Honest Opinion Of The Pelikan M200

[Joker4Eva]

I would place very little weight on the "consensus" of the membership here at FPN, particularly anyone making claims such as "so and so is not good value" or "not worth the money".

 

The problem with 'consensus' and reviews is that what one looks for in a fountain pen can differ a lot between people. Some will dislike a light weight pen, some just will want a golden nib, some regard 'butter smooth' writing the grail, some love a bit of tooth/feedback. It''s all up to personal preference.

 

You can compare it with cars; if your neighbor loves his large sized automatic SUV, it may well be that you prefer driving a 6-speed manual geared two seat sportscar... Both good cars in their own right...

 

I agree wholeheartedly with the above two quotes. What the community thinks as a fantastic pen might only elicit a "Meh." from you.

The above happened to me once. Seeing how crazy everyone was over the Safari, I pulled the trigger on one. What a disappointment! The faceted barrel just hated the web between my thumb and index finger, and was a PITA to use. :bonk:

Conclusion: Never take anyone's word for the total truth. Try things out, and instead of actively trying to root out that "best" pen for you, it'll come to you in time.

[Bo Bo Olson]

A year, or a year and a half ago, when Pelikan 200 was at $80 no one said it was a bad pen.

 

Now that inflation has caught up...lots say it ain't worth the new cost; so it's a bad pen.

The Twsbi is new since then, so are a few other cheaper piston pens...cheaper than Pelikan 200.

 

 

You should have seen it 4 years ago, when every noobie was given the same advice, buy an Estie or two,and four or five nibs and a P-51.

Back then the $80 Pelikan 200 was expensive.

 

Price has climbed...don't buy one of them lousy Esties or that too expensive P51.....well until you have more expedience with pens.

In Fact now, no one today says buy an Estie. I'd guess no half year 'noobie' has ever heard of them.

 

 

I have an impression,...not going through a lot of threads to check for facts...that many who don't like the $130-140 Pelikan did not buy one when it was $80.

 

Is the 200/400 worth it's price...not a new one...but that's easy to solve...buy it used.

The nib will be fixed up by the previous owner; who may just have bought a good glass and coated 10-12X loupe.

 

Most of the 'scratchy' nibs are from misaligned tines or users who hold a fountain pen like a ball point still.

[RudyR]

Yeah, I was underwhelmed with my first M205 Blue demo because it was not the color I had seen in the advertisement. But it has grown on me and is really a great Every Day Carry pen. And I do like its compact nature too. One other think, the M205 demo wrote fine right out of the box, was my first Pelikan and is the only Pelikan that had a nib I didn't have to tweak.

[nm4]

I love the m200 and think it's a fantastic value even at $150. I'll tell you why: 1) it's steel nib has more 'spring' to it than most gold nibs on the market 2) it holds more ink than most pens on the market and 3) it's more comfortable and practical than larger and heavier pens.

 

I'll give you a few cheaper and similar pens I own for comparison:

 

Lamy 2000 - Similar in price and a unique design and excellent pen. That said, doesn't write any better than my m200. In fact the conical section can make it hard to grip the pen properly. Piston isn't m200 smooth either. My 2000 also tends to write a bit dry on upstrokes - even after tuning by a nibmeister.

 

TWSBI 530 - Much cheaper..but the nib is more firm. The plastic has developed cracks with minimal use (TWSBI has been excellent to supply replacement parts). The m200 demo has a cap that lets you see the nib beautifully while my 530 has a dark inner cap that obscures the nib. The cap also doesn't close as well as the m200. Piston isn't as smooth as the m200 either.

 

Bexley Corona - Piston mechanism not as smooth as the m200. Steel nib is an absolute nail and just not as pleasurable to use as an m200. Ink view window not as well done as the m200 (it's visible when the cap is on...and it's not crystal clear either).

 

The m200 gives you 60-70% of the experience of the higher end Pelikans or even an MB for 1/4th the cost. In that sense it's a good value. Those looking for the extra 30-40% will have to pay a premium...as is always the case in life. Pelikan's been refining this pen for decades and it shows.

 

I own every pen I've mentioned here and like them all very much...but when considered for dollar spent the m200 is probably my favorite. It's practical, understated, elegant, and most importantly...a great writing instrument. While others will point out cheaper pens with similar features most of those pens will be in a landfill in 10 years while your m200 will probably still be in service.

 

Cheers,

NM

[carlos.q]

I love the m200 and think it's a fantastic value even at $150. I'll tell you why: 1) it's steel nib has more 'spring' to it than most gold nibs on the market 2) it holds more ink than most pens on the market and 3) it's more comfortable and practical than larger and heavier pens.

+1 My Pelikan M200 with F nib has been my EDC pen for the past year.

[Silvermink]

I think the M200's a perfectly good pen, though it's smaller than I'd be comfortable writing with for an extended period. YMMV.

