My First Pelikan, An Old M150 (Date Unknown?)

[andymcc]

I bought my first Pelikan last week, I've been considering one for a few months and bid on an unknown model on ebay, I knew it was either an M150 or M200 but didn't know what the nib or age were, the seller said it was around 10 years old. I posted pictures from the auction to the what pen are you waiting for thread and sargetalon was good enough to message me with more info, the pen appeared to be an M150 probably from pre 1997.

 

The pen arrived a couple of days ago and on the surface looked good, there were scuffs and micro scratches that you would expect from a pen that's been in daily use for a decade but the pen looked better than I expected, from it's size I'm now sure it is an M150.. I knew the pen would need flushing so filled it with warm water, the piston moved fairly smoothly and it filled well, when I emptied the pen it looked like ink coming out not water. I unscrewed the nib which was a little tight to speed up flushing, and kept filling and emptying, it was becoming clear that the pen had been in daily use but probably never cleaned in 10 years.

While waiting as the pen soaked I checked the logo and found it was indeed a pre 2003 model but on closer inspection I noticed it says 'Pelikan W Germany' on the cap band, so I'm thinking now that the pen could be alot older than 10 years and possibly closer to 20 or more as West Germany ceased to exist in 1990, if anyone can clear up the date issue I'd be really grateful.

 

Anyway enough waffle, after 36 hours of soaking the pen was clean, I applied a drop of silicon grease to the piston and was amazed at how smooth it became, I thought it was smooth before but now it's silky smooth. The nib(which is a medium) needed a little tine adjustment to straighten but now is pretty smooth and has a nice spring and gives a little line variation. There's a tiny chip missing from the gold plating but I've read that's not uncommon.

 

Sorry for going on, here's the pic's

 

My first Pelikan in all it's glory:

 

I included this pic as when I received the pen I thought the window was black

 

Logo:

 

M nib with little chip in plating:

 

W Germany on cap band:

 

 

Again sorry for waffling on, now that my first Pelikan is up and running I'm loving it, the cleaning was a real pain but it's been worth it as the pen will hopefully be good for another 20 years. For £20 I think the pen is fantastic and I'm sure my first Pelikan won't be my last

 

[brewsky]

The pen looks awesome. I love my pelikan and i hope to add more one day. I unfortunately cannot help with your date dilemma. Good luck with your search

[andymcc]

Thanks I'm sure I'll get more Pelikans at some point, I'm not sure whether I'll go used or new but I can see an M200 in my future

[sargetalon]

For dating, I think that you are looking at 1985-90 on that one.

[andymcc]

Thanks sargetalon 23+ years old and after 36 hours soaking and a little grease it's still going strong, I've been drawing with it all day today. The fact that the entry level Pelikan Classic is built so well amazes me and further convinces me that at some point I'll be adding an M200 to my collection

[Bemo]

Very nice. Before jumping into a modern 200 series, you might want to check out the 400NN vintage pens. But really, if I'd have found Pelikan's first, I'm not sure I would have gotten any other fountain pen. Enjoy

[cadfael_tex]

Nice find. Definitely before 1990 because of the West Germany markings; beyond that I'm not sure. Enjoy. Nick Proppas always has some nice 140's with semi flex nibs as well as 400nn's and other Pelikans from all eras.

 

BTW, do modern nibs from M200, M400 fit the M150. If so you can get gold or very good steel nibs, including great grinds from Richard Binder, that you can change onto that M150 for different writing experiences. Very cheaply in the case of the steel nibs.

Edited December 7, 2013 by cadfael_tex

[andymcc]

Bemo: thanks I'll have a look at the prices of vintage 400NNs

 

cadfael_tex: Is Nick Proppas here on FPN? As far as I know the modern M150 nibs will fit the vintage pens but I don't think the M200 ones will which is a pity as I'd like an EF but the M150 nibs I've seen only go as fine as Fine.

[cadfael_tex]

I'm not as familiar with the M150 as I am with the M200's and some of the vintage (thanks to BoBo Olsen). Nick is at http://www.thepenguinpen.com/pelikan/detail/pe1977.jsp

[whych]

Thanks sargetalon 23+ years old and after 36 hours soaking and a little grease it's still going strong, I've been drawing with it all day today. The fact that the entry level Pelikan Classic is built so well amazes me and further convinces me that at some point I'll be adding an M200 to my collection

The new list price for the M150 is the same as for the M200.

Both are Pelikan's piston fill 'entry level' pens.