One Of My Best Pens … Custom Made Pelikan

[_mihail_gushin_]

Good afternoon, dear colleques!

Two weeks ago I told you about my Pelikan 100. And now I want to narrate you about another pen which I like very much. I prefer Pelikan brand, for my hand are most comfortable Pelikan 100 and Pelikan 400. So I bought custom made body and cap wich consists of parts from Pelikan m200 and Pelikan m400. I don`t like the body of modern Pelikan m400 and I wanted something like m400, but without many elements of decor. And then I bought the nibs: m200, m250, m400. I tried them and I didn`t like them. I sended them to USA to adjust and after that I adjusted them by myself. But I hadn`t no result… After some time my mentor in pens Henrik Joseph Suadikani presented me “Pelikan 140” – beautiful vintage pen. I adjusted its nib by sand paper and replaced it to the modern body. And now I have a beautiful pen which writes magically – my custom-made Pelikan. Here are some photos...

[BillH]

Nice looking pen, and the 140 nibs can be wonderful. Well done! Thanks for sharing it.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I prefer semi-vintage and vintage 400's...or my 140's to modern Pelikan 400's.

My semi-flex 140's are a green striped OB and a black OF.

 

Depending on what I want to do with the nib.

Do I want shading? Then for me the best nibs are those of the '1982-97 era.....regular flex in M or F; which are dryer than the semi-flex nibs or the fat and blobby modern ones; which are often wetter in they are wider....so a modern M is close to a vintage or semi-vintage B in width.

 

A regular flex M not only gives a very nice ride but is a very good width for shading. Not as wet as some B's can be, and IMO a slight tad better than F for shading; in width does make a difference.

 

Line variation, then semi or maxi-semi-flex of the '50-65 era.

 

Semi/maxi is wetter because of ease of tine spread, so needs a real dry ink and a slick hard paper to give both nice line variation and good shading. like Rhoda 80g or the new 100g, Clairefontaine Triumphe or Gmund 'Beige Blanc' 170/120g. ...I have the 170g in creme.

Edited September 18, 2017 by Bo Bo Olson

[_mihail_gushin_]

Nice looking pen, and the 140 nibs can be wonderful. Well done! Thanks for sharing it.

 

You are very kind to me :-)

Edited September 18, 2017 by _mihail_gushin_

[_mihail_gushin_]

I prefer semi-vintage and vintage 400's...or my 140's to modern Pelikan 400's.

My semi-flex 140's are a green striped OB and a black OF.

 

Depending on what I want to do with the nib.

Do I want shading? Then for me the best nibs are those of the '1982-97 era.....regular flex in M or F; which are dryer than the semi-flex nibs or the fat and blobby modern ones; which are often wetter in they are wider....so a modern M is close to a vintage or semi-vintage B in width.

 

A regular flex M not only gives a very nice ride but is a very good width for shading. Not as wet as some B's can be, and IMO a slight tad better than F for shading; in width does make a difference.

 

Line variation, then semi or maxi-semi-flex of the '50-65 era.

 

Semi/maxi is wetter because of ease of tine spread, so needs a real dry ink and a slick hard paper to give both nice line variation and good shading. like Rhoda 80g or the new 100g, Clairefontaine Triumphe or Gmund 'Beige Blanc' 170/120g. ...I have the 170g in creme.

 

Thank you, Sir for very interesting information!

When you talk about Pelikans I feel like a child which knows nothing...

Here are some photos of my 140.

[sargetalon]

It's nice that you were able to arrive at a combination that you enjoy. The 140 nibs are awesome writers. If only Pelikan could emulate that kind of character in today's nibs.

[BillH]

...snip

 

If only Pelikan could emulate that kind of character in today's nibs.

 

 

+1 for that sargetalon, although I can just imagine all the possible FPN threads about "sprung Pelikan nibs" and "my nib going back for repair AGAIN" that we'd see

[_mihail_gushin_]

It's nice that you were able to arrive at a combination that you enjoy. The 140 nibs are awesome writers. If only Pelikan could emulate that kind of character in today's nibs.

 

Thanks! I`m agree... and I prefer vintage nibs.

Edited September 18, 2017 by _mihail_gushin_

[Lon_dubh]

Beautiful!

 

BTW, what is a "140 nib"? Is this an earlier Pelikan model whose nibs you're referring to?

