Posts filed under Pelikan

Pelikan Jazz Ballpoint Pen Review

I am thoroughly enjoying the Pelikan Jazz Ballpoint pen. That shouldn’t come as a surprise given that I enjoy ballpoint pens, and Pelikan makes great products. It should be good! But, what I realized with the Jazz is not only that it’s good, but it’s good enough to make me think I’ve been missing out.

Ballpoint pens are continually underrated. Why is that? The problem with ballpoints is that we have all used terrible ones. Scratchy, skippy, dry, messy, sticky. There are some bad adjectives to describe some of these pens we have used in the past.

But modern ballpoints, using superior refill technology, are fantastic. Even great.

The Pelikan Jazz is a new pen to me, and reasonably new to Pelikan’s lineup as a whole. It has classic Pelikan design elements, like the clip, but comes in fun, modern colors like this Orange model. There is even a full pastel lineup, which is what make me take a second look at these pens to begin with.

This is a twist-to-deploy pen, but it keeps tricking me into thinking it uses a knock-type mechanism. The barrel “cap” overlaps the lower barrel, and when I see a design like that, I want to push the cap down to engage and retract the refill. It’s not a problem whatsoever, but that hasn’t stopped me from continuously trying to click it.

The twist takes about half a turn to let loose the Pelikan 337 refill. It ships with a medium (1.0 mm) blue cartridge, in the Parker-style (or international G2) shape, so you can swap it to your hearts content. But I’m not sure you would want to.

This refill is excellent. I expect 1.0 mm ballpoint refills to be smooth, and this one delivered. The lines were solid, and the color was rich. There was little tip residue to be found, although as with many good ballpoint refills, it did pop up from time to time. I never had to wipe it off.

After all of this praise, this must be an expensive pen, right? Well, compared to a Bic Stic, yes. But at $12, compared to other pens in this category, it is priced perfectly. It’s an upgrade to the basic ballpoints in your desk drawer, with enough style and quality to justify the price point.

If you couldn’t tell, I’m kind of enamored with it. I like having it around to pick up and use on a whim for just about any task. It may be worth grabbing another simply because I’m having so much fun with this one.

(Goldspot provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on October 18, 2021 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Pelikan, Ballpoint, Pen Reviews.

Pelikan M205 Moonstone Fountain Pen Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)

Be still my glitter goth heart. I held off on the Pelikan M205 Moonstone, because I already have the Star Ruby, and I told myself I didn't need this one, too. We all lie to ourselves, sometimes. It continued to haunt me. Thankfully, Brad (the best) sent one my way from JetPens, and I am so glad he did. This is a gorgeous pen, and totally in keeping with the quality I expect from Pelikan.

Like the Ruby, this one is really difficult to photograph. The pen looks plain grey in so many photos, but it's really a misty transparent acrylic that is completely saturated with very fine rainbow sparkles. When you hold it to the light, you can see how transparent it really is, in keeping with the gemstone theme.

It's not only beautiful, but it's a very well-made pen. As I've mentioned before, Pelikan is a brand that doesn't treat its lower-tier pens like lesser-than versions of the expensive models. This pen feels every bit as refined as its upper-echelon peers. It is all flush joins and precise edges with crisp details. Because it's part of the Classic line, and not the Souveran line, it sacrifices a few fancy features for a lower price tag, but it sacrifices absolutely nothing in quality. These Pelikan Classic limited edition pens come in at $192, half the cost of the Souveran specials. That is an increase from when the Ruby came out at under $170, but it's still reasonable for this pen, in my opinion.

It has a steel nib instead of gold, but Pelikan's steel nibs are every bit as smooth as most gold nibs. I have to double-check every time to even be sure it is steel and not gold. This one is an extra fine, but writes more broadly than a lot of extra fine nibs, as Pelikan’s do. It writes very well with a bit of feedback but no scratchiness. This nib is actually a little drier than I like, which is rare for Pelikan. Most of mine have been firehoses, so this may be an anomaly.

