Differences between M150 and M200?

[Arts11]

Using the 78G M, I wrote next to a old entry written with the Pelikan M205. I then traced on top of a few letters. To my eye the Pilot M wrote an insignificant smidge finer than the Pelikan F. I think Mssrs. Binder and Mottishaw have stats on their websites that you can double-check.

 

I'm thinking about ordering EFs myself. My writing with the F was a tad bit large.

After checking over your reply again, I just realized you wrote the Pilot M was slightly finer than the Pelikan F. Initially I misread that and thought it said the Pilot F was just a bit finer than the Pelikan F. Hmmm, knowing that I think I might get the EF for the Pelikan then, though I'll keep searching for an actual writing sample first before making a final decision. Thanks again!

 

I'm not handy with my camera but if you wish to, PM me and I'll be happy to snail mail you a comparison to your address.

I truly appreciate the offer, but I must decline. That's much too much trouble for you, and I can't possibly have you go through that on my account. Still, thank you for your help. I figure a Pelikan EF can't be thinner than a Pilot F, so an EF should be okay if I can't find any comparison pics online so it's all good.

 

[agchristie]

i have a pel ef and pilot f and the pilot is far thinner than the pelikan ef. The EF is as thick as my pilot birdie m and the pel f certainly is thicker. If you order the nib from binder and have it done why dont you just tell him exactly how wide you would like the nib too write then he can "grind" whatever you want for you. if you dont mind smaller pens the m150 is really nice ( i have 2) but as others have said the m200 is just a bit bigger(bigger ink capacity and nib) and only bit more expensive so it doesnt really matter.

[Arts11]

i have a pel ef and pilot f and the pilot is far thinner than the pelikan ef. The EF is as thick as my pilot birdie m and the pel f certainly is thicker. If you order the nib from binder and have it done why dont you just tell him exactly how wide you would like the nib too write then he can "grind" whatever you want for you. if you dont mind smaller pens the m150 is really nice ( i have 2) but as others have said the m200 is just a bit bigger(bigger ink capacity and nib) and only bit more expensive so it doesnt really matter.

Thanks for letting me know about the Pelikan EF. I've had mixed results w/ my Pilot F nibs so I've never really had a good consensus on how fine they're supposed to write. One of my pens writes a little too fine of a line for my liking, while another seems to write in between a Pilot F & M line, which is what I prefer.

 

I'd love to get a customized Binder nib, but those are just out of my price range, and from my understanding, "Binderizing" is only the standard "no charge" tuning for smoothness and flow they do with every pen, and that's all I can afford right now (unless I overlooked something and there is an option to tell Mr Binder to adjust the line width, without extra charge?). I'm already exceeding my initial budget of ~$50, and I don't want to go much further (though the M215 is picking up steam and I might opt for that at the expense of not getting another pen for a very long time).

 

|EDIT| Speaking of the Pelikan EF nib, does Mr. Binder just tune the standard Pelikan nibs or are the EF nibs from a different source? I ask b/c I've read about a lot of inconsistency with the stock Pelikan EF nibs and I'm a bit worried about getting a bum nib.

Edited June 14, 2009 by Arts11

[PJohnP]

I'd love to get a customized Binder nib, but those are just out of my price range, and from my understanding, "Binderizing" is only the standard "no charge" tuning for smoothness and flow they do with every pen, and that's all I can afford right now (unless I overlooked something and there is an option to tell Mr Binder to adjust the line width, without extra charge?). I'm already exceeding my initial budget of ~$50, and I don't want to go much further (though the M215 is picking up steam and I might opt for that at the expense of not getting another pen for a very long time).

 

|EDIT| Speaking of the Pelikan EF nib, does Mr. Binder just tune the standard Pelikan nibs or are the EF nibs from a different source? I ask b/c I've read about a lot of inconsistency with the stock Pelikan EF nibs and I'm a bit worried about getting a bum nib.

 

I just acquired a used Binder Waverley nib (thanks Rebecca!), and I can say that it's, by far, the finest line Pelikan nib I've ever laid ink on paper with, and no doubt in my mind on this point. Now, the nib that I've just acquired is an XF, and the current situation on Binder's site for these is an XXF, but these start at $60 through Richard Binder, so it's not a gross exceedance of your budget.

 

YMMV, of course, but I think this is just a fine fine nib (pun intended !)...

 

 

 

John P.

