What makes a pen an icon? Sometimes it’s a unique design and aesthetic, other times it’s utility. With the Pelikan M800, I’d argue that the latter is what makes it the very definition of a “workhorse pen.” In today’s market, which tends to place a premium on constant new releases of flashy limited edition designs, it seems that the Pelikan M800 tends to get overlooked. Sure, Pelikan has its annual special releases, but the overall design of the pen - and Pelikan’s “Souveran” line in general - hasn’t changed much over the years other than to offer different sizes of the same basic model.
From left, the Pelikan M800, the Pelikan M600, and the Pelikan M400. I’ve linked to my reviews of the other two pens. As you can tell, I enjoy them all, go back and forth on which one is my favorite, and I can see an argument as to why all of them are the “best size” for everyday use. It will come down to how large a pen you prefer for your everyday writing.
A great “workhorse pen” tends to disappear in your hand when you’re writing. As with other preferred “workhorses” like the Montblanc 146 and the Lamy 2000, the design of the Pelikan M800 doesn’t distract from the work at hand, and the pen posts deeply so you don’t have to worry about keeping track of the cap. A key feature of the Souveran line is the ability to get what is essentially the same writing experience in different sizes. If you enjoy the look of the M800, but feel that it might be too big, size down to the M600 or M400, which are not only smaller but significantly lighter. (I believe this is because the piston-filling system uses different components).
The specific model shown here is the Pelikan M800 Stone Garden Special Edition, which pairs dark blue acrylic and gold trim with a marbled cellulose-acetate barrel featuring brown, blue, and black flecks. Since Pelikan releases a new M800 every year, I try to be selective about which editions I pick up. I couldn’t take a pass on this one, especially with a color combination (navy blue acrylic!?!) that you rarely see. I purchased this pen with a standard Pelikan medium nib, which writes a line that I consider the equivalent of a steel broad. While the nib is quite round, and therefore doesn’t show much line variation, it was a smooth, consistent writer out of the box and has not been modified.
One quirk I’ve noticed on this particular pen is that the plating seems to tarnish and need periodic polishing, particularly around the cap band. I suspect this is due to high copper content in whatever alloy was used for this batch. Has anyone else had this problem, either with the Stone Garden edition or another Pelikan pen manufactured around the same time (2018)?
You can see the slight bit of tarnish on the top cap band, which I find odd. It polishes right off, but I’ve not had this happen with any other Pelikan pen in my collection.
Takeaways and Where to Buy
As I noted above, I don’t have that many Pelikan pens in my personal collection, but those I do have see a lot of use as daily writers - what I call “workhorses.” If you’re looking for a pen with a classic design and rock solid reliability, the Pelikan Souveran series has stood the test of time, and you can’t go wrong with a Pelikan M800. For more on what I look for when choosing a “workhorse pen,” I’ve put together a page featuring all the relevant articles here.
Because the Pelikan M800 Stone Garden was a 2018 special release, you will need to search for it on closeout or the secondary market. Currently, retailer Pen Boutique has both the Stone Garden fountain pen and ballpoint in stock, and at a good price for a Special Edition M800. Unfortunately, since it’s been a couple of years, I don’t recall exactly where I purchased this pen, though I believe it was acquired with my own funds for my personal collection. It’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
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