Jump to content

Pelikan M800 - Pilot CH 91 - Sailor Progear - Which one?

HknGrss

By HknGrss
in Fountain & Dip Pens - First Stop

 Share

Recommended Posts

sandy101 Collectors Item

sandy101

Posted
Posted

The pro-gear I have is plastic/resin and has no weight to it. The Cross Peerless (if it's still available) comes with a sailor nib and a heavy, metal body. It mght be worthwhile checking them out. 

 

I like Pilot's pens - I have a Falcon with a soft medium nib - it is a bit springy when you write with it and you can get some line variation. Certainly, I don't think you will be disappointed - if you want a heavier pen, go for a Piolt rather than a plastic one. I don't think you can go wrong.

 

I used a Pelikan M800 and found it a bit unbalanced for my taste. Too heavy at the back.

 

I agree with arcfide - Diplomat's pens do come with nice nibs. My Excellence has a steel nib and is a beautifu writer. But their nibs are hard and you won't get  a lot of line variation from them. Cult Pens has some Graf von Castell pens on sale at the moment and their nibs are lovely. Maybe look at one of those?

 

Is there a pen shop, club or shop nearby which will let you try some pens out?

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • Replies 26
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • HknGrss

    6

  • A Smug Dill

    3

  • Merrick

    3

  • arcfide

    2

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

HknGrss Dipped Only

HknGrss

Posted
  • Author
Posted
1 hour ago, sandy101 said:

The pro-gear I have is plastic/resin and has no weight to it. The Cross Peerless (if it's still available) comes with a sailor nib and a heavy, metal body. It mght be worthwhile checking them out. 

 

I like Pilot's pens - I have a Falcon with a soft medium nib - it is a bit springy when you write with it and you can get some line variation. Certainly, I don't think you will be disappointed - if you want a heavier pen, go for a Piolt rather than a plastic one. I don't think you can go wrong.

 

I used a Pelikan M800 and found it a bit unbalanced for my taste. Too heavy at the back.

 

I agree with arcfide - Diplomat's pens do come with nice nibs. My Excellence has a steel nib and is a beautifu writer. But their nibs are hard and you won't get  a lot of line variation from them. Cult Pens has some Graf von Castell pens on sale at the moment and their nibs are lovely. Maybe look at one of those?

 

Is there a pen shop, club or shop nearby which will let you try some pens out?

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, I don't have any of them. I wish there were, I would like to try the pens I am thinking of buying.
Even the Diplomat range is very small, even if there is a pen model, there is no nib range, so I have eliminated the Diplomat for now.
 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
lamarax Vintage

lamarax

Posted
Posted (edited)

IMO comparing these three, is akin to comparing apples to oranges, to uh.. berries (?), both regarding characteristics, as well as price point.

  • the Pelikan M800 is a robust, quality constructed, piston filling, typical modern rounded tip, smooth but quite stiff, very wet, with a wider than advertised line, formal looking pen with few editions/variations, retailing on the upper side of €500. Mind you, a fresh-off-the-line M800 as we speak, has been "restructured" (as in it has lost its defining translucent body, coz... cuts).
  • the Pilot Custom Heritage 91 is your "comfort food", easy to clean cartridge/converter, affordable but not cheap-looking or made, lightweight and slim, honestly uninspiring but always reliable Japanese fine writing, stiff, *very smooth*, neither dry or wet nib pen (well, outside of Japan exclusive offerings), usually in the range of €120-140.
  • the Pro Gear... uh, which Pro Gear? From the sublime King of Pen for over a Grand, to the Realo piston-filling, to the slim, the short, the myriad colorways/materials/special editions, to nibs with distinct character even within the same specification... which really?
  • ...

Oof 😁

Personally, I'd go Pilot first, then work myself from there, taking into account budget fluctuation and general disposition towards the hobby as time goes by.

Edited by lamarax

large.my_eyes_hurt.png.7ca4a507e8a0978dddd3e9ad65266f13.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites
langere Antique

langere

Posted
Posted
12 hours ago, HknGrss said:

Thank you very much for all the suggestions and ideas.
Right now, as I do research, I keep seeing new pens and getting excited.
For example, I saw the M800 Burnt Orange Special Edition, but it's twice the price of the classic version. I can't help myself, I want to buy it, but after paying that much, I can also buy Visconti Homo Sapiens or Pilot Custom 845 Urushi.
I'm in a battle with myself: should I go easy on my budget and buy, for example, a classic M800, or should I push the envelope and buy a Homo Sapiens, 845 or M800 Burnt Orange?

