Fountain Pen: Pelikan Souveran M800 Blue Stripe

VISUAL

I fell in love with the Pelikan Souveran the moment that I saw it - it was one of my grail pens from right when I entered the hobby. My personal preference is for the blue stripe - I love many of the limited editions and newer versions that have been released, but when I finally decided to get one of my own I knew it had to be this one. This particular model is the older style, with the older logo on the finial and the translucent body.

The M800 has gold trim and a gold clip. I think blue goes with pretty much anything, but I have to admit that it looks great when paired with blue and black.

The body is made of resin featuring strips of blue with small gaps that show through as black, but can be seen through when held to the light. I've heard that they're moving to a solid black rather than translucent, so I was determined to get one of the 'old style' pens before they changed forever.

TACTILE

Once again, I will state that I like larger, wider pens. I'm so glad that I decided to spring for an M800; it is really a great size for me. I prefer to use my pens posted, and this pen is decently long posted but not unusable. The short section is small enough that my fingers rest on the threads, but they're not sharp and I barely notice them. The slight flare to the end of the section fits my fingers very nicely.

I like the feel of the resin used in this pen. It's interesting how some resins can feel weighty and more 'quality' to the touch.

PRACTICAL

One of my favorite parts about this pen is the absolutely gorgeous nib. I love the two-tone nib with the deeply stamped embellishments. It's a joy to write with as well. I would say this is one of the smoothest pens I've ever used. It's also a pretty juicy nib, and lately I've been pairing it with some amazing yet drier inks that don't work as well in other pens.

This pen is a piston filler with a decent ink capacity, almost 1.3ml in a full fill. I like trying to peek between the blue stripes to see what the ink level is. It's a bit tricky to see, but some visibility is better than nothing!

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STATISTICAL

Pen Measurements:

Weight: 30g

Weight of Cap: 8.4 g

Length Capped: 141mm

Length Uncapped: 127mm

Length Posted: 161mm

Nib: 6mm Medium 18k Gold

Body Style: Classic

Fill Method: Piston

Fill Volume: 1.3ml

Comparison Pens: Pilot Metropolitan and LAMY Safari

My Fountain Pen Database

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OVERALL

Pros:

• Feels great when posted and posts securely

• Super smooth and glassy nib

Cons:

• While you can see through the barrel slightly to check the ink level, it's really a challenge to see anything.

While I admit that I love looking at new pen releases and chasing the 'new', it is great to turn to beloved classics. This is one of my favorite pens in my collection, both for how it looks as well as how it writes. I was a bit worried buying an older pen second hand, but I actually like the story told by every small scuff and scratch.

I purchased this pen used through eBay as I was specifically looking for the older style.

DISCLAIMER: Pens and inks purchased by myself. Photos and opinions are my own.