Posts filed under Pelikan

Pelikan Pelikano Magic Ocean 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 Bluesky. And her latest book, The Atropine Tree, is now available!)

Pelikan is a brand that does a good job meeting the needs of pen addicts at every experience level. The Pelikano has a reliable reputation as Pelikan's student pen--perfect for schoolkids, beginners, or gifts for the fountain pen curious. And now, perfect for mermaids.

Pelikan Pelikano Magic Ocean Fountain Pen Review Barrel

The Pelikano Magic Ocean Fountain Pen is made from molded resin. The body is in a pearlescent blue with a fish-scale texture all over. The body tapers toward the end and has an open ink window in the side. The cap snaps to close, though it's a tough snap. Very secure. The cap is silvery metal with a unique clip design that hugs the lower cap and wraps over the top. The clip is functional, but it's extremely tight against the cap and isn't very flexible. It serves more as a roll-stop than a clip. The top finial does have the classic Pelikan logo.

Pelikan Pelikano Magic Ocean Fountain Pen Review Grip

Under the cap, there is a pink rubberized grip section. The grip section is molded to direct your hands to a "proper" grip of the pen (since this is intended for student use,) and the pen is available in both right-handed and left-handed variations. There is a textured target pattern that sits against your finger when you're holding it as intended. It is comfortable for me to hold and write with, as I use a traditional grip, but if you have a more individual way of holding your pen, this might be very annoying.

Pelikan Pelikano Magic Ocean Fountain Pen Nib

The nib is a plain stainless steel medium nib, though it writes a very bold line that I would consider more of a broad writer. But it is very smooth and has the perfect balance of wetness in its flow. Because of the light plastic construction, the guided grip, and the smooth writing, I can see why this pen is perfect for those learning handwriting. It's a very comfortable writing experience.

The pen takes standard international cartridges or converters, and it comes with one cartridge of blue ink.

This special edition Pelikano is currently available from Goldspot Pens for $25.60. That's a great deal for a very decent writer with a bit of fantasy flair. I like it now, but if twelve-year-old Sarah received this pen, she'd have absolutely lost her mind. It would have been precious. So I know exactly who I am gifting this to. As soon as I write a scary mermaid story with it.

(Goldspot provided this product at a discount to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Pelikan Pelikano Magic Ocean Fountain Pen Cap

Posted on June 26, 2025 by Sarah Read and filed under Pelikan, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Pelikan Pura P40 - A different kind of Pelikan for the Hub

All around the world, people will be gathering to celebrate their love of pens, maybe even with a Pelikan or two! I always ink up a bunch of Pelikans for the Hub and this year is no different, except I inked up a pen that, until earlier this year, I hadn’t really paid much attention to: the Pelikan Pura P40.

(Note: I am typing this after I hand wrote my notes so don’t try to decipher the handwritten content, lol).

The Pelikan Pura P40 is a cartridge fountain pen. The “P” designation in the model indicates that it is a cartridge fountain pen, while its more well-known siblings, like the M200, M400, M800, etc. have the “M” designation, for piston fillers. Side note: “K” is for ballpoint, “D” is for pencil).

*Pelikan Pura P40, Bordeaux, inked with Visconti Bordeaux on 68 gsm Tomoe River Endless Recorder.*

The Pura is a metal pen with a snap cap, and a steel nib (Extra Fine to Broad). It also snaps to post. The grip is smooth with a slight taper towards the nib. I didn’t have any problems with the grip section being slipper, but I also don’t generally have a problem with metal sections either. There is a slight “lip” where the nib starts but my fingers didn’t really make it down that far, so I don’t know if that would prevent one’s fingers from sliding.

You can see the metal grip, along with the “nib lip”, which my fingers never reached. The nib looks a bit like the Lamy Safari nib but it isn’t the same. To my knowledge, it also isn’t removable.

I think the pen looks very sleek though I wish that the metal stripe lined up with the nib when uncapped. Not a big deal unless I’m staring at it 🙂

*You can see the reflection next to my thumb, even though the nib is face up.*

It is a slightly heavy pen, compared to most of my pens which are acrylic, or lighter metal, like my Schon pens which are aluminum. This wasn’t an issue when writing because I don’t post my pens, but it really felt back-heavy when I tried to post. It takes a bit of effort to get the cap on and off the back end for posting, but it was definitely secure.

*It was definitely too long and back-heavy for me when posted.*

The nib is smooth and writes nicely. Having written with it at the Chicago Pen Show, where it was a pretty wet writer, I paired it with a drier ink which I picked for the color, before realizing that the name of the ink and the pen’s colorway were the same.

I don’t clip my pens to anything other than the elastic in pen cases, but the Pura seems to have very little room/clearance for thick fabric. That said, it worked pretty easily when I slid the clip over my Rickshaw pen roll, but you can see that it probably doesn’t love it. I was pleasantly surprised at how easily it slid over a single sheet of this paper.

