Pelikan M200 Vs. Lamy 2000

[Glenn-SC]

If youre thinking of just adding a bird to your collection, then by all means, a Pelikan is a must have for any fountain pen enthusiast out there.

 

I would disagree with this statement in principle.

I don't think ANY pen (or collectable for that matter) is a "must have".

It's your collection, so you can get or not-get whatever you want to get.

You don't "have to" get something that you don't like/want/need.

[tinto]

I had a Lamy 2000 (F) first, a Pelikan M205 (M) later. Still have both. If is it worth to get a Pelikan after a Lamy? Yes.

 

I enjoy shading in dry inks (Scabiosa being my favourite). But the Lamy is rather dry, thin and VERY smooth. It is a daily writer and is what I use when I have to write several pages (every week I write six pages at once, besides all the regular writing every day), but it is normally charged with dark, rather boring inks.

 

The wet Pelikan solves that, and is what I use for signatures and so. Moreover, it has a very handy size to be carried in shirt pockets, so it is normally on me (and a Lamy Safari in my pants pocket).

 

You will enjoy it.

[bitflogger]

I own two Pelikans, the M200 and the M600, both with fine nibs, and well as a Lamy 2000 with a medium nib. They write significantly differently. The Lamy nib has a smaller sweet spot and a similar line to my M600. The M200 has been ground by Pendleton Brown into a cursive Italic, and writes a much finer line. If you can afford the purchase, go for it. You can't have too many pens, although every once in a while, I tell myself to stop buying any more, which auto-suggestion usually vanishes in less than a week.

That stood out because my Lamy 2000 med nib is very forgiving with a large sweet spot compared to my M600 but I truly love both.

 

To the OP, I say just try them. I have contemporary 600 and 800 models and a 1950s 400, don’t know the 200. I like all of them. I don’t know if it’s the particular pen or all of them but my Lamy 2000 has been one of the most used fountain pens I have in the past 20 or so years.

 

It’s neat to have a Pelikan. I’m very fond of the way the nibs thread and really like the way they fill with ink.

[SunnyShoes72]

While I don't have a Lamy 2000, I do have much experience with the Pelikan M2xx. I own a Pelikan M205 Blue Marbled in an EF nib, and I can only say that it might be one of the best pens I will ever have. Made out of resin, it is my ideal pen for long writing sessions and doing essays (yea im a 13yo student writing with a Pelikan) The piston filler also has a massive ink capacity and for those with bigger hands like my dad (which is used to writing with a Montblanc 149) can just post the pen without worrying for back heaviness or the main problems you get from posting. The cap on the Pelikan M205 take less than one full turn to open and the threads won't bother me even though i'm writing with my thumb on the threads. The Pelikan M2xx is a great workhorse pen without saying that it is the cheapest of the high end Pelikan pens.

 

But with that being said, I think the most splendid and beautiful part of the pen is the gigantic signature Pelikan nib that comes with it. it writes smoothly and flawlessly write out of the box with no misalignment and need for tinkering. The nib also has a decent amount of line variation even without pushing all the way down and potentially breaking the nib. Overall the pen is classy looking and sure worth every penny (even though I bought mine for around $155). And it sure brings out a sense of profession and status whatever your job is.

 

But for the Lamy 2000, for the same price you get a 14k gold nib. I have used it a couple of times as well as seeing a lot of people using it and have heard many complaints like the nib being too wet as it is hooded as well as the design being pretty weird and undesirable. The nib's flex is alright and the flow is perfect.

 

Out of 10, I rate the Pelikan M205, 8-9 and the Lamy 2k an 8. So i suggest trying out the Pelikan if you already have a few reliable gold nib pens. But both are great and have their places in the fountain pen world.

[invisuu]

How can you rate Lamy 2000 if you haven’t used it?

[sirgilbert357]

I keep seeing this thread and thinking I've already replied to it, but I guess I haven't...

