Nib size M800 Medium looks like Broad.

[HamiltonOmegafan]

Hi everyone,

 

Today my new Pelikan Souverän M800 arrived. Filled it with ink directly off course.

Started some writing and the nib seems to be more of a B the a M compared to my Parker Premium Black.

The point of the M800 nib is broader then that of the parker.

 

Does anyone know if Pelikans nibs are more broad the other brands ?

 

Thanks for your answers.

[BayesianPrior]

That's a common reaction with modern Pelikan gold nibs.  They do tend to have a large ball of tipping material and runner broader than the typical punter would expect.

[ZeroDukE]

Yes!  They usually are broader than other brands.

[lionelc]

try pelikan 4001 black with good paper - written line width decreases quite a bit

[Karmachanic]

2 hours ago, lionelc said:

try pelikan 4001 black with good paper - written line width decreases quite a bit

 

You may find other dry inks performing similarly.  Sailor Kiwa-Guro is known to put down a thinner line.

 

[HamiltonOmegafan]

Thank you for all your response.

 

Could a pelikan Fine nib be compared to other Medium nibs?

Edited July 14, 2021 by HamiltonOmegafan

[lionelc]

yes - see for yourself on gouletpens - they have a nib nook that lets you compare nib line widths

[HamiltonOmegafan]

24 minutes ago, lionelc said:

yes - see for yourself on gouletpens - they have a nib nook that lets you compare nib line widths

Thanks.

I checked the nook before buying and doubted between medium and broad. Now that I have the pen and wrote with it, the medium on Nook seems much thinner than mine medium.

[A Smug Dill]

39 minutes ago, HamiltonOmegafan said:

Now that I have the pen and wrote with it, the medium on Nook seems much thinner than mine medium.

 

Are you using the same ink writing on the same type of paper used by Goulet, though, even if obviously you can't be writing with the same hand (pressure and technique)? A different ink could make a nib's line width change by one or even two grades; as can different paper.

[HamiltonOmegafan]

Thanks for the input.

 

I think I go for an extra nib in F-size. This will hopefully approach a 'regular' medium.

[A Smug Dill]

19 hours ago, HamiltonOmegafan said:

… M800 nib …

 

8 minutes ago, HamiltonOmegafan said:

I think I go for an extra nib in F-size. This will hopefully approach a 'regular' medium.

 

Here's a writing sample from my M815's F nib (in direct comparison with a bunch of other pens), before I hacked it up because I just couldn't stand how broadly it wrote, but got sick of waiting for an opportunity to take it to a professional nibmeister to give it a do-over:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/343508-q-i-use-western-fine-nibs-what-is-the-japanese-equivalent/?do=findComment&comment=4175466

 

[sirgilbert357]

I don't know anything about that ink, but that looks like cheap copy paper. I'd use something better...at least Rhodia or Clairefontaine. If changing the ink and paper don't give you the results you want, a nibmeister can grind the nib down to the size you prefer. Cheaper than buying a whole additional nib unit that may or may not perform to your preferences (again)...

[HamiltonOmegafan]

17 hours ago, A Smug Dill said:

 

 

Here's a writing sample from my M815's F nib (in direct comparison with a bunch of other pens), before I hacked it up because I just couldn't stand how broadly it wrote, but got sick of waiting for an opportunity to take it to a professional nibmeister to give it a do-over:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/343508-q-i-use-western-fine-nibs-what-is-the-japanese-equivalent/?do=findComment&comment=4175466

 

The Pelikan F nib writes broader than any other in your collection.

Thanks for the reply.

[HamiltonOmegafan]

16 hours ago, sirgilbert357 said:

I don't know anything about that ink, but that looks like cheap copy paper. I'd use something better...at least Rhodia or Clairefontaine. If changing the ink and paper don't give you the results you want, a nibmeister can grind the nib down to the size you prefer. Cheaper than buying a whole additional nib unit that may or may not perform to your preferences (again)...

 

Paperwise I depend on whatever I get in front of me. I use it for business, writing on enquiries, making notes etc. That's also how I compared my Parker to my Pelikan. So I am stuck with that.

