Pelikan Classic M200 Cognac

            This week we will be looking at a pen by the renowned company Pelikan: the Classic M200 in a Cognac finish. A traditional styled piston filler pen.

            Stats:

Diameter – Body 11.9mm

Diameter – Grip 8mm

Length – Body 121mm

Length – Overall (Capped) 124mm

Length – Overall (Posted) 148mm

Weight – 14g

Available Nib Sizes – Fine, Medium, Broad (reviewed), and Italic

Street Price – ~$120

            Looks:

            
            The Pelikan Classic M200 Cognac is a limited edition version of the standard M200 pen. Regularly coming in a Black body/Gold trim or Black body/Silver trim; the Cognac is a translucent amber body with gold plated trimming. For those who are new to fountain pens this type of see through body is referred to as a “Demonstrator”, as you are able to see all the inner workings of the pen. The nib unit, section, ink reservoir, and piston mechanism are in full view.

            The finial sports a black circle with the Pelikan logo, which is present on all pens in the Pelikan Classic series. The gold plated clip is tight, but can easily slide and hold onto any material, and it is also stylized to resemble a pelican’s beak. Finally the cap ends in a gold plated center band that reads “Pelikan” and “Germany”. After the center band the body continues until another gold plated ring and the piston operating nob. The piston turns smoothly and draws up a large amount of ink, far more than any cartridge or converter.

            Unscrewing the cap reveals a very small grip section made of the same resin as the rest of the pen. The threads on the body of the pen are smooth, which is good if you tend to hold your pen higher. This pen’s nib is made of gold plated steel. The nib writes buttery smooth, but offers a little bit of feedback. Being a steel nib it does not offer much in the way of line variation. However a good feature of this pen is that the nib and feed are part of a nib unit, which easily unscrews from the body and allows for swapping to the 14K Gold nibs of higher end Pelikan M400 series. The Pelikan M400 has nib sizes which include Extra Fine, Double Broad, and several Oblique cuts.

            Writing Experience and Writing Sample:

            This pen is very well balanced, even when posted, which makes for a very pleasing writing experience. The nib did write fairly dry when I first received it, but that was easily fixed with some tinkering. My only gripe with the nib is that it writes more like a fat medium rather than a broad (I own a couple pens with “Medium” nibs that put down a far more broad line than is pen). Here is a writing sample of this pen. 

            Final Thoughts:

            The Pelikan Classic M200 Cognac is a great first entry to the Pelikan line up. The price reflects the high quality of this pen, as well as the piston filling mechanism and the limited edition. This is a very well made pen that is a joy to use, and a pen that is almost always inked. I highly recommend this pen.