*The clip is pretty flush to the cap but it slides on surprisingly easily. It doesn’t look like it would like this thick fabric for long.*

Aside from the grip, which might be slippery for some folks, my only other “gripe”, and it is a minor one at that, is that the polished metal is a fingerprint magnet. As I mentioned above, It takes a bit of force to snap the cap on, especially to post. Now that I think about it, the other thing is that converters don’t fit, so you have to use cartridges, which is not the end of the world but it adds a bit of hassle if you want to use bottled ink.

*Comparison pens (L to R): Esterbrook Estie, Pilot Custom 823, Diplomat Aero, S T Dupont D-Initial, Pelikan Pura, Lamy Studio, Leonardo Momento Zero, TWSBI Eco, Sailor Pro Gear.*

*The Pura’s grip is the most similar to the Lamy Studio, which isn’t entirely surprising since both are German pens.*

*The Dupont doesn’t really post, so I didn’t force it.*

The Pelikan Pura P40 is a solid pen and a good writer, especially if you prefer a slightly heavier pen. It’s not often you find pens with this heft in this price point - one of the few that come to mind would be the Diplomat Aero which is similar in both weight and price. The MSRP for the Pura P40 is around $190 USD, with a street price of around $150, making it pretty similar in price to the smaller and lighter M200 series. I’m enjoying the Pura but we shall see if it results in the “gotta catch ‘em all” vibe that I get from the other models, especially since there are new colors AND a pattern coming out later this year sneak peek on the Pura webpage. I can’t wait to find out what my fellow Hub attendees think about this pen!

(Disclaimer: The Pura was part of my payment for working at the Pelikan table at the 2024 Chicago Pen Show. All other pens are my own.)

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Posted on September 27, 2024 by Kimberly Lau and filed under Pelikan, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Pelikan M200 Orange Delight Fountain Pen Review

Is there a more consistent fountain pen brand on the market than Pelikan?

There is an argument to be made for a few brands to sit along side the big bird. I’d advocate for Pilot pretty heavily, for example. But the consistency in every single aspect of a Pelikan fountain pen each time I pick one up is to be applauded. They are rock solid writing instruments, to be sure.

That’s why, even as someone who doesn’t use many Pelikans, I was excited to get the M200 Orange Delight into my hands. Yes, it is Orange, and that is important. Even more important is the fact that it is in the M200 category, which is the Pelikan model that I get along with the best.

M200 series Pelikan fountain pens are small in stature, but large on features. The piston filling mechanism is the standout, and is arguably the best on the market. It’s a smooth, effective twist to draw in ink from a bottle, or to flush with water when cleaning.

The out-of-the-box Steel nib experience is perfect as well. I use a stock Extra Fine nib in my Black M205, and would have gone for the same in this Orange Delight if I didn’t pick it up from Mark Bacas, aka Nib Grinder, at the Atlanta Pen Show. He had a Fine nib, which I immediately turned into a wonderful Cursive Italic. This is my nib width maximum on Pelikan pens, and the reason I rarely use their gold nib models. Those end up being too wide and wet for my writing.

*Left to right: LAMY AL-Star, M200, Kaweco Sport.*

The aforementioned size of the M200 is perfect for me. It’s small, and light - maybe too small, and too light for some. What I learned about my M205 was that this size is ideal for portability. I can take it - and use it - anywhere. It never gets in the way, and is a joy to use. It is big enough to use uncapped when writing, but posts deep enough that I almost consider going that route sometimes. Only sometimes, though.

To say the Orange Delight fits my aesthetic would be the understatement of the year. The solid Orange resin is set off perfectly by the translucent Orange mid-section. I love seeing the piston hardware, and the ink sloshing around inside the barrel. The Gold trim is a perfect match as well, and for this particular pen, works better than Rhodium-plated hardware would have.

There have been many Pelikan M200 fountain pens that have tempted me over the years, but at around $200, they are not a mindless purchase. I’m glad I bided my time until I found one that delights me as much as this one does.

The biggest takeaway from my experience with the Orange Delight is that I had no inclination to ink it up with an Orange ink. There can never be too much Orange, so maybe one day I will, but so many other colors fit well with this pen and nib. It may be a boring choice, but I’m thrilled with the Brown shades of Pelikan Edelstein Smoky Quartz in this pen, an ink I haven’t given much of a chance to previously. It’s a perfect match, and I wouldn’t hesitate to go a second round with it when I write this one dry.

In a sea of similarities, Pelikan still finds a way to be unique amongst the flock, while staying true to their roots. I can’t help but be continually impressed by everything they make.

(I picked up this pen from Nib Grinder at the 2024 Atlanta Pen Show in a trade for products.)

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