Pelikan 120 update

[Tinpanalleybluesman]

Hi lovely people, this is a little update about my newly purchased Pelikan 120 fountain pen. A few days ago, I have made this post about the fountain pen I purchased. The pen didn't came with packaging. Original owner didn't have one. Interestingly enough, the other day I bumped into an advert, about a guy who was selling this vintage pelikan 120 packaging,  but without a papers inside. The best part is - nib of my fountain pen has " F " insignia, same as on the box that was for sale ! So I purchased it. Please take a look, and tell me if this could be the genuine packaging for Pelikan 120 vintage fountain pen? 

Thank you in advance ! Sinsirely yours - Tinpanalleybluesman.

[mana]

Yes, it is, and for future reference, Pelikan has not been faked unlike that one other brand, so instead of asking ”is this legit?” for every piece of Pelikan kit you encounter you can pretty much rest assured that it indeed is what it ”says on the tin”.

[Tinpanalleybluesman]

2 hours ago, mana said:

Yes, it is, and for future reference, Pelikan has not been faked unlike that one other brand, so instead of asking ”is this legit?” for every piece of Pelikan kit you encounter you can pretty much rest assured that it indeed is what it ”says on the tin”.

Thank you for your answer. Maybe I did not express myself properly.. My English ... I didn't mean that the box was faked. I wasn't sure if this box comes with vintage Pelikan 120 or perhaps with a newer (2016) model - for instance M120. Because I keep seeing a different packaging for vintage Pelican 120 model. Something like white-yellow-ish type of cardboard box, unlike this one. 

[mana]

Ah, ok. Vintage 120 came in a number of different style packaging over the years, that seems to be one of them. They haven’t really been cataloged (as in, the different variants and when they were in use and in what markets) but yeah, that is appropriate for that model of a pen.
 

Modern Pelikan packaging is quite different, and looks decidedly more modern even at its most sparse (small long white cardboard box that fits just the pen). It usually also has a sticker with the model indentifier, modern Pelikan logo, barcode, etc.

[OCArt]

I am far from an expert so take my observations only as thoughts of a Pelikan owner.

 

The original posters pen  has a straight cap band which indicates it is NOT a M&K model and did not have the nib of a modern 120 reissue. So these factors point to a manufacture date of 1955-65. The box pictured says "Gunther Wagner" which, to me, also points to a non-M&K model so I think the box is correct.

[Tinpanalleybluesman]

6 hours ago, mana said:

Ah, ok. Vintage 120 came in a number of different style packaging over the years, that seems to be one of them. They haven’t really been cataloged (as in, the different variants and when they were in use and in what markets) but yeah, that is appropriate for that model of a pen.
 

Modern Pelikan packaging is quite different, and looks decidedly more modern even at its most sparse (small long white cardboard box that fits just the pen). It usually also has a sticker with the model indentifier, modern Pelikan logo, barcode, etc.

Oh thank you, this was very informative ! So  it's appropriate for this model after all ! Thank you, I really appreciate your answer !

[Tinpanalleybluesman]

3 hours ago, OCArt said:

I am far from an expert so take my observations only as thoughts of a Pelikan owner.

 

The original posters pen  has a straight cap band which indicates it is NOT a M&K model and did not have the nib of a modern 120 reissue. So these factors point to a manufacture date of 1955-65. The box pictured says "Gunther Wagner" which, to me, also points to a non-M&K model so I think the box is correct.

Thank you sir, your answer is also very informative ! I hope that nobody doesn't mind my questions... I am new, and know almost nothing about vintage fountain pens, that I adore. I appreciate it ! 

[Bo Bo Olson]

My car mechanic gave me a near mint 120 some 15 years ago..........for 15 years of seldom use...it remained near mint.........but the nib is gold plated, so that means with out warning the gold plating will start to vanish and be near gone one time one opens up the pen.

The nib is still a good regular flex even is gold plating is lost.

 

Do use only 'kleenx' to wipe the nib....pat it....any gold plated nib. Don't rub.

 

There I was in a used/junk shop and was buying a gold plated Pelikan small 150 cheap....I told the guy to leave the nib alone (could clean it at home) no....he decided to clean it, with a rough paper towel......gone was the gold plating...................I knew I was going to loose the gold plating sooner or later; but not imminently.

The pen was cheap enough....the loss of the gold plating didn't hurt when I bought it, in I had no resale in mind......................the springy regular flex nib works just as fine when the gold plating vanishes or is rubbed off.

 

[Tinpanalleybluesman]

3 hours ago, Bo Bo Olson said:

My car mechanic gave me a near mint 120 some 15 years ago..........for 15 years of seldom use...it remained near mint.........but the nib is gold plated, so that means with out warning the gold plating will start to vanish and be near gone one time one opens up the pen.

The nib is still a good regular flex even is gold plating is lost.

 

Do use only 'kleenx' to wipe the nib....pat it....any gold plated nib. Don't rub.

 

There I was in a used/junk shop and was buying a gold plated Pelikan small 150 cheap....I told the guy to leave the nib alone (could clean it at home) no....he decided to clean it, with a rough paper towel......gone was the gold plating...................I knew I was going to loose the gold plating sooner or later; but not imminently.

The pen was cheap enough....the loss of the gold plating didn't hurt when I bought it, in I had no resale in mind......................the springy regular flex nib works just as fine when the gold plating vanishes or is rubbed off.

