 2009 by QM2

[Breck]

Sell it!? You're crazy. Get your own!

 

Seriously, though: It seems Rick Propas always has some lying around, but his shop is closed until summer. He'll probably be able to accommodate you when he returns.

[QM2]

Sell it!? You're crazy. Get your own!

 

Seriously, though: It seems Rick Propas always has some lying around, but his shop is closed until summer. He'll probably be able to accommodate you when he returns.

 

Yeah, but I want yours!

 

Okay, sorry -- I get a little bouncy when I am tired : )

 

Enjoy your pen!

QM2

[Breck]

Adding some photos of my own.

 

Capped, showing brassing:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/4007.jpg

 

Posted:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/4008.jpg

 

The auction shot of the nib is better than the one I took, but here's a detail of the feed:

http://i471.photobucket.com/albums/rr76/fbchumley/40011.jpg

 

 

 

[piembi]

Congrats!

I love those vintage tortoise Pelikans. Having myself an OBB nib I know what you are talking about.

 

Some of my vintage Pels do have brassing or some discolouration (greenstriped) but so what? The pen is a user pen! If I am buying a 50-60 year old pen off ebay I cannot expect it to look brandnew. Some of them had been purchased only because of the nib and it would be unfair to complain about the used condition of the body. Although I am much more careful with a vintage pen in very nice condition than with one of the user grade pens .... I do have cracked 400NN caps too but the cracks did not increase so your cap might be ok as well.

 

Anyway, there is at least one vintage Pelikan with medium and one with a broad nib in my daily pen case. Those pens are great daily user pens!

 

Edit: Some of those nibs do squeak. It is annoying but does not affect the performance of the nib.

Edited April 14, 2009 by piembi

[QM2]

The tortoise striations look particularly nice on your photos.

[hari317]

Thanks for the nice review, and you have a good, easy to read hand. The pen looks completely different in your photos. Thanks for posting them. I love the Pelikan tortoise pattern and I briefly owned a NOS M400 in Tortoise.

 

Regards,

Hari

Edited April 14, 2009 by hari317

[rwilsonedn]

Thanks for a wonderful review. Your enthusiasms for the pen and the nib really come through, and you illustrated them well with your handwriting and photos.

And Granada ... I haven't been there for almost 20 years. Is it still breathtakingly beautiful, and socially very complex?

ron

[Breck]

Grenada-

 

Beautiful: Check

 

Complex: Check, most definitely

[psycho pen]

Thanks for this review! Very nice pen, I've got the same in green striated, EF nib, and I love it...