Ef Vs F Nib Dilemma On My M805 Stresemann

[shah]

I just got my new M805 Stresemann with a F nib. It writes beautifully, smooth and wet without being a gusher. I had a horrid experience with my M215 few years back and that put me off Pelikan for a quite a while, but I am very delighted with this one.

However, the F nib writes much broader than I expected.

I am tempted to get it exchanged for an EF with chartpak (Can I do that even if I bought the pen from Europe?), but I am afraid the EF won't be as smooth and a wet writer and I would have to go through the hassle of getting the F back again, if that's at all possible. I came across some posts while searching the forums where people were complaining about the EF nibs.

What are peoples experience with EF nibs on M8xx been like? Especially those moved from F to EF? Can those EF be as smooth and wet as F? FWIW I like nibs that flow without much pressure and without much feedback/toothiness to it.

Also how has the experience been with exchanging nibs at Chartpak (given that I bought this pen from Europe)? And will they swap out the correct nib (this model has rhodium plated nib I think) or will they send the stock two-tone one (which won't look right given rhodium trims).

Thanks.

[sargetalon]

Hello and congrats on the Stresemann. I too have one with an F nib and my experience mirrors yours. I have some of Pelikan's EF nibs on my other Souveräns and I don't find them to be particularly scratchy. They aren't as wet as the larger nibs but I don't fault them for being less smooth as long as everything is aligned properly. They still have a decent amount of tipping and write more like F's. That said, there is some variability and the next nib you get may be disappointing. That is a chance you will have to take.

 

As far as Chartpak goes, as long you purchased the pen from an authorized Pelikan dealer and can provide proof of that purchase within the last 30 days, they should be able to swap out your nib under warranty free of charge. At present, it no longer matters where the pen was purchased. I hope you get it sorted out to your satisfaction without too much hassle. It's really a great pen and a wonderful writer.

[Lam1]

I have two M805 EF that are very smooth and are among my favorites. They were perfect right out of the box. Evidently, this is no guarantee that your experience would be the same.

 

As for chartpak, I called them and talked with Aby earlier this year and asked if they would honor the warrantee for pens bought in Europe. She told me that as long as it was bought from an authorized dealer they would service it. However, I didn't ask specifically about nib exchange. Why don't you give her a call? She is really nice and helpful.

 

Good luck!

Edited June 28, 2015 by Lam1

[shah]

Thanks all. It seems I would have to take a chance and go for the EF and hope I like that nib, otherwise this beauty of a pen would be just sitting on my desk with very little use, which will be a shame.

 

It is purchased from an authorized dealer and the guarantee book is signed, so I will get in touch with Chartpak after the weekend. I hope they are willing to replace with another EF incase the first one doesn't write well or with F incase I really don't like the EF.

 

I'll report back with how things turn out.

And this might be the slippery slope, I already started looking at other M800 and M600 (which is ~150 cheaper than M800 but also lighter and smaller).

[sargetalon]

Pelikans are hearty breeders and have a sneaky way of multiplying. Before you know it, you're housing a whole flock.

[Calabria]

You should like the EF. Mine was a wet, smooth writer until I had it reground for some more feedback and a thinner line

[Ipodimusprime]

I've always found Pelikans to write a little thicker compared to other brands. My EFs write more like MB fines but have always been really smooth right out of the box. Recently picked up a Stresemann to replace a M800/K800 set that I lost () and love it!

[VinnyCordeiro]

I'll endorse the people saying that the nibs runs broader than usual for other brands. The EF nib of my M800 is pretty broad to my taste, but it is very smooth, always a pleasure to write with this pen.

[shah]

Okay, talked with Chartpak, and it was a pleasure dealing with them.

 

They don't have EF in stock for the 805 Stresemann and need to order it from Pelikan Germany which is going to take about 4 weeks

 

I will be mailing in my nib tomorrow and It's going to be a long long 4 weeks (I hope I don't break down and buy another). I really hope EF is worth the wait. I have sort of coaxed Chartpak into holding onto my F nib until I have had a chance to try out EF, I hope they do.

[ThirdeYe]

I was slightly bummed with how fine my F nibbed M800 wrote. I think I should've gotten a M or B instead. It writes the same as my M200 F, which is fine, but I was expecting it to be more broad and wet.

[akustyk]

I had a similar experience with my M800. I first bought a Fine nib, but it was too broad. I exchanged it for an EF, and it was not any finer. Interestingly, the EF nib had a better feel and flow for me, so I stuck with it, just learning to live with the broader line. Iron-gall inks help a lot in making the line finer.

[Frank C]

It sounds like you have sorted this out. I like all my Pelicans from EF to O3B. I believe that every Pelikan nib is hand finished. As such, there is some variability from nib to nib. The best way to get a pen to do what you want is to visit a pen show to have a nib specialist tune it for you,

[shah]

I believe that every Pelikan nib is hand finished.

