Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Box

Our friends over at Goldspot recently provided us with a sweet new Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite for review.  You can check out their stock of the M805 Souveran Stresemann here.  I’m going to start off by apologizing for the number of pictures in this review though because I couldn’t stop taking pictures of this pen, I think its pretty amazing looking.  The picture above is just the box that the Stresemann comes in, kinda looks like a mini sarcophagus if you ask me, but definitely an elegant looking one that is well suited for this pen.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Envelope

Inside the Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann box the pen is tucked away in a very soft leather-like pouch with an thin elastic strap for a closure and a what looks like a faux wax seal with the Pelikan logo on it.  I did find the inside of the box with its brown and white color scheme to be a bit odd, I was expecting something to match the black and silver anthracite color scheme of the Stresemann itself.  The Stresemann name comes from the prominent German  politician and co-laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1926, Gustav Stresemann.  Stresemann made a lasting impression with his new style of more comfortable yet formal suit and an inclination to frequently wear pinstripes which caused the style to become referred to by his last name, Stresemann.  Having a black and grey pen named after a style of pinstriped suit is awesome, but to throw it in a box that’s mostly white and brown seems to be the equivalent of putting on white socks and brown shoes with said black pinstripe suit.  Take note though because that’s the one and only bad thing I’ll have to say in this review.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite on Box

Inside the soft white envelope or case is the well protected Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann in Anthracite fresh with its Pelikan tags on the rhodium plated beak…I mean clip.  The first thing I noticed when releasing the pen from its pouch was the sheer size of the thing.  I’ve used a Pelikan M205 and Pelikan M215 for quite some time on and off as a daily writer and they are a much smaller pen.  I guess in my head I’ve just always (knowing that I was wrong) equated the Pelikan to a smaller pen since that was my only experience with the brand.  The Stresemann though is what I would call a substantial pen, but not in an overly burdensome way.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Side View

A close up of the Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann shows the beautiful contrast of the black cap, rhodium plated band (and clip not pictures) and anthracite striped body.  All kind of subtle on their own but when combined on this pen its a bold yet refined statement that you cant help but notice.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Long View Cap

Here is a quick look at the Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann that incorporates the rhodium plated nib in addition to the band on the cap, those extra touches of bright shiny silver really help to set off the black and darker anthracite of the pen cap and body.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Cap Logo

One other place that you will see this silver accent is on the top of the cap where the Pelikan logo is found surrounded by a soft brushed background.  Don’t worry though, if pick up one of these pens for yourself, the top of the cap won’t come with the reflection of my grubby fingers and my face peering over the camera.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Long View Body with Piston Filler Knob

Like you may have come to expect from them, the Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann comes with a piston filler system. The knob at the back of the pen is also adorned with two rhodium bands to accent its glossy black surface.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite on Box Uncapped

Uncapping the Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann reveals a bright and shiny 18k gold rhodium plated nib.  The completely black section of the body is threaded for the cap to twist on and off and also has one more final rhodium plated band to accent it at the very end.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite vs M215

The picture of the Pelikan Souveran M805 compared to the M215 series above shows the drastic size difference.  Besides the lenght and the size of the cap you can also see that the girth of the pens are substantially different.  Keep in mind that pinstripes are slimming on that Stresemann and the horizontal lines on the body of the smaller M215 probably make it look a bit chubbier than she really is.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Nib and M215 Nib

First things first, my comparison of the Pelikan M805 nib to the M215 nib is what I was going for in this picture, but when I said the M215 was my daily writer for a while, you can see that I wasn’t kidding, she could definitely use a good cleaning.  You can see the drastic difference not only in size of the two nibs, but also the more intricate design of the Pelikan logo and background design elements.  On such a great looking pen, its easy to miss that the nib alone looks pretty amazing.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite and M200 Cap Comparison

Here is a quick comparison of the caps between the Pelikan M805 and M215 series to just give a little more perspective on the size difference.  No slimming stripes this time to play tricks on your eyes.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Bands See Through

Having only ever admired the Pelikan Souveran M805 line from afar before, I never realized that the stripes on the barrels were actually not solid colors.  In the case of the Stresemann the anthracite stripes are separated by small clear bands that actually let you see through the pen and make out the level of the ink in the chamber if you look closely, just don’t stare into the light in this picture, its kind of bright. 🙂