[MarcinEck]

140 nibs are really wonderfull

[Christopher Godfrey]

I have vintage 100, 100N, 101LE, 400 and 400NN; but no 140 -- what am I missing?

 

PS: Apologies if I am hi-jacking the thread!

Edited September 18, 2017 by Christopher Godfrey

[Bo Bo Olson]

IMO most of the 140 nibs are semi-flex stub nibs.....please read my signature....a nib that gives you that old fashioned fountain pen flair with out having to do anything.

 

The 100-100n, or Ibis (I don't have an earlier Rappen) and 400 being 'standard' sized have larger nibs than the medium-small 140. (I find the 140 nib to be a tad too small in looks for the standard sized 400/200,(it will fit) but if one don't have many 400/200's who cares.

Those that matter will know it's a great semi-flex nib...those who don't know that won't notice the nib's a tad too small.

(I did try it in my '90's 400 and 600. On later bought earlier 400's I've not tried it in they are semi-flex to the most part, and an occasional maxi-semi-flex.There is ...now...no need to 'improve' the later 400 or 200's nibs.

And I've come to like the regular flex nibs of the '82-97 M400, 381, Celebry and 200's nibs. They are a tad better for shading being dryer than easier tine spread of semi-flex.

One has line variation over shading, unless one can match the paper and ink well.

 

Medium Small was a very popular size in all of them posted long, as long as a posted standard sized pen. Posted a 140 is as long as a posted 400.

The Kaweco Dia was a medium small pen, I have an Osmia....I'm not going to dig it out but one of the older 64 or 66 size pens are medium small, the Geha 760 with the gold ring around the piston was Geha's flagship and was medium-small.

 

The nib on a 140 is as far as I know mostly semi-flex.................there are one or two (out of hundreds) that say their 140 nib is a bit more flexi than a regular semi-flex. That is possible. I call such a nib a maxi-semi-flex....and is rare as far as I know in the 140 nibs.........Only two folks report them.

 

I have 26 semi-flex and 16 maxi-semi-flex..............most of my maxi-semi-flex are Osmia Supra nibs...be they steel or gold they are grand. What I come down to with out the Osmia pens...be they the Osmia semi-flex with the number in the Diamond on the nib, or the maxi-semi-flex Supra nibs.....is a 5 to 1 semi-flex to maxi-semi-flex nib ratio.

The rest of the BS I deleted...........that is close enough for government work.

 

Eventually you will get a '50-65 400/400nn and have more great stub nibs with delightful flex. I like the semi-flex Obliques of that era....IMO the only obliques worth having unless you are left handed....then they are not for you in some ways Left Handers can hold a fountain pen.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Christopher ...near the same size as a 100n, but thinner.

Sits in a shirt pocket real good.

Try one in OB ....that is narrower than modern OB....it is still a writing nib....close to modern M.

[_mihail_gushin_]

Beautiful!

 

BTW, what is a "140 nib"? Is this an earlier Pelikan model whose nibs you're referring to?

 

Thanks! Unfortunately I don`t know is it earlier model or not... Here are some photos of this Pelikan 140.

Edited September 19, 2017 by _mihail_gushin_

[biancitwo]

I have vintage 100, 100N, 101LE, 400 and 400NN; but no 140 -- what am I missing?

 

PS: Apologies if I am hi-jacking the thread!

The 140 is a wonderful, slightly smaller Pelikan from the early 1950s. The nibs were most often fairly flexible, yielding beautifully expressive writing. The nib is smaller than the contemporary 400, or the soon ending 100n. I have three of them and each is a joy. They are just a little small for comfortable writing for any length of time. But for size, the 140 would be a favorite.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I've had my medium-small 140 for such a long time, I don't even think of it's size any more....and because it's so well balanced and as long as a 400 when both are posted, it is as good...as long and from what I 'feel' as wide as a 400.................if not then as wide, it's not far away.

 

The nib is of course smaller....but it is not really that noticeable in a 140.

 

My first OB was my 140......I really like the vintage semi-flex oblique stubs of that era ('50-65), and OB is a writing nib .....not a signature nib. Semi-vintage and vintage Pelikan nibs are 1/2 a size narrower than modern.

The stubbish nibs of that era has a very clean line (the '82-97 era also has a nice clean line along with the modern 200)....when compared to the fat and blobby 400/600/800 modern nib.