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Pelikan M205 Fountain Pen (Part 2)

This is a follow up to my <a href="http://dailyacquisition.blogspot.com/2012/11/pelikan-m205-blue-demonstrator-fountain.html" target="_blank">initial post</a> about my recently acquired Pelikan fountain pen. In the previous post I mentioned that the M205 is a piston fill pen, and I admitted that the ink filling routine was pleasant and fun, which really tells me that I need to get out more often. What about the ink itself? For my first ever "fill a pen with ink from a bottle" experience, I used Sailor Jentle Ink (Sky High color). It comes in a cool little glass bottle:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTvcEKqfpkC873R6Eby59WVfnLW5xBfVGKGylBGkrDErKBm9IOI1XThYjzFbaVHfxQBzw4arVk2XKCwXpHygpw2AIaG72ZAhGTLlFmMbk-UTBO7okpak6iF8XGa6FzQRw1_qt1TzHNJiM/s1600/20121004_006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTvcEKqfpkC873R6Eby59WVfnLW5xBfVGKGylBGkrDErKBm9IOI1XThYjzFbaVHfxQBzw4arVk2XKCwXpHygpw2AIaG72ZAhGTLlFmMbk-UTBO7okpak6iF8XGa6FzQRw1_qt1TzHNJiM/s200/20121004_006.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><br />I would say that Sky High is a bright blue color. Brighter and lighter than what I would call a "standard" blue. The next picture shows a more accurate representation of the actual color.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGtXS6sV8TfMq-iSmxe_qwVSu4ILwfqZT3iADLyvySNHm3tqAon-YSpnvFsYBd3ZguOx8V8RD0DlFZxasVQwLDCdLfEbekU5ZuV3safZe7xJemJ5VABRDJ2NHhnCQGSJKcDUL46XGvQb0/s1600/20121004_012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGtXS6sV8TfMq-iSmxe_qwVSu4ILwfqZT3iADLyvySNHm3tqAon-YSpnvFsYBd3ZguOx8V8RD0DlFZxasVQwLDCdLfEbekU5ZuV3safZe7xJemJ5VABRDJ2NHhnCQGSJKcDUL46XGvQb0/s200/20121004_012.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><br />Still interested? Read on after the jump. <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 16px; line-height: 17.600000381469727px;">[Edit: jumps are silly; removed it]</span><br /><br />The bottle contains some brilliant Japanese technology, too. You might say "ink is ink, there is no technology in ink." That's a fair statement. However, Sailor's bottle includes a well-designed apparatus that improves the ink filling process. Thankfully, Sailor provides instructions on how to use this inventive and complex bottle of ink:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiQ0DRDcTmu6u237oX1uXp4YGgsUGztZ2XBAewgqf2ZOCfjTCfgwrNDK6hMaf-6AlYRf22Mfa7DtW06PLTPm9JJOgAoKAsoUmES8mjtcmrFgqFf4XxvDIohbgRAtfdENS4wyr6RJH4hqI/s1600/20121004_005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiQ0DRDcTmu6u237oX1uXp4YGgsUGztZ2XBAewgqf2ZOCfjTCfgwrNDK6hMaf-6AlYRf22Mfa7DtW06PLTPm9JJOgAoKAsoUmES8mjtcmrFgqFf4XxvDIohbgRAtfdENS4wyr6RJH4hqI/s200/20121004_005.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><br />I don't read Japanese, but the diagrams seem easy enough to understand: (1) turn bottle clockwise; (2) shake bottle; (3) look at bottle; (4) fill pen. This doesn't make any sense, but a quick online translation of Sailor's website is extremely helpful: "We have been well received and installed a reservoir to gentle for fountain pen ink bottle. Buildup of ink, reservoir by tighten the cap, undo the bottle upside down, we inhale it. Conventional but it may be difficult to suction the ink in the bottle will be a small amount, by attaching a reservoir, it is possible to inhalation no waste the ink in the bottle can be underneath." Thank you, Sailor, you've been helpful.<br /><br />I did a writing sample the day after I got this pen, which was about a month ago. Since that time, I've concluded that the paper in my Moleskine notebook sucks for the extra fine nib on the Pelikan M205. The pen and ink work much better on other types of paper. I've also tried a couple of other ink samples in the M205 thus far (Diamine Oxblood color and Pelikan Edelstein Onyx color), and have had no problems or issues with cleaning the ink reservoir, refilling, ink flow, etc. This pen is a keeper (at least until Christmas), and I'm eager to twist, flip, and inhale the Sailor bottle when the ink gets underneath. LOL.<br /><br />Here is the writing sample that I created using the M205 inked with the Sailor Jentle Sky High ink:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq-iNwLw-LaAEyGbU012XTvZuYqVbg_-mC_k5FeYcbW9FCeIzc9aNAKyxW_rxQThSgkdXbqutqMOC8GzqMGBBN77RxBESol3DII41CIPwjA-R9Sdb4FCsrq5dcW-meAr6cTpU__hPm6a0/s1600/20121005_Pelikan_M205_Sample.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq-iNwLw-LaAEyGbU012XTvZuYqVbg_-mC_k5FeYcbW9FCeIzc9aNAKyxW_rxQThSgkdXbqutqMOC8GzqMGBBN77RxBESol3DII41CIPwjA-R9Sdb4FCsrq5dcW-meAr6cTpU__hPm6a0/s200/20121005_Pelikan_M205_Sample.jpg" width="156" /></a></div>