The Pelikan Future
PEN REVIEW: PELIKAN FUTUREI first saw this pen on the official German Pelikan site. I'm a notorious sucker for cheap pens of modern design, and I knew when I saw the pictures that I had to have one. While the other well known modern Pelikan, the Level, has a sober look, the Future is much more colorful and lively, befitting a pen aimed primarily at kids. The pen comes in red, blue, green, and yellow. The interchangeability of the parts to create a multiplicity of different colored pens is used as a selling point. The German Pelikan site also shows a very smooth looking "silver" model. Whether or not this is silver colored plastic, or aluminum, I'm not sure. I'd love to find one though.
I was unable to find one on the net, except a couple for sale on Ebay. I was sure If I waited, I could pick some up in Europe. But not so. There were simply none to be found, and only one employee in a pen shop had ever even heard of it. When I couldn't find one at Akkerman in Amsterdam, I knew it wasn't going to happen. So I hit E-bay when I got home, and bought one from the PenGallery in Malaysia.
My Future is red, with a broad nib. The pen is very light in weight, and medium sized. The section features three oval shaped soft black "elastomer" inserts, designed to cushion the grip. The oval theme is repeated in two beveled ink-vue windows positioned on the top and bottom, rather than the sides of the pen. There is additional soft plastic added to the top of the clip for decoration, and to the top of the cap, which sports a printed Pelikan logo.
The nib is completely flat, and sits in a semi-inset configuration within a contrasting colored plastic holder. The feed appears to be identical to the one on my Level 5.
So how does it write? Better than you'd expect for a $15 dollar pen. At first, I found it balky, but with an ink change and a little use, it became a very good writer. The nib is extremely smooth, and ink flow is more than adequate. The inserts provide a good grip. It's actually become one of my favorites lately, and I bring it back and forth to work every day (along with others!).
Few seem to share my love for bizarre looking, inexpensive pens, but if you do, or just want a fun pen, or a pen for a budding young nibster, I recommend this pen. If you can find it...
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