[Arts11]

I'd love to get a customized Binder nib, but those are just out of my price range, and from my understanding, "Binderizing" is only the standard "no charge" tuning for smoothness and flow they do with every pen, and that's all I can afford right now (unless I overlooked something and there is an option to tell Mr Binder to adjust the line width, without extra charge?). I'm already exceeding my initial budget of ~$50, and I don't want to go much further (though the M215 is picking up steam and I might opt for that at the expense of not getting another pen for a very long time).

 

|EDIT| Speaking of the Pelikan EF nib, does Mr. Binder just tune the standard Pelikan nibs or are the EF nibs from a different source? I ask b/c I've read about a lot of inconsistency with the stock Pelikan EF nibs and I'm a bit worried about getting a bum nib.

 

I just acquired a used Binder Waverley nib (thanks Rebecca!), and I can say that it's, by far, the finest line Pelikan nib I've ever laid ink on paper with, and no doubt in my mind on this point. Now, the nib that I've just acquired is an XF, and the current situation on Binder's site for these is an XXF, but these start at $60 through Richard Binder, so it's not a gross exceedance of your budget.

 

YMMV, of course, but I think this is just a fine fine nib (pun intended !)...

 

 

 

John P.

Wait, so an XF nib is really XXF according to Binder? I'm a bit confused. And my original $50 budget was for the entire pen, not just the nib. I've since decided to exceed that initial budget, but adding $60 to an already ~$100 pen (I'm leaning heavily towards a M215 right now for its metal body; M215's also have a translucent space to see the ink level right? the pictures don't really show it very clearly) is unfortunately not possible for me at this time.

[PJohnP]

Wait, so an XF nib is really XXF according to Binder? I'm a bit confused. And my original $50 budget was for the entire pen, not just the nib. I've since decided to exceed that initial budget, but adding $60 to an already ~$100 pen (I'm leaning heavily towards a M215 right now for its metal body; M215's also have a translucent space to see the ink level right? the pictures don't really show it very clearly) is unfortunately not possible for me at this time.

 

No, AFAIK, the used nib that I just acquired pre-dates the current Binder offerings, so this isn't any contradiction. He does have a chart you can download that shows the relative differences between different folks' definitions of extra-fine, fine, medium, etc. across manufacturers and nations. A handy tool for a person like me who can find the different definitions confusing...

 

Almost all Pelikans have a translucent window that will show ink level in the pen. It may be that some of the LE Pelikans do not have this, but the M150/200/215/400 lines of pens all have the window.

 

And I apologise for misunderstanding your budget - I thought you were referring to the cost of the nib alone.

 

 

 

John P.

 

[Arts11]

Wait, so an XF nib is really XXF according to Binder? I'm a bit confused. And my original $50 budget was for the entire pen, not just the nib. I've since decided to exceed that initial budget, but adding $60 to an already ~$100 pen (I'm leaning heavily towards a M215 right now for its metal body; M215's also have a translucent space to see the ink level right? the pictures don't really show it very clearly) is unfortunately not possible for me at this time.

 

No, AFAIK, the used nib that I just acquired pre-dates the current Binder offerings, so this isn't any contradiction. He does have a chart you can download that shows the relative differences between different folks' definitions of extra-fine, fine, medium, etc. across manufacturers and nations. A handy tool for a person like me who can find the different definitions confusing...

 

Almost all Pelikans have a translucent window that will show ink level in the pen. It may be that some of the LE Pelikans do not have this, but the M150/200/215/400 lines of pens all have the window.

 

And I apologise for misunderstanding your budget - I thought you were referring to the cost of the nib alone.

 

 

 

John P.

I see. Thanks for the clarification. And I wish I had an extra $60 to spend on a nib though! Anyway, I've been looking at Mr Binder's stroke width chart and my Japanese pens seem to match up with his measurements relatively well, but I'm still a bit anxious about the Western nib measurements since I've heard that Pelikan nibs tend to put down lines on the wider side. Either way, I think I will go for an EF nib on a M215. I just want to see a writing sample w/ said nib size first before making my final decision.

 

[PJohnP]

I see. Thanks for the clarification. And I wish I had an extra $60 to spend on a nib though! Anyway, I've been looking at Mr Binder's stroke width chart and my Japanese pens seem to match up with his measurements relatively well, but I'm still a bit anxious about the Western nib measurements since I've heard that Pelikan nibs tend to put down lines on the wider side. Either way, I think I will go for an EF nib on a M215. I just want to see a writing sample w/ said nib size first before making my final decision.

