Pelikan P1 Price Variance?

[fountainpenkid]

The elusive P1 seems to sell on eBay anywhere from ~$30 to ~$200 (check here: http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from...p2045573.m1684).
Any ideas why there is so much variance? Is this just a natural product of a lack of demand?

[tandaina]

Yeah eBay is not a great place to find them. There are a few folks (same folks all the damn time) who have nice ones listed for $200 (they are just not worth that.) Those pens just sit. I've had one coming up in my searched for a year straight.

I gave up on eBay ages ago. Try Martini Auctions out of Germany. Usually they have lots listed. You will see a few very expensive ones. (Gold caps on very, very rare colors. Sorta like a Plum 51) but in general they run around $100 US with a good nib. The oblique nibs fetch a slightly higher price. The gold caps slightly higher than the steel. But I've got three now, two from Martini, one from a fellow pen buff.

I've never seen a good condition P1 sell for $30, I'd jump on that. But $70 -100 seems to be the fair price range for the common colors, even with a gold cap and nice nib.

[ChrisC]

They are also quite small, I believe.

Also, Parker 51's can be had around $50, and Pelikan M200's can be had for less than $100 new, and a lot of what helps determine price is what else a person could buy.

[Laura N]

They are also quite small, I believe.

Also, Parker 51's can be had around $50, and Pelikan M200's can be had for less than $100 new, and a lot of what helps determine price is what else a person could buy.

And Pelikan M400s can be had for around $125, used but like new condition. That's a screaming inefficiency in the market, if those P1 prices are accurate.