What I Really Like About Pelikans

[senzen]

I gave my mum what turns out to be an m600 just like mine, a very long time ago - more than a decade. She never used it, kept it in its case, I asked her to bring it on her next visit so I could clean it. It took a lot of water to finally get rid of all the Parker Penman green, but once it was clean and I filled it with Diamine Ancient Copper, it started right away, the piston is smooth and nib super smooth. Pelikan for super reliable pens! My own m600 has also been bullet proof.

[sargetalon]

Pelikan pens are very durable and clean up nicely. I have seen many a poorly stored example brought back to life with nothing more than a little attention. Glad that you were able to get the M600 back up and running. Does your mother ever intend to use it?

[senzen]

Pelikan pens are very durable and clean up nicely. I have seen many a poorly stored example brought back to life with nothing more than a little attention. Glad that you were able to get the M600 back up and running. Does your mother ever intend to use it?

 

I'm trying to convince her to use it, I also gave her a Clairefontaine notebook and the bottle of Ancient Copper.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Do have her hold it behind the big index knuckle..............though the fat and blobby semi-nail nib, will write for folks that hold it like a ball point.....just not as well.

That was the reason the nib has a double Kugle or two balls....top and bottom with a thicker point.....and is a semi-nail....for the Ball Point Barbarians....same with the modern 400....and modern 800.

Edited December 21, 2017 by Bo Bo Olson

[invisuu]

Do have her hold it behind the big index knuckle..............though the fat and blobby semi-nail nib, will write for folks that hold it like a ball point.....just not as well.

That was the reason the nib has a double Kugle or two balls....top and bottom with a thicker point.....and is a semi-nail....for the Ball Point Barbarians....same with the modern 400....and modern 800.

Why are you always so negative in every Pelikan thread? Why cant you let people enjoy their Pelikans regardless of your personal opinion?

[amk]

The only other pens I can think of like that are aerometric Parker 51 and Parker 45. I have acquired those in all kinds of dirty dusty ink-encrusted states and practically every single one will be writing within 24 hours of my getting it home, usually with just a good soak of the nib and a good flush out.

 

Oh, and the Pelikan 100.... it's not just modern Pelikans that are practically indestructible!

[Matlock]

The only other pens I can think of like that are aerometric Parker 51 and Parker 45. I have acquired those in all kinds of dirty dusty ink-encrusted states and practically every single one will be writing within 24 hours of my getting it home, usually with just a good soak of the nib and a good flush out.

 

Oh, and the Pelikan 100.... it's not just modern Pelikans that are practically indestructible!

 

Fully agree. I went over to a Pelikan M600 (old type) when I lost my much treasured Parker 51 and, although I have a reasonable collection of Parkers, there is something about the Pelikan range that leaves all others standing. Still using that M600 every day after 27years.

[Bo Bo Olson]

So folks can know how to upgrade their modern substandard nibbed Pelikans with better nibs.

The 600 has many grand beautiful pens...............with boring blobby nibs.

I do suggest making the modern 400/600/800 into stubs or CI's....then the nib will have some character.

 

Because the '50-65 and the '82-97 nibs are better....writing with a clean line, not even getting into the line variation of the '50's era, the '80-90's regular flex give a good ride.....and no one complains of 'baby bottom' all the time of the modern 400/600&800.

 

If you had nibs of the better eras....or even the 200 you'd know what I'm talking about....but if you grew into fountain pens from nails.....that's what you get, and you are happy with fat, blobbly characterless semi-nail nibs.................which are what you want most..........'butter smooth'....often with baby bottom.

It's curable, get a '50-65 semi-flex nib that will screw into a 400/600.

 

Then comes the semi-flex obliques......which modern is not even a shadow of that for line variation.

 

Sort of the difference between a fresh lose packed spiced hamburger vs a McDonalds.... industrial frozen thing.

Edited December 22, 2017 by Bo Bo Olson

[Matlock]

So folks can know how to upgrade their modern substandard nibbed Pelikans with better nibs.

The 600 has many grand beautiful pens...............with boring blobby nibs.