 

They seem to be mass produced, judging by the sheer number of pens they churn out. Empirically their QC on nibs seems to be pretty dismal (excluding my 805). I do wish they would take a page out of MB and have a better out of the box writing experience, and have a better presence in US especially since their prices in US at least is approaching that of Montblanc's.

 

The best way to get a pen to do what you want is to visit a pen show to have a nib specialist tune it for you,

 

Maybe, but that requires time/travel/energy which is not always possible. And maybe I am spoiled by other manufacturers to expect that pens should have decent out of the box writing experience (again excluding my 805).

Edited July 3, 2015 by shah

[sargetalon]

I don't think you can make a blanket statement about the QC of Pelikan's nibs being 'dismal' based on anecdotal evidence. I do think there is room for improvement and would love to see Pelikan pay more attention to this area of manufacturing. Granted, a pen that does not write well out of the box is very frustrating but this is an issue that affects all manufacturers to some extent, including Montblanc. Also, you are likely to see a disproportionate number of complaints on forums like this because satisfied customers are less likely to chime in. My out of box experience has largely been positive and the last 5 new Pelikans I bought have been wonderful writers out of the box. I'm not saying I don't get a lemon from time to time but I wouldn't say it was a problem endemic to the brand. I really hope that EF nib comes out to your liking.

[Frank C]

 

They seem to be mass produced, judging by the sheer number of pens they churn out. Empirically their QC on nibs seems to be pretty dismal (excluding my 805). I do wish they would take a page out of MB and have a better out of the box writing experience, and have a better presence in US especially since their prices in US at least is approaching that of Montblanc's.

 

 

Maybe, but that requires time/travel/energy which is not always possible. And maybe I am spoiled by other manufacturers to expect that pens should have decent out of the box writing experience (again excluding my 805).

 

 

I don't think you can make a blanket statement about the QC of Pelikan's nibs being 'dismal' based on anecdotal evidence. I do think there is room for improvement and would love to see Pelikan pay more attention to this area of manufacturing. Granted, a pen that does not write well out of the box is very frustrating but this is an issue that affects all manufacturers to some extent, including Montblanc. Also, you are likely to see a disproportionate number of complaints on forums like this because satisfied customers are less likely to chime in. My out of box experience has largely been positive and the last 5 new Pelikans I bought have been wonderful writers out of the box. I'm not saying I don't get a lemon from time to time but I wouldn't say it was a problem endemic to the brand. I really hope that EF nib comes out to your liking.

 

Pelikan nibs are mass produced, but they are hand finished. I have purchased quite a few Pelikans; most work well, some haven't. To the extent possible, I buy my pens from nibs.com. All their pens are tested and adjusted, as needed, prior to shipment. I could save a few dollars by shopping around, buying from ebay, etc., but getting one pen that doesn't write well is a frustrating experience.

 

I agree completely with sargetalon and I hope that your EF nib is what you want.

[shah]

It's hard to convey tone in forums sometimes: I was not putting Pelikan down here. There is a reason a keep buying a new one every few years (although sold the 400 to get the 600, sold the 600 to get this one, which I don't think I will sell, it just feels perfect in the hand in a way that 400/600 didn't). And you obviously have a lot more "data points".

[Frank C]

It's hard to convey tone in forums sometimes: I was not putting Pelikan down here. There is a reason a keep buying a new one every few years (although sold the 400 to get the 600, sold the 600 to get this one, which I don't think I will sell, it just feels perfect in the hand in a way that 400/600 didn't). And you obviously have a lot more "data points".

 

I do agree with your premise. I really like Pelikan pens; I just wish that every Pelikan worked well out of the box. But as sargetalon says, every manufacturer puts out a lemon from time to time.

[sargetalon]

It's hard to convey tone in forums sometimes: I was not putting Pelikan down here. There is a reason a keep buying a new one every few years (although sold the 400 to get the 600, sold the 600 to get this one, which I don't think I will sell, it just feels perfect in the hand in a way that 400/600 didn't). And you obviously have a lot more "data points".

No worries. I agree that for the money Pelikan is charging, it is a totally reasonable expectation that the pen should just work out of the box. Sadly, this isn't always the reality.

[Runnin_Ute]

Pelikans are hearty breeders and have a sneaky way of multiplying. Before you know it, you're housing a whole flock.

I can attest to that. And if they fly away (for whatever reason) they come back.

[Pen_Noob]

According to the dealer I bought my M800 the nibs are hand tuned. He visited the factory and told me a whole story about it, how oldtimers are looking at nibs etc.

And my M800 EF writes wetter and similar in width to my MB146 F, but wetter.