Courtesy of Mr Woofage's online emporium, I am using a Pelikan M800 - the usual green and black version with a medium nib - as my main writing thingy at work. The Sheaffer c/c pens couldn't hold enough ink for a job interview and i was taking two pens with me.
So...is a £290 pen more than twice as good as a £130 pen? Actually, yes it is, and the money hasn't just gone into bling. It's quite a bit smoother than a Sheaffer Valor/Targa, the piston gubbins is all solid brass and built-in (not a £4 accessory) and it holds vastly more ink. It's a lot of money but you probably can't get anything better and it should outlast me.
The M800 is considered a "large pen" but after trying a colleague's M805 (same pen, different finish), I realised that anything smaller wouldn't have worked with my odd non-tripod grip. With smaller pens I need to post the cap to give me something to hold, and I hate posting the cap because it scuffs up the end of the pen.
I'm sticking with Sheaffer Skrip black because it's a reliable non-clogging ink and, also being rather runny, it gives a very wet line with the M800. However, it doesn't seep through pages, which is rather clever considering how thin it is - some of the Diamine inks like Florida Blue always go through to the other side.
Our new recruit asked what it was...turns out her mother works for Montblanc UK. I told her it was better than a Montblanc