I do suggest making the modern 400/600/800 into stubs or CI's....then the nib will have some character.

 

Because the '50-65 and the '82-97 nibs are better....writing with a clean line, not even getting into the line variation of the '50's era, the '80-90's regular flex give a good ride.....and no one complains of 'baby bottom' all the time of the modern 400/600&800.

 

If you had nibs of the better eras....or even the 200 you'd know what I'm talking about....but if you grew into fountain pens from nails.....that's what you get, and you are happy with fat, blobbly characterless semi-nail nibs.................which are what you want most..........'butter smooth'....often with baby bottom.

It's curable, get a '50-65 semi-flex nib that will screw into a 400/600.

 

Then comes the semi-flex obliques......which modern is not even a shadow of that for line variation.

 

Sort of the difference between a fresh lose packed spiced hamburger vs a McDonalds.... industrial frozen thing.

 

Get a life Bo Bo. You have your views and many of us share at least some of them but not all. Thankfully we are all different and what is a great nib to you, could be a disaster to others and vice versa.

[Bo Bo Olson]

OK, I'll let folks think the new modern nibs are what they want, if all they want, is butter smooth semi-nail with lack of a clear line and a problem of baby bottom.

There are Pelikan nibs that screw right in; with more character, and cleaner line; if one has the ink and paper for it, that lack baby bottom.

 

Ignorance is bliss.

[Matlock]

OK, I'll let folks think the new modern nibs are what they want, if all they want, is butter smooth semi-nail with lack of a clear line and a problem of baby bottom.

There are Pelikan nibs that screw right in; with more character, and cleaner line; if one has the ink and paper for it, that lack baby bottom.

 

Ignorance is bliss.

 

I don't want to prolong this Bo Bo but, as I have said, we are all different. Some love the modern nibs for what they are, some don't. I prefer the older nibs if I am writing in my journal or composing an important letter, but the new nibs are perfect for note taking etc. I only use ball points for official forms and signing the back of credit/debit cards so I find the reference to "Ball Point Barbarians" offensive and, frankly, rather childish. Still I have only been using Fountain pens since around 1955 so I will bow to your superior knowledge. Your signature notes point out your views very well so please don't turn every post into a campaign for your nibs of choice..

[Bluey]

Nib technicians luv 'em. Never a shortage of work.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Yep, got you got me by two years.....

Edited December 22, 2017 by Bo Bo Olson

[invisuu]

If we want fountain pens to continue, we want newcomers. Newcomers don't usually start with vintage xy pens. If they buy a brand new shiny Pelikan and come to this forum, frankly, I would not be surprised if they immediately left. Because one of those 18 thousand posts of yours is going to be bashing them how they're barbarians for having bought their shiny new toy.

 

This is simply not an encouraging environment. I have nothing against you personally and in many aspects agree with you, there's value in your experience and knowledge for sure, but your method of passing on that knowledge is not as good as it could be.

[Glenn-SC]

 

Get a life Bo Bo. You have your views and many of us share at least some of them but not all. Thankfully we are all different and what is a great nib to you, could be a disaster to others and vice versa.

 

 

I get the impression that complaining about how the way Bo Bo likes pen/nibs is the only way pens/nibs are supposed to be IS his life. If it is his life it must be incredibly boring!

 

There are so many types and styles of nibs and pens that, quite frankly, I pity a person who can only have one type every time all the time.

[senzen]

Do have her hold it behind the big index knuckle..............though the fat and blobby semi-nail nib, will write for folks that hold it like a ball point.....just not as well.

That was the reason the nib has a double Kugle or two balls....top and bottom with a thicker point.....and is a semi-nail....for the Ball Point Barbarians....same with the modern 400....and modern 800.

 

Her pen glides, I'm trying to sell her the idea of a more relaxing writing experience, which is what I eventually realized; I'll note the finger position you mention.

[Matlock]

Yep, got you got me by two years.....

 

[Bo Bo Olson]

"bashing them how they're barbarians for having bought their shiny new toy.""""""""