I realize that I have to decide at this point, this part was a bit like a bit of trouble :)
 

Eventually, you will get all of these pens.  Just pace yourself! You don't need all at once.

 

BTW, the Pelikan Burnt Orange every once in a while comes up heavily discounted.

 

Erick

Using right now:

Jinhao 9019 "F" nib running Birmingham Firebox

Sailor Princess Kayuga "MF" nib running Noodler's Black Swans in Australian Roses

Opus 88 Minty Year of the Snake "F" niub running Birmingham Sugar Kelp

Pelikan M200 "EF" nib running Birmingham Inks Tesla Coil

Link to comment
Share on other sites
jchch1950 Antique

jchch1950

Posted
Posted

Pens don't last forever. Ava;abi;ity of s[ares parts and easy access tp good repair service is something that can be included in your toughs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Revekah Dipped Only

Revekah

Posted
Posted

If you're torn between the Pelikan M800, Pilot Heritage 91, and Sailor Progear, I'd say go for the M800 if you like a bit more weight and a smoother nib. It's a solid choice without going into the details of other options. Happy pen hunting!





 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
A Smug Dill Museum Piece

A Smug Dill

Posted
Posted
On 6/20/2024 at 9:19 PM, jchch1950 said:

Pens don't last forever. Ava;abi;ity of s[ares parts

 

Neotjer dp leubpards.

I endeavour to be frank and truthful in what I write, show or otherwise present, when I relate my first-hand experiences that are not independently verifiable; and link to third-party content where I can, when I make a claim or refute a statement of fact in a thread. If there is something you can verify for yourself, I entreat you to do so, and judge for yourself what is right, correct, and valid. I may be wrong, and my position or say-so is no more authoritative and carries no more weight than anyone else's here.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Most Contributions

    1. amberleadavis
      amberleadavis
      43972
    2. PAKMAN
      PAKMAN
      35665
    3. inkstainedruth
      inkstainedruth
      31671
    4. Ghost Plane
      Ghost Plane
      28220
    5. Bo Bo Olson
      Bo Bo Olson
      27747

  • Upcoming Events

  • Blog Comments

    • Misfit
      On my second trip to Japan in seven months, while the going is good

      By Misfit · Posted

      Oh to have that translucent pink Prera! @migo984 has the Oeste series named after birds. There is a pink one, so I’m assuming Este is the same pen as Oeste.    Excellent haul. I have some Uniball One P pens. Do you like to use them? I like them enough, but don’t use them too much yet.    Do you or your wife use Travelers Notebooks? Seeing you were at Kyoto, I thought of them as there is a store there. 
    • A Smug Dill
      On my second trip to Japan in seven months, while the going is good

      By A Smug Dill · Posted

      It's not nearly so thick that I feel it comprises my fine-grained control, the way I feel about the Cross Peerless 125 or some of the high-end TACCIA Urushi pens with cigar-shaped bodies and 18K gold nibs. Why would you expect me or anyone else to make explicit mention of it, if it isn't a travesty or such a disappointment that an owner of the pen would want to bring it to the attention of his/her peers so that they could “learn from his/her mistake” without paying the price?
    • szlovak
      On my second trip to Japan in seven months, while the going is good

      By szlovak · Posted

      Why nobody says that the section of Tuzu besides triangular shape is quite thick. Honestly it’s the thickest one among my many pens, other thick I own is Noodler’s Ahab. Because of that fat section I feel more control and my handwriting has improved. I can’t say it’s comfortable or uncomfortable, but needs a moment to accommodate. It’s funny because my school years are long over. Besides this pen had horrible F nib. Tines were perfectly aligned but it was so scratchy on left stroke that collecte
    • stylographile
      Bits and bobs to bring with me to in-person meets

      By stylographile · Posted

      Awesome! I'm in the process of preparing my bag for our pen meet this weekend and I literally have none of the items you mention!! I'll see if I can find one or two!
    • inkstainedruth
      My notes and advice on fountain pen cleaning

      By inkstainedruth · Posted

      @asota -- Yeah, I think I have a few rolls in my fridge that are probably 20-30 years old at this point (don't remember now if they are B&W or color film) and don't even really know where to get the film processed, once the drive through kiosks went away....  I just did a quick Google search and (in theory) there was a place the next town over from me -- but got a 404 error message when I tried to click on the link....  Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth 

  • Chatbox

    You don't have permission to chat.
    Load More

  • Files






×
×
  • Create New...