Pelikan Jazz Fountain Pen: Is it the Worst Pen in My Collection?

Review of The Pelikan Jazz Fountain Pen by Jonathan Weinberg of Drawing with Fountain Pens. #fountainpens #pelikan #nibs #drawing #pilotpens #lamypens #lamysafari

[@egondickau3678]

I like the design and shape. Started instantly. I think your criticism is a bit harsh. Many other pens have a similar chrome section.

[@drawingwithfountainpens]

It takes all kinds, as they say. It is not the chrome section per se for me, but the fact that the section is both so thin, and slippery. But clearly there must be many people like you who enjoy it or they would stop making them. My "harsh" review is really about disappointment, since Pelikan makes my favorite pen, the M800 and I wish they made a really great inexpensive pen the way Pilot, Platinum and Lamy do.

[@mrdminkov]

Pelikan Jazz FP is a good FP for its price. The subjective thoughts and experiences of the author have not to be considered objective conclusions. Actually, for its price, you will hardly find another full metal body fountain pen with such a smooth steel nib, and it is supplied with a long international standard cartridge. The body is relatively thin, but I find it pretty comfortable to write with. Despite this full metal body, the pen is not heavy and it is well-balanced either posted or unposted.

[@drawingwithfountainpens]

All my reviews are subjective. As I said, Pelikan makes my favorite pen, the M800, but the Jazz pen body is very disappointing, and it literally hurts my hand when I try to write with it. It does not compare to the Pilot Metropolitan which is a metal pen, and I actually think Amazon's own pen is better--it is also metal. Both are priced similarly to the Jazz. The Jazz nib is nice, and so I now use it on a Jinhao 82. Yes, it is a good idea to clean the pen before you put ink it! Thanks for your comments!!

[@fountainpencollection8337]

Yes, i know that there are people who don't like the shiny, slippery and narrow sections like those on the Pelikan jazz and that's perfectly normal, i don't have any problem with this pen because of those reasons, it doesn't bother me either one of those aspects, but i'm only speaking for myself here. Do I use this pen regularly? Definitely not, and this is not because it would be a bad or uncomfortable pen for me, it is because i have other much better pens that i use regularly and if i think about it, i have much more expensive and better pens than Pelikan jazz that are on the reserve bench. In conclusion, it is a pen that writes well, but it depends on each individual, whether it is ok or not and whether the writing section is a problem or not.

[@drawingwithfountainpens]

Yes, what fountain pens you like are very much dependent on your taste and how big your hand is. I have way too many pens myself, but for me personally the combination of the narrowness of the section and that it is so slippery actually hurts my hands and this is unusual for me. The nib is not bad for such an inexpensive pen, however.

[@andrei82047]

If you like the M800, it is for sure that you are going to hate the narrow grips :)
The japanese deskpens, from Platinum for example, are even slimmer, but because of the length they are very comfortable.
I like the MB 149 and I do agree with you. The Jazz is an unfortunate size.

[@drawingwithfountainpens]

This review has turned out to be my most controversial. I tend not to go out of my way to give a pen a bad review, but I was so disappointed given my love of Pelikan's more expensive pens. It isn't just how narrow the pen is that is the problem for me. I have lots of narrow pens in my collection like the Kaweco Lilliput that I really like. And I love my Apple pencil which is very narrow in comparison to most fountain pens. It is something about the how narrow it is and how it is shaped and the slipper material--it physically hurts my hand to use it. The nib itself is pretty good, and I have subsequently transferred it to another pen. In fact, given how inexpensive the pen is, people might want to buy it just for the nib!

[@sathishrao7926]

I have this (white colored) and M200..
It had severe flow issues initially, but it became okay after I gave it a thorough cleaning..
The only problem for me is its slippery section. Small diameter doesn’t bother me..
But it’s a beautiful pen though..

[@drawingwithfountainpens]

That slippery section is a real problem. I think the M200 is great!

[@sathishrao7926]

@@drawingwithfountainpens M200 is good, but “Fine” writes more like a “Medium”.. Also, I think it’s a kind of overpriced..

[@mrdminkov]

@Sathish Rao - cleaning the new FP is the first lesson that you have to learn when you enter the hobby.

[@drawingwithfountainpens]

I think the Pilot Metropolitan and the Lamy Safari are both much better from an ergonomic point of view. The Platinum Preppy is a great writer, comfortable to hold and much cheaper. Amazon's own pen is more comfortable to write with and made of metal. Many Chinese pens are better too. The section on the Jazz is way to thin, and slippery--it literally hurts my hands to use it. But I am sure there are those who find it comfortable. Pelikan makes some nice inexpensive pens for children and students as well that I think are better. But I agree the nib is nice, and actually quite similar to the Muji fountain pen, which actually looks nice, but is not the most comfortable pen to hold. Given my love for Pelikan pens in general, I think the Jazz is not worthy of the company.

[@nicksg3002]

I love Pelikan. I hope you could find a pen that fits the nib so at least you could use it. Thank you for sharing❤

[@drawingwithfountainpens]

I love Pelikan pens too. I did find that it fit on a funny little pen from A G. Spalding that I have always loved but hated the nib, so it worked out. Thanks for your comment!

[@nicksg3002]

@@drawingwithfountainpens Hey that's awesome! Hope you share that A.G. Spalding "new' pen! I haven't seen one. Besides Pelikan, I like Pilot nibs too. Yes the converters have issues but to me it's just taking out the air, turn upside down or simply use a syringe. To me, Pelikan makes nice looking pens and nibs that do work. Pilot makes good nibs, love their waverly, soft fine, soft medium,etc but the pen is very simple and many just black. So, I keep searching for pens that I like its "looks" that fits a Pilot Nib 😂😅🤣

[@eugenschenfisch1639]

Dear Jonathan, did you tried the Pelikan Pura fountain pen. The diameter of that pen is much bigger and they have a nice color range. And I heared that they prepare a limited special edition due to its 15 years anniversary.

[@drawingwithfountainpens]

Yes, I have two that I have gotten at bargain prices on Ebay. They are pretty expensive for steel pens if you pay list price--not in the same league as the Jazz. They are nice and I will do a review on them eventually. They are bigger pens than the Jazz pen--much more the size and width of the M400. They do suffer from the slippery quality of the section because they too are made of shiny chrome, but the nib on the Pur is really nice--similar to a M200 nib it its smoothness. Pelikan makes wonderful nibs!!!