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Edelstine Bottles Front View

If you are a frequent reader of the blog, or follower of the Instagram or Twitter account, you have probably heard me mention my love of the Pelikan Edelstein series of inks, so its probably no surprise that I’ve had my Souveran M805 inked up exclusively with the stuff.  I feel like maybe its sacrilege to let any other ink find its way into this pen.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Edelstine Bottles and Cap Posted

You can see in this picture that the uncapped pen has some of the awesome looking Pelikan Edelstein Topaz ink splattered on the nib.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Edelstine with Topaz Nib Creep

Not really nib creep per se, but more residual from a recent filling of the pen.  I really liked the way this picture showed off the intricate design etched in the nib with the way the ink flowed through certain crevices of it but not others.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Writing Sample and Experience:

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Edelstine Cap Posted Bottles

To say that I enjoy writing with the Pelikan Souveran M805 stresemann is a bit of an understatement.  Filling the giant body with ink and setting off to partake in a lengthy writing session was an absolute pleasure.  I was initially hesitant that a larger pen like this would result in some fatigue in a long writing session but I was wrong, with one caveat.  Personally I tend to exclusively write with my caps posted, but in this case I’d probably recommend against it for most unless you have fairly large hands.  With the cap posted I did sense a slight bit of top heaviness going on, but for shorter sessions it wasn’t really a big dela to me.  Even without the cap posted the pen still comes in at about 5 inches in length which allows it to comfortable rest in the nook between your thumb and pointer finger while you write.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Edelstine Ruby and Topaz Writing Sample Capped

The Stresemann’s 18k gold and rhodium plated nib (medium) writes incredibly smoothly and finds the perfect balance between wet and dry for me, not that it cant be adjusted either way to suit your preferences though.  This is one thing I’ve always enjoyed about my other Pelikans, they just tend to write perfectly right out of the box for me.  Not too wet, not too dry, no skipping and no scratching, pretty much perfect for me.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Grip Section Against Edelstein Ruby Bottle

Although I didn’t get a picture to compare, I noticed that after doing a bit of writing the grip section seemed to be smaller than I would have expected.  Not to say it was uncomfortable by any means, in fact it felt great while writing.  I did a quick comparison to my other Pelikan M215 and M205 and was surprised to see that the grip section was the only part of these two pens that had the same measurements, but in length only.  The overall girth of the M805 section was definitely meatier, but the lengths were definitely the same.  I’m not an expert on ergonomics but I’m guessing there may be a reason for this, and since it felt pretty darn comfortable to write with it I’m not going to ask or try and figure it out.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Edelstine Close up of Nib Topaz and Ruby

As I mentioned before, the writing performance of the Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann (with the Medium nib) was impeccable. Great ink flow, no skipping, no ink splatter even with a faster writing speed which is something I’ve experienced with other pens and nibs, and to me an overall smooth gate across the Levenger Circa Rhodia, Black n Red, and Clairefontaine papers that I’ve spent most of my time using this pen on.

Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann Anthracite Edelstine Ruby Bow Tie

I had initially wanted to get a picture of my Pelikan Souveran M805 Stressemann with my own pinstriped suit, but my selfie skills are pretty poor which is probably a blessing in disguise for those that are followers on Instagram.  In order to both literally and figuratively tie up this review, I thought I’d toss in a picture of the bow tie that I like to wear with said pinstripe suit since it matches the pen and the Pelikan Edelstein Ruby ink so well.  I cant stres-emann (couldn’t resist that, sorry) how much of an effortless, smooth, and balanced writing experience the Souveran M805 provides, which to be honest at this price it should do and it most certainly does.  Beyond just writing like a dream though, its black, rhodium, and anthracite attire give it a timeless, elegant and classy look that I would say makes this an excellent pen to showcase on your desk or to carry for special occasions.  For me its been an (overly protected) every day writer that continues to have me finding excuses to write things that I probably wouldn’t find the need to write down had this pen never crossed my desk.  Many thanks to our friends over at Goldspot for loaning (like a crack dealer lets you borrow some crack…thats how it works, right?) out this pen for the review as its now going to just become a purchase on my end.  If you are in the market for a new fountain pen that exhibits a classy and refined image and is nothing but perfection to write with, head on over to Goldspot and grab yourself a Pelikan Souveran M805 Stresemann today.

©2016, Brian Greene. All rights reserved.