I've long focused my collection on Pelikans, which I love, but have discovered that after starting off with larger pens (m800/m1000) I've come to love smaller pens. I favor piston fillers and gold nibs. Well, I'm now absolutely enthralled with Auroras and can't wait to purchase one. I'm pretty set on the Optima since I prefer flat tops. The value seems so good (maybe even better than Pelikan's contemporary offerings.) You get a wider selection of nibs, ebonite feeds, piston fillers, in celluloid (but not the kind that decays! LOL) Seems like a terrific deal to me. But where to start? I love the Nera Perla, but the Emerald is nice and that demonstrator with the red accents!! Where do I start?