The ink I can change. So I id this morning with Pelikan 4001 brown. (will post a picture) I don't think this made any difference. Maybe a little, but not the desired effect by far.

 

You're wright on buying an extra nib, that will be some sort of gamble.

Edited July 15, 2021 by HamiltonOmegafan

[A Smug Dill]

32 minutes ago, HamiltonOmegafan said:

The Pelikan F nib writes broader than any other in your collection.

 

The ones I have tested and for which I have shown writing samples in that series of forum posts, anyway. I do have a couple of Sailor Zoom nibs and Naginata Concord (one regular, one Emperor variant) that writes broader than the Pelikan M815's F nib … but only when I want them to.

[PAKMAN]

In my experience, German nibs tend to be wider than say American branded nibs which tend to be wider than say Asian nibs of the same nib size. 

[gyasko]

6 hours ago, HamiltonOmegafan said:

 

Paperwise I depend on whatever I get in front of me. I use it for business, writing on enquiries, making notes etc. That's also how I compared my Parker to my Pelikan. So I am stuck with that.

 

 

 

Unless you are required to write on certain documents, i don't see how you would be stuck with any particular paper.   Until you try the nib on decent paper, any judgement on nib width is hasty.  

 

A little pad of Rhodia paper costs a couple dollars.  An expensive pen is a complete waste of money without decent paper to use it with.

[sirgilbert357]

7 hours ago, HamiltonOmegafan said:

 

Paperwise I depend on whatever I get in front of me. I use it for business, writing on enquiries, making notes etc. That's also how I compared my Parker to my Pelikan. So I am stuck with that.

The ink I can change. So I id this morning with Pelikan 4001 brown. (will post a picture) I don't think this made any difference. Maybe a little, but not the desired effect by far.

 

You're wright on buying an extra nib, that will be some sort of gamble.

 

I'm not sure I follow. You depend on whatever paper you get in front of you? What do you mean? Are you at work and you don't have control over what you are using, I guess?

 

Let's set that aside for a second though...

 

Have you even tested the pen on GOOD paper? If not, you should. Something of consistent, known good quality should be your benchmark -- not the random stuff you are using at work. That stuff could be different next month. Once you know how your pen writes on the good stuff, you can decide which direction to take...because you don't want to tune this pen for cheap paper and have it NOT perform well on GOOD paper!!

 

Having said that...this is a luxury writing instrument that is meant to perform well with a kind of ink that rarely works with cheap copy paper meant for printers. It can work sometimes, if the nib is fine enough and the ink has the right properties, but you're holding back what the pen is capable of, and you'll be limited on inks.

 

This is why I have a cheap pen dedicated to work duty with a certain ink. It just stays at my desk permanently. I still get to use a fountain pen, but I know it will be acceptable on any kind of paper, and I don't have high standards for its performance since I realize I'm not controlling all three variables of the writing experience (Nib, Ink, Paper). I don't mind broad lines, though. I still use my "good" pens and inks at work too, but I control the paper I use them on so that I get the result I want.

[maclink]

The OPs photo reminds me of the paper I use at work. The lines have that paper induced extra thickness look about them. This sort of paper responds particularly poorly to wetter writers and an M800 is typically a wetter writer. 

[Tom Kellie]

13 minutes ago, sirgilbert357 said:

Having said that...this is a luxury writing instrument that is meant to perform well with a kind of ink that rarely works with cheap copy paper meant for printers. It can work sometimes, if the nib is fine enough and the ink has the right properties, but you're holding back what the pen is capable of, and you'll be limited on inks.

 

This is why I have a cheap pen dedicated to work duty with a certain ink. It just stays at my desk permanently. I still get to use a fountain pen, but I know it will be acceptable on any kind of paper, and I don't have high standards for its performance since I realize I'm not controlling all three variables of the writing experience (Nib, Ink, Paper). I don't mind broad lines, though. I still use my "good" pens and inks at work too, but I control the paper I use them on so that I get the result I want.

 

~ @sirgilbert357: Thank you for your excellent comment.

 

Several years of regular fountain pen writing passed before I realized what you've summarized above.

 

I'm a slow learner. Had I read something similar to what you've explained, I'd have known sooner.

 

          Tom K.