 

I have a couple of Pelikans with EF nibs, and the lines are reasonably fine. There's actually some difference between the two nibs in line thickness, but one's about fifteen plus years old, while the other's relatively new. I don't think that you're going to find an EF nib excessively wide, unless you really need the much finer line of the (western) "accountant type nib".

 

The Waverley I've just received has an exceptionally fine line compared with my EF nibs, and I really can't imagine my using a much finer line nib than this for my writing and work. I could use this pen/nib combination for very small ledger work (and, indeed, the first colour through the nib was red !) which would be right at the limits of my eyesight, so I can't realistically go any smaller... However, I do know people who write exceedingly finely in very small journals, much more so than I write, so I can understand the smaller line/finer nibs that Binder sells.

 

It's possible that you could later order one of the Waverley nibs and sell the nib that comes with your pen, or perhaps you can work out some swap when purchasing the pen from Mr. Binder (although I very obviously can't speak for him). The point is that you won't be locked into the nib that you purchase forever. Nibs come up here on FPN very regularly - I just availed myself of such an opportunity - and the prices have been reasonable in my experience.

 

Good luck with this, and let us know how your choice turns out.

 

 

 

John P.

Edited June 14, 2009 by PJohnP

[Arts11]

I see. Thanks for the clarification. And I wish I had an extra $60 to spend on a nib though! Anyway, I've been looking at Mr Binder's stroke width chart and my Japanese pens seem to match up with his measurements relatively well, but I'm still a bit anxious about the Western nib measurements since I've heard that Pelikan nibs tend to put down lines on the wider side. Either way, I think I will go for an EF nib on a M215. I just want to see a writing sample w/ said nib size first before making my final decision.

 

I have a couple of Pelikans with EF nibs, and the lines are reasonably fine. There's actually some difference between the two nibs in line thickness, but one's about fifteen plus years old, while the other's relatively new. I don't think that you're going to find an EF nib excessively wide, unless you really need the much finer line of the (western) "accountant type nib".

 

The Waverley I've just received has an exceptionally fine line compared with my EF nibs, and I really can't imagine my using a much finer line nib than this for my writing and work. I could use this pen/nib combination for very small ledger work (and, indeed, the first colour through the nib was red !) which would be right at the limits of my eyesight, so I can't realistically go any smaller... However, I do know people who write exceedingly finely in very small journals, much more so than I write, so I can understand the smaller line/finer nibs that Binder sells.

 

It's possible that you could later order one of the Waverley nibs and sell the nib that comes with your pen, or perhaps you can work out some swap when purchasing the pen from Mr. Binder (although I very obviously can't speak for him). The point is that you won't be locked into the nib that you purchase forever. Nibs come up here on FPN very regularly - I just availed myself of such an opportunity - and the prices have been reasonable in my experience.

 

Good luck with this, and let us know how your choice turns out.

 

 

 

John P.

Thanks for the tip! I think an EF will work for my everyday writing. If I ever really need to do a lot of margin writing though, I still have my Pilots for that, so it should be all good. Plus, like you said, I can always get new nibs (I'll just have to save up first haha) if I want a different width stroke in the future.

 

|EDIT| Just to double-check, but for those with a M215, does the metal body make the pen really heavy, or is it still light enough for long periods of writing? The only metal pen I've tried out is a Pilot Knight, and if the M215 has about the same heft or [preferably] lighter, then that would be great.

Edited June 15, 2009 by Arts11

[AndreaDuni]

If you have not yet bought one of the mentioned pens, I suggest you to read my M150 and M200 reviews. Then you should handle and test them at a dealer, to try them live.

 

If you want a short answer, I suggest to buy the one that fit better in your hand. Infact the M150 is very thin, while the M200 is a regular one. So if you have big hands, you should find the M150 too difficult to handle.

Edited June 15, 2009 by Netnemo

[Arts11]

If you have not yet bought one of the mentioned pens, I suggest you to read my M150 and M200 reviews. Then you should handle and test them at a dealer, to try them live.

 

If you want a short answer, I suggest to buy the one that fit better in your hand. Infact the M150 is very thin, while the M200 is a regular one. So if you have big hands, you should find the M150 too difficult to handle.

Thanks for the reviews, but unfortunately, the closest dealer I know of doesn't sell either of those Pelikans. That's one of the reasons why I'm buying from online, and why I'm trying to find as much info as I can before I make the purchase. So although I've pretty much settled on getting an EF nib, I'm still searching for a clear writing sample with the EF and F nibs, some commentary on just how smooth the EF nib is, and how heavy the M215 metal body is just to make sure.

Edited June 15, 2009 by Arts11