[lightspirit]

I have several Pelikans. I gave away my $105 M200 because I found it too small for my hand...not because of any issues with the pen itself. The pen always worked and wrote very well.

I have found that none of my Pelikans have bad or scratchy nibs. Even my cheap ones, bought for less than $10 have a very smooth nib. The Pelikan P series of cartridge pens even have sweet nibs and I use them before my $200 Waterman Carene. The beautiful Carene, which all seem to praise, has all the flex of a rock, and just as heavy.

So, Pelikan as a brand? Kudos.

The M200 pen? Kudos for the nib and design. If it fits your hand well, keep it. after all nobody else is using your M200. The pen only has to please you. That's why Pelikan makes the same design in many sizes. I prefer the size of the M600 for my hand, and am considering selling my Carenes to buy the M600.

So, if its comfortable to use, keep it. You'll get years of great service from it.

One of my cheap Pelikans has the smoothest nib I own.

[Mike_Dowling]

I received the pen and overall I really like it, it writes solid when I first put pen to paper, and the ink doesn't bleed through.

 

As for the aesthetics I like it's lightweight and simplicity, it makes this a pen I can functionally use at work moving from meeting room, to bosses office, to meeting room. It sits nicely in my pocket tucked away. I love the piston filler, worked like a a charm first shot, it's really cool to be honest. As for the size I like the thickness, I don't want an overly thick pen but the length is a bit short(I'm talking about fountain pens here). But when it's posted it's fine, I post nice pens so I don't lose the cap anyway.

 

Overall for $110 I consider it a great pen. I don't go into a $110 pen looking to be blown away though so I wasn't disappointed, I think it's nice, classic, and definitely German, works great.

[pajaro]

I try not to post the cap very firmly, to avoid leaving a "posting ring" on the pen barrel.

 

The steel nibs that come with these pens are excellent, but I bought used gold M4xx nibs for the pens for $50 to $60 each. At the time I was convinced gold nibs were better, which is not necessarily true.

 

I also got the pens used, so I paid less.

[GSteer]

I love my M200.

 

The broad nib is gloriously smooth and the spring it has, yes spring in a steel nib, is fabulous. I'd would never have guessed it was steel if someone had just handed it too me.

 

Will I sell it? Doubt it. It convinced me to pick up an M805 - so the only thing you might want to be cautious about is getting addicted to Pelikans [i now own three]

[Nibwitz]

I have yet to see that a M800 is a better writer than a M200. The m1000 really stands out, but the other souveräns?

[Mike_Dowling]

I love my M200.

 

The broad nib is gloriously smooth and the spring it has, yes spring in a steel nib, is fabulous. I'd would never have guessed it was steel if someone had just handed it too me.

 

Will I sell it? Doubt it. It convinced me to pick up an M805 - so the only thing you might want to be cautious about is getting addicted to Pelikans [i now own three]

 

I'm already eyeballing and pricing an m800 to keep at my desk, the m200 for my shirt pocket and going to meetings lol.

Edited March 8, 2013 by Mike_Dowling

[Joker4Eva]

I'm already eyeballing and pricing an m800 to keep at my desk, the m200 for my shirt pocket and going to meetings lol.

 

DO IT. :roflmho:

But then again, why not just go all the way and get a Pelikan M1000? You want a desk princess, so I guess weight and pocketability isn't an issue.

[Philosophy Student]

I think the m200 is a great great pen. I really love it. I use my m400 or m600 more because I prefer the striated barrel.

[GutSchrift]

The m200 was my first serious fountain pen. I got it from Richard Binder, so he made sure to check it out and "Binderize" it before shipping. It was a fantastic writer and I loved the ink capacity. I gave it away to my sister -- a poet -- when I got more serious about my pens and started buying differently. But I remember the last time I asked my sister to show me the beloved old pen again -- it was still a fantastic instrument.

[Scott Searer]

I have used a total of three M200's with medium nibs that have been nothing short of absolutely smooth, trouble-free writers...a great pen for the money.

[Scott Searer]

I have used a total of three M200's with medium nibs that have been nothing short of absolutely smooth, trouble-free writers...a great pen for the money.

[jgrasty]

I have half a dozen M200/M205 pens, and two of them needed nib adjustments. Of the other 20 or so Pelikans I have, about 1/4 of them needed nib adjustment. I am perhaps more particular than most on how the nib writes.

 

My experiences with other manufacturers isn't significantly different.

[JohnZ]

Since we're on the topic of the M200, does anyone know many mL of ink it holds? I refill mine once a week, so I wanted to see how long a bottle of ink would last. Unfortunately, I don't own anything to measure such a small amount.

[GSteer]

Since we're on the topic of the M200, does anyone know many mL of ink it holds? I refill mine once a week, so I wanted to see how long a bottle of ink would last. Unfortunately, I don't own anything to measure such a small amount.

 

According to nibs.com measurements page (http://www.nibs.com/pen_measures/) it's 1.5ml