pelikan 400 threads vs 600

[dftr]

I know the pens are close in size.   I actually am comfortable using the 400 but my main issue w/ the pen is that in my shirt pocket, the barrel twist out so the cap becomes loose.

Are the 600 threads more robust?  

 

 

[N1003U]

6 hours ago, dftr said:

I know the pens are close in size.   I actually am comfortable using the 400 but my main issue w/ the pen is that in my shirt pocket, the barrel twist out so the cap becomes loose.

Are the 600 threads more robust?  

 

 

 

I use both regularly (I have an M6xx size preference), and the cap performance for both models is, IME, very similar. I also occasionally have problems with caps coming loose with both models (one time resulted in the catastrophic loss of a favorite shirt). My input to the problem is that there seems to be a "correct" amount of torque needed to secure the cap, which one acquires by experience (because it depends on how "active" one is when carrying the pen and how much the pen is jostled around). Too much torque, and you risk damage to the cap (either immediately by stripping the threads or over time via excessive wear). Too little, and they will work loose in a pocket. The optimal cap torque is the smallest amount that won't work loose.

 

For me, that means screw the cap closed until it stops, then torque an additional 2 "creaks". Seems usually to be reliable for me (YMMV, depending on your activity level while carrying the pen).

[dftr]

oh thanks for the tip... I'm kind of nervous about the additional torque.  Shoot was hoping going up in size would fix it.  I have seen a friend w/ an 800 and he had no problems w/ the cap coming loose so maybe that's where I have to go...

[N1003U]

57 minutes ago, dftr said:

oh thanks for the tip... I'm kind of nervous about the additional torque.  Shoot was hoping going up in size would fix it.  I have seen a friend w/ an 800 and he had no problems w/ the cap coming loose so maybe that's where I have to go...

In my experience, the larger caps are not really any better with regard to security. Good, but the correct closing torque is critical.

 

Note that when one steps up in size from M6xx to M8xx, there begin to be metal innards to the pens, and the weight almost doubles, and the balance shifts rearward a bit. 

[senzen]

I did ruin a shirt with an M400 sized M600, but my impression with 8 Pelikans is about my absent mindedness rather than the pen actually uncapping by itself; but it might just be an impression!

[N1003U]

On 11/21/2021 at 6:00 PM, N1003U said:

oh thanks for the tip... I'm kind of nervous about the additional torque.

It is actually not as scary as it sounds—it is a very small amount additional torque from the point where the slack is taken up (can be applied with a light touch of the thumb and forefinger). With a light touch, it is easy to feel. One simply needs to make sure the threads engage positively, so they don’t back off unexpectedly. That is a minuscule but finite twist past the initial point of resistance.

 

I have had an M800 cap back off in my pocket in the past as well (probably due to user error), but fortunately there was not enough depth in the pocket for the pen to separate from the cap.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I've had one 400 come a bit loose in my pocket but it didn't separate.

Get a 400NN, it has a click once or twice.... one is supposed to get too so the cap stays shut. Sometimes that freaks folks not in the know. Lucky I read about that before noticing the double click.

Holds @ 2.00ml ink, instead of the 1.27 of the modern 400 and 1.37 of the 600/800. Has a semi-flex nib not a fat blobby semi-nail of a modern 400/600.

You can of course buy such a nib for either the 400 or 600. A 140's smaller semi-flex nib looks dorky but works.

 

A 140 is perfect sized for a modern shirt pocket...even a small one. It posts to as long as a 400 in it has a long cap.

 

I find an 400 or 600 comfortable and an 800 needs a large pocket and one should not bend down....or the pen does a banana skin trick.

(One can always go to one's tailor and have him sew one's shirt pocket into a single or double pen pocket....that will stop pen shifting also. Or should. )

 

The 140-400-600 have great balance posted.

An 800 or 1000 has typical lack of balance of most large pens but the Snorkel and the second generation P-45.