Pelikan M150 Black GT Medium

May 19, 2009

Click on the link for future updates of the english version.

Clicca sul link per futuri aggiornamenti della versione in italiano.

1) First impressions

This pen has convinced me on two points, yet still valid for me: the high quality of all level Pelikan products and the incredible versatility of the piston filling system and its low cost compared to the cartridges. Then I was attracted by this pen because of three features: the brand that was not still tested at the time, its cost and the filling system. Unfortunately it was not so easy to find it because dealers in my city don't sell it because it is an entry-level model. So I bought it online after reading several positive comments on FPN. The soft cardboard carton box, with the traditional hard cardboard box inside, had all the original Pelikan symbols and the booklet contained in addition to the warranty instructions, even the pen loading and maintenance instructions.

2) Aesthetics and finishing

Although it's the basic modern model of Pelikan piston filling pens, the quality of this pen, talking about assembly and finishing, is absolute. The pen is glossy black with gold plated trims and exists only in this coloring. Observing closely the pen it doesn't have any imperfection either in body, in cap and even in the nib, as to emphasize that Pelikan has the same attention to quality both for the cheaper and for the most expensive models, which price is due to their design, construction materials and limited edition production. I was certainly impressed by the pen even considering the online photos of the pen that have never been great, perhaps for the fact that was not convenient to take spectacular photos of a cheap model.

3) Design, size and weight

The pen is completely in black smooth diamond polished acrylic. It has a classic cylindrical shape with slightly curved ends and the cap tip has the traditional golden pelican. The clip is shaped like a pelican beak with eyes at the beginning, like in all Pelikan pens. The pen is very thin and small-medium lenght, so it is perfect for carriage being pocket-size. Its lengths are: 120 mm capped, 116 mm uncapped, 142 mm posted and 53.5 mm the cap alone. The diameters are: 12.5 mm of the cap, 11 mm of the body and 9 mm of the grip. Finally, the weight of the pen is gr. 12.5, that for someone it may seem low, but you get used easily to it.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3654/3346904826_d50bbf3475_m.jpg

4) Nib design and performance

The small steel nib is gold plated with a length of 18.5 mm and width of wings of 6 mm. The stroke is Medium, chosen because it is more common. I was expecting an everyday easy writing and it was. Compared to other medium is actually a real medium, and it runs very well on any kind of paper even though at the beginning it was a little scratching. The ink flow is steady and regular enough to allow quite long pauses without risking to let dry the ink and without inundate the paper, creating transparency effects. The feed system is in plastic with horizontal strips, a classic of Pelikan pens. The nib is screwable and replaceable and this results in a considerable easy maintenance of the pen.

I am very pleased with the nib quality and this has prompted me to medium and high level models.

5) Filling System

The pen has a classic piston filling system, with the mechanism and components in plastic and a semitransparent green window for assessing the ink level when it is out of the end. It has no reserve system but with the small nib and the smooth plastic grip, it's easy to refill it even "on-the-go" with the Stipula Netto Netto inkwell or with the Visconti Travelling Inkpot. Considering the classic three drops the pen can hold as much ink that in an everyday use it does not last long but it allows an easy transport.

6) Cost / Value

I bought the pen on March 13rd, 2006 from www.eprice.it at the price of € 39.32, which in fact was the suggested customer list price from Pelikan. Recently I have taken the same as a gift for my aunt in Cagliari at Cartoleria Dettori at the price of € 40.00. Apart from the not updated prices of the city dealer, its value should be slightly increased but not so much as it's just an entry-level. For my pen, the warranty is no longer valid, because it was for 3 years.

7) Overall opinion and conclusions

The FPN reviews well described the merits of the pen and I also agree saying that the paid price is good and you realize it only with an everyday use of the pen. From what I understand, it is the evolution of the M481 that I bought later but I consider that less beautiful than M150.

If you are looking for a pen, small and handy, pocket-sized, with no frills, of good quality, this pen is for you but only if you love the piston filling system.

Whereas my full experience with Pelikan, at present I would buy at least a M300, but this remains my first real Pelikan.

Edited May 20, 2009 by Netnemo

May 19, 2009

Grazie! Thank you for the excellent review. I have been curious about this little Pelikan, and I enjoyed reading your comments about it.

Best regards, Robert

May 19, 2009

thank you.

As I have just written in my profile, I'm sorry I don't use numeric evaluation but I think that maybe it is possible to give number evaluations only after having a lot of pens tested and rewied, otherwise it is impossible to give a honest numeric vote only based on few tested pens.

Allegory of Plato's Cave can explain it better, if you consider it applied in the pens world: if you have few pens, for example five pens, you can write a hit-parade with five positions giving 6/6 to the first position and 1/6 to the last; but when your collection grow, you need to review the hit-parade every time a pen is added (but meanwhile your point of view has changed), with the illusion to reach the perfect hit-parade to give to others (this is the aim of the numeric vote on a forum). Outside your collection there are certainly other different pens, maybe better or worse, and maybe in other collections, tested by other fellows, with other points of view or not still tested by anyone. These pens can modify your hit-parade if they are in your collection and you have tested them, but because they are not, your hit-parade is a temporary illusion, useful only for you, for the moment to have a personal chart, and useless for others that want to know if the pens are good deals to buy or to have an universal pens classification.

So I prefer to describe as much as I can all my sensations and experience with my pens, in order to give an almost complete vision of the pen to the reader, without numeric evaluation.

May 19, 2009

Thanks for an excellent review of an often neglected pen. I still consider my M150 one of the best writers I've used.

May 20, 2009

The M150 was my first fountain pen that was pleasant to use. The (steel) nibs I have are all fabulous and the piston fill is easy to use and clean, plus the capacity is amazing. The easily changed nibs (which are very very inexpensive) make this pen even more versatile! The M150 is probably one of the best pens for cost/performance. I don't know why it's overlooked so often. Yes it's small, but so are a lot of vintage pens that are loved here.

If anyone is looking for a first fountain pen, this has to be the one to go to. It's got all the features of an expensive pen but for a fraction of the price.

Neill

edited: word choice error

Edited May 20, 2009 by Neill78