Sorry, no video review for this pen. I was going to set up Wesley's camera again and give it a go but time got away from me and I wanted to get this review posted before we enter into Pencil Month tomorrow.
This is the first Pelikan pen I have ever written with, and it might be the last. On that note, this review comes courtesy of Paul who was kind enough to loan me this pen while we were in DC. I think the M605 is another example of a well made pen that is wonderful if you like the styling. I am not one for the more "traditional" look, so it is doomed from the start in trying to win me over.
Let's get into some details, shall we?
Physical Presence
This pen, like most of the Pelikans I have seen, has a very traditional/executive look to it. While not nearly as imposing as the M1000, this pen still gives that feel of refinement and a certain preference for the nicer things in life. It was also much lighter than I expected it to be, though I'm not sure why. This is a pen that's on the smaller side, a bit shorter even than a Lamy Safari. I would say that it also has a similar feel in the hand, so if you find the Safari to be too light then this is not the pen for you.
I know the picture is fuzzy, but I didn't realize it until I sat down to write this up and by then my light was disappearing so I'm just rolling with it. This is why I'm not a pro, folks.
The body of the pen is made from an opaque resin/plastic, with silver trim rings and clip. The branding is subtle, with just the standard Pelikan logo on the top of the cap and "Pelikan Souverän" etched into the cap ring. While it's not a look that I love, I do prefer the silver trim to gold, because to me gold trim always looks...stuffy.
Writing Experience
First of all, I think the nib on the M605 looks a bit goofy. This doesn't impact how it writes at all, but it is very long and narrow and to me it looks strangely proportioned.
Otherwise it's a very nice looking nib, with a classy two-tone coloring that can be found on the larger Souverän pens as well.
When it came to actually writing with the pen I found the section to just be on the edge of comfort. It is quite short and has a fairly pronounced flare at the end and did not sit right with my fingers at all. I also found that this pen was so light that it was actually more comfortable for me to use it posted, which only tends to happen with mini pens. I suppose that I don't have the same problem with a Safari because of the triangular grip section giving me more traction, but on this pen I preferred the extra weight because it added a bit more control. The cap does post quite securely, but it's a piston filler so if you post you need to be aware if you are fiddling too much, as you might create an inky mess.
You can see the level of the ink quite well through the ink window, the dark stripe below the section
Filling System
As I just mentioned, this pen employs a piston filler. I only filled it once, but I did flush the pen prior to filling and the piston worked smoothly throughout the whole process. I did find that I had a hard time remembering which way I needed to turn the knob to raise or lower the piston, but I think that is perhaps because I am used to using demonstrators that allow me to see how the turning corresponds to the piston movement.
The fact that the pen body is opaque does not mean that you are left in the dark as to how much ink is remaining, since Pelikan was thoughtful enough to include an ink window that is actually sizable enough to be useful. I mention this because I would think that ink windows on non-c/c pens should be standard, no questions asked, but I have had experience with two such pens (a Lamy 2000 stainless steel and a Visconti Homo Sapiens) that do not and can leave you, quite literally, high and dry with next to no warning.
Closing Thoughts
As I mentioned at the start, this pen is soooooo not my style and as such I would never purchase one, no matter what the cost. That being said, this is part of the Souverän line and thus is not an inexpensive pen ($350-600 depending on who you purchase from and which model you chose). What I can say from my time with the M605 is that I can understand why there are people out there who are die-hard Pelikan fans. Pelikan is a brand that has a very solid sense of who they are and what they want their products to convey and it seems that they work very hard to stick within that framework while also pushing the boundaries of what that means for their products. So, if you like the Pelikan package but you are looking for a form factor smaller than the gigantic M800 or M1000 but larger than the tiny M400, then something in the M600 range would be perfect. By the way, you can take a look at how all the pens in the Souverän range compare on this handy page here.
This pen was loaned to me for the purpose of this review and I am not being compensated for this review in any way. All opinions above are my own and you are free to disagree with them if you like.