The pen body, cap, and grip section are made in ethereal, shimmering acrylic. It has chromium plated trim, with the characteristic Pelikan bill clip. The clip is just the right amount of firm and springy. The finial is black plastic with a silver stenciled pelican with one chick. Overall, it looks classy. It's not glittery in a kitschy way--it's fine, and subtle enough that it looks more like a shimmer, from a distance. Up close, in direct light, you can see the sparks of complex colors and depth to its finish. It's more playful than standard Pelikan fare, but stops well short of glitzy. The cap posts securely, and it is very comfortable to hold, posted or not, for my hands.

I should probably stop trying to resist these Pelikan gemstone limited editions. They're perfectly understated fun, really great quality, and fairly priced. I don't know if future editions will match this perfect blend of glitter and gloom that I love so much, but I have a feeling this isn't my last Pelikan gemstone pen.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on June 17, 2021 by Sarah Read and filed under Pelikan, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Pelikan 337 Giant Ballpoint Refill Review

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

I'm always on the lookout for a new Parker-style refill to try. The Parker-style refill is one of the most commonly used in ballpoint pens, and almost every pen manufacturer has their own version of this refill size. While the size is common across the board, the quality of the ink and the writing experience is anything but. For the longest time, I've regarded the Schmidt EasyFlow 9000 as my favorite Parker-style refill. In most cases, a new ballpoint pen that uses the Parker-style refill would immediately be replaced with a fresh EasyFlow to instantly improve the writing experience. Lately, I've been using the Pelikan 337 Giant refill, and I believe it's better than the Schmidt.

So, what does it take to knock the Schmidt out of first place in my book? The Schmidt is easy to find, affordable, offers a smooth writing experience, has a variety of color options (namely, blue), and is always quick to start writing even after a long shelf hiatus. The Pelikan beats the Schmidt in every area except for price, but I think it's worth it.

The Pelikan Giant refill is a standard Parker-style refill, but the ink formula is outstanding. It also comes in a wider range of colors and tip sizes (at least through JetPens) than the Schmidt. I'm currently using a Fine blue refill, and I love it. But, I also have the option of medium or broad tip sizes, and black and red ink colors. The Schmidt only comes in black or blue, and only one tip size — medium.

The ink in the Giant is somehow smoother than the Schmidt, and also lays down a more consistent line. In the world of ballpoint refills, the Schmidt does an absolutely fantastic job against the competition when it comes to ink consistency, color, and flow. The simple fact is the Giant does it all better. I like the lighter blue color better, I like the smaller tip size more, and the performance of the ink is crazy-good. It makes the Schmidt look like a Bic when compared side-by-side. And, it feels smoother when writing. I've been enamored with this refill ever since I started using it.

Performance and my own infatuation aside, this is an expensive refill. At just shy of $10, it's twice the price of the Schmidt EasyFlow refills and more than basically any other major competitor. Does this refill write twice as well as the Schmidt? I don't think so, and that will turn many people away from it. But, when you consider the improvement you can make on any pen, the price may be well within reason. Like most things, you're perspective will vary, as will the proposed value of a premium refill like this one. Bics make marks on paper, and they're also fantastic writing instruments when you can't have or afford anything else.

My assumption is that these refills are overpriced on purpose by Pelikan to align with the expectation of a premium luxury pen. From my research, any pen that Pelikan ships with this refill is in the range of hundreds of dollars. Considering that there are plenty of pens that accept the Parker-style refill and also cost less than the refill, it's a hard value proposition to swallow. Is it over-priced? Almost certainly. Will I still buy more? Oh, hell yes. For the same reason that I own pens that vary in price from the single-digit dollars to hundreds of dollars. They all offer something unique, and this refill elevates an ordinary ballpoint pen to something greater than the sum of its parts. It's a fantastic product with a special ink formula that really excels.

If you can stomach the price, I can only recommend the Pelikan 337 Giant refill as a big improvement on your favorite Parker-compatible ballpoint pen.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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