Not calling fountain pen users barbarians....just ball point users that forced stiff, fatter nibs because they were never taught to hold a pen properly, and bent the nice regular flex Pelikan nibs into pretzels due to heavy hands they developed pushing a ball point pen....like plowing the south 40 with out the mule.

 

Am informing them that, there are better nibs than ones that are complained about constantly as having baby bottom; while Bock was making them and after Pelikan took those 'modern' nibs in house. Same complaints as when Bock made them, are made with Pelikan making them.

 

The big round nib is good for those who willi nilly rotate their nib as they write.

 

I really can't defend the modern Pelikan pen from those who started with narrower than marked Japanese nibs calling Pelikan nibs fat (in they are).............the vintage and semi-vintage Pelikan nibs are thinner.

 

I have an old chart, '80's-90's that shows Pelikan as thinner than Parker, Sheaffer....(one Waterman nib set was exactly as wide as Pelikan....found that later) Pelikan then had it's own nib width set for the 800....in between the 400 and the skinny Waterman nib.

Then Pelikan EF was the narrowest of all....western. (This was before Japanese pens expanded out of being a nitch far east product and not mainline.)

The Pelikan EF is not all that respected as a thin nib by many....could be many complaining are coming from Japanese nibs.

 

There is a respected poster doing some research in the modern width of Parker and Sheaffer saying they are closer to Japanese and lots thinner than modern Pelikan.

At first having that old chart in the back of my mind where Parker and Sheaffer were fatter than Pelikan it was sort of ....but I believe him.

 

My 605 BB no longer has baby bottom............it's now a 1.0 stub....and butter smooth.

[invisuu]

Fat nibs are not ballpoint users thing, not even close. I unfortunately have to use a ballpoint every now and again at work (Ive narrowed the usage down to using ballpoints only for filling out the vacation days papers, as you must press down on that so it makes a footprint copy on another paper beneath it) and let me tell you, those are all in the EF/F range. I love fat nibs, 0.7 mm line width is my minimum. I like my inks and I want to see them properly, not as an extra fine scribble.

 

From my experience, Pelikan makes well tuned EF/F/M nibs, but go beyond that and you get babys bottom. With Pelikans widths, this means about what youd normally get in F/M/B elsewhere (one width broader). Which is a shame, because youre forced to choose from 3 relatively boring options, but for people with just 1 or 2 pens, that is enough, I guess.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Living in Germany I lucked into vintage semi-flex stub nibs 'early'. 3/4ts of my pens are '70- to a few '30's, mostly German.

 

....later stopped being quite so semi-flex snobbish as I learned to like nice springy regular flex '82-97***....those are all Pelikan (outside one '70-80 MB 146) in they sort of happened as I discovered regular flex is better for shading ink than the wetter semi-flex that is better with line variation. As mentioned a nice ride and a clean line, like vintage.

 

I am nowhere the only one to complain about round modern Pelikan nibs......( some put wet Noodler inks in Pelikans and can justifiably complain of too wide a nib width; too wet a nib.....in the nib and feed was designed for a dry ink....)

 

I have no idea, but doubt that the school pens I had from the mid-late '50's to mid '60's were 'butter smooth' in I think that was an alien thought then. Hell, we didn't even know about cleaning pens...and the magic rubber baby bulb....was decades away from discovery.

@1970 I bought a P-75 instead of a Snorkel....and that was my only pen for decades....it wasn't then nor now 'butter smooth'.

 

I do have some like a Cross Townsend, Woolf and few others, I use seldom....in I've been spoiled by semi-flex 'softness' & line variation. Good and Smooth the level under butter smooth is where I stop if smoothing nibs...... want to use slick paper.

 

***In no one raved about his semi-flex '66-82 spade nib Pelikans which most were as far as I could tell, I never chased them. In fact no one ever mentions what flex they are as is.

 

My 15 Pelikans took much of a decade to accumulate. I do have an adequate supply of vintage nibs.....perhaps I'll luck into a pretty 600. I liked my 605 with a '54 semi-flex B.

 

I being from my time like a light, nimble, and well balanced pen.