 

I've owned a couple different M20X's and a couple Lamy 2000's. I think there is room for both in a collection and that they are different enough that it can be hard to compare the two. In my experience, the writing experience is entirely different. The Pelikan is light (I don't post any of my pens) and the nib is springy (both of mine were mediums). The nibs were quite clean and precise and laid down a 6 out of 10 line on the wetness scale. Both of the Lamy 2000's I had were also mediums and feel slightly more substantial in the hand, but still seem light when writing. The nibs on Lamys are ever so slightly stubbish though. They aren't quite a "ball" of iridium tipping -- more like a smoothed out "block" (mine were both mediums, remember). And they write wetter than the steel nibbed M20X's I used. The line is noticeably thicker in my experience, all other factors being equal (paper, inks).

 

I certainly think there is room in a collection for both. I now have an M405 and a Lamy 2000, both in medium nibs. They are two of my most used pens. The M405 is a fancier M200, and sports a gold nib instead of steel. The gold nib of the M405 is completely different than the M200. There is no springy feel to it and it puts down more ink and has thicker tipping in my limited experience. I still have an M205 nib I could swap to if I want to, but I usually just use the M405 nib.

 

Anyway, I'd say its worth having both models. Let us know what you decide!

Edited April 5, 2018 by sirgilbert357

[Martolod]

Update: I settled for the M200 in Brown Marble, got it from the nibsmith. Been using it regularly as possible, but trying to get accustomed to the grip. It doesn't "feel cheap" at all, for me. I just realized I don't need it posted at all for it to be comfortable, it really is just the way the pen is made. Pens with grips just as narrow are fine to hold but they usually don't have any step-up, their bodies and grips are flush. Not so with the Pelikan, and it's something to get accustomed to. But I like it, for my birthday I'm considering an M400 but I don't know what I'll get, it's a little while away. Might get a Cross Botanica, but there's not much about it online to make up my mind.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I'm always surprised when folks bring up the threads of a Pelikan, in I don't notice them. But I grew up with mostly screw cap pens back in B&W TV days.

If I ever had a P-45 it like every other fountain pen back then were stolen. So I never got use to slip cap pens.

 

 

""Pelikan M200 - quite expensive for a steel nib."" Nib and feed Costs some E 27 the last time I looked....which was a while ago.....but it is a nice springy regular flex nib.

What cheaper steel nib are you looking at that is springy regular flex?

 

Is semi&vintage width....1/2 a width narrower than modern 400/600/800 nibs.

 

"The threads, at least on my M400s, don't tighten securely until you torque them so much they grip into the plastic a little bit."

Never really noticed that....but I've been using a Pelikan for about a decade, so have the Pelikan snug feeling down; with out thinking about it. Just ran a few Pelikans through my hand.

Don't have an 800.

 

"I actually suspect that a good part of the famous "misaligned nibs" from Pelikan happen when sellers have to change the nibs before shipping and, accidentally, cause the problem, since in most cases the person changing the nib does not know much about FPs, nib alignment, etc."

Beats the hell out of the post offices of the world kicking Pelikan pen packages around. Though that could be happening too.

A lot of minimum wage klutzes in the world....who really don't care about what ever 'job' they have this week.

Those would be the ones with a ball point in the pocket in the B&M you visit.

 

Changing nibs, is not something I need to do weekly, in I now have so many, but I have no problem. And right now that would be putting a semi-flex B on a 600 or 200....if the urge strikes.

I have more than enough semi-flex 140-400's.

 

I first soak nib, feed and lower section of the old pens I get a day or so, before taking a folded paper towel in the forefinger joint of my left hand and place my thumb on the nib top, then twist the barrel toward me, with the right hand.

 

Now, with nib sections that have been removed once, I normally don't have to use the paper towel, but it was something I got use to doing with the vintage, 3 and 4 rill/comb nibs, in they are delicate.

I do recommend a paper towel on those vintage or any old pens for first time.....and softly, softly there after.....A Kleenex could be used...to keep your fingers from being inky.

Edited April 10, 2018 by Bo Bo Olson