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Thread: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

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    Default Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Hi guys!

    I want to share my experience with the Make a Wish Nib project at Pelikan!

    This February I have started to learn German and decided to visit Germany in September to "try" my "similar to a 3 year old" German language skills and was lucky enough to find an opening on Pelikan's Make a Wish Nib program. I subscribed immediately, of course, and spent a couple of months anxiously waiting!

    I stayed at Hannover and took the early morning train to Peien/Vörhum. The train station is quite small but has a cozy coffee place that helped me to a hot coffee on a cold and drizzled morning. I asked around how to get to Pelikan HQ at Pelikanstraße (how is it to have a street named after you?) and I was informed I had to take a certain bus (don't recall the number) and get off at the second stop. I looked around and the city was a sympathetic village and two stops couldn't be far so I decided, despite the drizzle, to walk and get to know the city.

    If you decide to do so, I should warn you it is a 40 minutes walk and 30 of them are along the road and not amid the city... =D!!!! Perhaps you may decide to take the bus, specially if you're on the clock!!!!

    When I got there I was feeling like a child on Xmas morning... or better, at Santa's Factory!!!!

    I was received by Mrs. Juliane, who was extremely nice and well informed on a lot of details about Pelikan, and soon introduced to Mr. Detlev Köhn, who was the engineer responsible for tunning my M800 Make a Wish Nib. If Pelikan's factory is Santa's Factory, Mr. Köhn is Santa cause he is the one who works personally on your gift!

    It was amazing cause we started talking, a bit in English, a bit in Deutsch (yes, everyone there was patient and polite to my poor Deutsch), and a few exchanges in Italian and suddenly we were talking about a lot of things and experiences and the pen just waiting at the table... it was trully great cause it was a personal experience and not something cold and distant, I felt welcome there and felt among people with whom I share interests and could talk for hours.

    And after a most pleasant while it was time to meet my pen! My M800 S Nib, made for me, after I sent writting samples and answered a lot of questions about my grip and how I use my pens (kidding, just 2 short pages), and then magic happened!

    The nib was perfect from start. No hard edges, no skipping, no blind spots on it, nothing, it just wrote extremely thin horizontal lines and broad and bold vertical lines. Just what I wanted!!!! And I was having my fun with the nib and saw Mr. Köhn looking at my hands, kind of surprised, and then he just said it: "your writing technique is perfect! You keep the nib straight, don't rotate the grip, no force on the paper, as you should!". Guys, this was a hell of a compliment coming from the person who engineers the nibs, specially because I was never taught how to use a fountain pen, I just learned it from writing and reading posts and blogs. Must say it was amazing!!!

    I would ramble on a lot about that day, but I better don't.

    I walked out of there with 2 M800s, one Orange Burnt with my Special Nib and a Renaissance Brown, and more than that, I walked out of there with a light and happy heart and a strong desire to return, soon!

    Here are some photos of Beatrix, my Orange Burnt M800, cause it is Orange and the Queen of my pens, so it should have a Queen's name!
    Attached Images Attached Images

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    I am officially jealous. Thank you so much for this post! I was asking about the make-a-wish program before, but nobody had any hands-on info.

    You've got a great nib there, it looks amazing. And two great pens...no wonder you felt like personally meeting Santa!

    One day...one day I shall go through this as well. Did you have to be physically present there at order and pick up? Is it possible to maybe request one personally, then receive it via mail or something? Also, may I ask what the price was for the customization only (you can PM me if you don't want to specify it publically)? Congrats, this is really, really awesome!

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Hi Adhoc

    Thanks for your words!

    I can tell you a little bit more about the process.... you apply online (https://www.pelikan.com/pulse/Pulsar...-dir-was-feder) and choose an available date. They will then send you a formular to have a better understanding on how you write, hold the pen, speed of writing, and your general wish for the nib.

    When the time comes you visit the factory - oh I forgot about that, they show you where they make the nibs, you can see people setting the nibs you will use later - and try the nib. I'm not sure, actually I didn't ask, if you could do this over postal services.

    The price for the nib alone is on their website, what I can tell you is that if you buy a pen they will exchange the nib for the Special one for 40Euros. Since I was going for the pen I thought it was a good deal.

    Happy to answer any other questions, shoot them away!

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Man, that's incredibly cheap. I've accumulated many Pelikans now and I simply ran out of nibs I can get on M800 model (I even went after the harder to get ones, such as IB and OM). My next Pelikan M800 nib will definitely be an "S" one. This is great, thanks!

    What nib did you get on the Renaissance Brown? I think you owe us some pictures

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Hi Adhoc

    Actually, the Renaissance Brown has a F nib, which has not been grinded (yet...)...

    Nevertheless, since you mentioned, I do have an IB M800, as a BB m800 (which was grinded to formal italic by M. Masuyama), and 2 m600 B, one formal italic and one cursive italic. You can see the F nib is the odd bird in the flock....

    Here you can see some pictures, I keep them dry since it is not their turn on the rotation...

    Best,
    Attached Images Attached Images

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Very nice flock! One of these days, I should take a picture of mine as well. I've recently been able to source an OM M800 nib, the very modern one with a single chick stamp. Love that nib to bits.

    That IB nib looks like an M1000 nib to me?

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Thank you very much!!!!

    I hope you find the nibs you want! It does take a while but they show up from time to time!!!

    That IB nib has become a headache for me... I have had troubles with it and I agree it is too big... I'm considering shipping it back to Germany to have it fixed somehow. Wouldn't want to lose such a nib, specially after I had its edges made extra sharp!

    The one problem I have with Pelikan is they keep making nice pens and I keep wanting them...

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    This story put a big smile on my face. What a wonderful experience.

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    that is a beautiful flock ! and wonderful assortment of nibs too!

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    The writing is great , I would love that nib too were it mine . The orange pen is lovely but the Brown is what I really like . Good for you , enjoy !

    Eddie

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Thank you!!!!

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    I should say I went there anxious for the orange but could not go away without the brown as well...!!!

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    I just discovered this thread and enjoy your narratives of the event in Germany. If I were to order a custom nib, it will be similar to yours
    - Will
    Unique and restored vintage pens: Redeem Pens

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    It remains my best nib to the day! Hope you get yours one day!

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Wow...that nib is exactly what I've been looking for in terms of line variation. I'm going to Prague for a month this summer, so perhaps I'll have to look at taking a trip to Hanover while I'm there.

    You said that "The price for the nib alone is on their website, what I can tell you is that if you buy a pen they will exchange the nib for the Special one for 40Euros." Did you buy the pen directly from the factory and discuss this beforehand, or did you purchase one from an authorised dealer and bring it with you to the factory to do the nib exchange?

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    Default Re: Pelikan Make a Wish Nib - my experience

    Hi Kardisa,

    Thank you!

    As I remember it, you have to buy the pen at Pelikan's shop, and then you just swap the nib. I can't tell you if they will trade a nib from another pen, however, they are very friendly and surely would answer an email with such a question!

    Prague is wonderful, enjoy!

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