 

Thank you sir for your reply !

[carola]

On 1/16/2023 at 11:22 AM, Tinpanalleybluesman said:

Thank you sir, your answer is also very informative ! I hope that nobody doesn't mind my questions... I am new, and know almost nothing about vintage fountain pens, that I adore. I appreciate it ! 

 

Your questions are welcome. That´s what (among other things) this forum is for. And people new to the hobby are always welcome, too.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Tinpan, do you know back in the real old days, we didn't know about cleaning a pen?

 

Go to Richard Binder's site, it is the bible of fountain pens, all about nibs, filling systems, sound ink advice and so many drool over pens.....block out three full days. Once 96 1/2% of what I knew about pens come from there. Now it's only 92%.....after all in 15 years a fella should have learned something.

 

When I was new, I learned 5 or more things every day.......If I put my mind to it today, it would be the same..........I really got to learn more about paper..........and inks have advanced light years in the last few years.

Learning is fun when you don't have tests.

 

My advice is for every three inks you buy, buy a ream or box of good to better paper. Soon you will have a paper collection you can speak on.

Writing is 1/3 nib width/flex, 1/3 paper and 1/3 ink and in that order.

Paper is the floor your nib and ink tango on.

Don't put your good paper in a printer........

[Tinpanalleybluesman]

12 hours ago, carola said:

 

Your questions are welcome. That´s what (among other things) this forum is for. And people new to the hobby are always welcome, too.

Thank you so much for your support Carola, I appreciate it !

 

[Tinpanalleybluesman]

10 hours ago, Bo Bo Olson said:

Tinpan, do you know back in the real old days, we didn't know about cleaning a pen?

 

Go to Richard Binder's site, it is the bible of fountain pens, all about nibs, filling systems, sound ink advice and so many drool over pens.....block out three full days. Once 96 1/2% of what I knew about pens come from there. Now it's only 92%.....after all in 15 years a fella should have learned something.

 

When I was new, I learned 5 or more things every day.......If I put my mind to it today, it would be the same..........I really got to learn more about paper..........and inks have advanced light years in the last few years.

Learning is fun when you don't have tests.

 

My advice is for every three inks you buy, buy a ream or box of good to better paper. Soon you will have a paper collection you can speak on.

Writing is 1/3 nib width/flex, 1/3 paper and 1/3 ink and in that order.

Paper is the floor your nib and ink tango on.

Don't put your good paper in a printer........

" Back in the real old days, we didn't know about cleaning a pens " ? I still don't know anything about cleaning a pens herr Bo !!! Thank you for your suggestion !

[Bo Bo Olson]

Back in the '50's when one used just one's business ink, both my old MB and Pelikan '50's papers showing how to load one's piston pen suggested cleaning it by filling it with water until it ran clean every three months.....now most would want to do that every six weeks or when ever one changes inks.

One just refilled with one's normal inks. That does clean the pen a tiny bit.

That was in the day of 'One Man, One Pen.'

Those were more iron gallish than most of now's iron gall inks.

 

I didn't know that, and my parents neither, in that info was not give to me as I looked and watched the family Snorkel get filled up with Shaffer ink..........Clean a pen? Why?

Perhaps one of the reasons we had so many vintage pens, was they got clogged up and landed in the dark of the drawer for a couple generations.

 

After cleaning a piston pen, wrap the nib with a paper towel and place it in a coffee cup for 8 or more hours so the rest of the invisible ink is wicked out and becomes visible. Never scrub the nib with a paper towel, it will wear off your gold plating on a gold plated nib. Pat it with a Kleenex.

 

As a lad back in B&W TV days, there were three guy inks and 4-5 girly inks (that outside of pink and yellow I like now) and red was for teachers or bookkeepers. Now, we live in the Golden Age of Inks......@ some 2,000 inks of slightly different hues and shades in saturated and shading inks. Also sheen came in some 5 years ago. Glitter some 10 years ago.

 

I do recommend R&K Verdura a lively green-green shading ink over MB Irish green. In my green ink test, R&K beat it....though some other fella liked Irish the tad better....R&K is E-8.50 for 50ml. MB has jumped from an affordable 15 to 23 in just 4 years. Now, 20 Euro has become my max for any ink. MB's facny tiny bottle of limited issue inks is well over E25....I see that as a rip off as MB tries to keep up with the Jones....the expensive Japanese, Cd'A, and Graf von FC.

It was better in the old days....of a decade ago....the inks were cheaper.

 

Who needs green inks? I was chasing purple (had about 8), when a half bottle of Pelikan's now discontinued 4001 Brilliant Green fell into my hands for only 1 Euro....a green-green similar to the R&K and MB green-green inks. It shaded!!! With in the year I ended up with 14 greenish inks.....now have 19.

Then there are murky inks.....for the advanced student..........worry about that later.

 

I do suggest buying a ream or box of good to better papers with each three inks. Paper is the floor your nib and ink tango on.

Writing is 1/3 nib width/flex, 1/3 paper and 1/3d ink, and in that order.

 

For cartridge/converter pens (CC) buy a rubber ear syringe. It fits over the inner cartridge punching stake and flushes the pen out very rapidly, a minute to two.

Paper towel around the nib and do the old fashioned thermometer shake.

If going over to a delicate ink....wait the 8 or more hours...........You Do Have a Second Pen?

If not, the new ink will flush out the remnants of the old ink within a couple lines.