I turned 41 this year and I’ve reached a point where I’m starting to enjoy the finer things in life. I’ve started being more particular with the clothes I buy, I enjoy watches that aren’t plastic, I love my de razor collection and all that includes....and I’ve started eyeballing the pens in here. I’ve never used a fountain pen but I love the idea and feelings I get when looking at them. So after reading and browsing I think I’ve narrowed down my first purchase to a Lamy Safari. I plan on going with a medium nib, upgrading to the converter and starting off with the Lamy black ink. Does this seem like a sensible starting point to introduce me to this side of things?
Just getting started...
- Thread starter CallMeChris
- Start date
I still relatively new to the FP thing and also went with the lamy safari, black lamy ink and converter. Sad to say even though I had a store bought one I had to return it twice just to get a half decent nib that didn't scratch or dig into the paper. I looked over at the fountain pen net work forum and after a little research went with the Kaweco brand to get started. They're a small pocket pen but for the money you get a great little pen and a decent fine or medium nib imho. Have a look at AliExpress for Chinese FP's as I've found as a starting point they're good value for money.
Saying all that SWMBO bought her third only (in 10 years) lamy last year and has no problems. And the lamy logo she bought me apart from a loose clip (I fixed it myself with a very small pin) writes pretty smoothly but it not too fine on the nib.
I'm sure there's better experience here then me but do check out the FP network forum.
Saying all that SWMBO bought her third only (in 10 years) lamy last year and has no problems. And the lamy logo she bought me apart from a loose clip (I fixed it myself with a very small pin) writes pretty smoothly but it not too fine on the nib.
I'm sure there's better experience here then me but do check out the FP network forum.
Actually the Safari (and it's aluminum bodied sibling the Al Star) are terrific pens for someone new to fountain pens. The shape encourages holding a pen properly as well. The nibs are interchangeable, so if that medium is too wide or narrow you can easily change it without buying a new pen. The converter is the way to go.
Lamy makes good inks, and inks can be a thing by themselves. Other manufacturers such as Pelikan, Diamine, Waterman, KWZI, Blackstone and others make good fountain pen inks in a rainbow of colors. I find I rarely use black ink. My "business suit" ink is blue black. Primarily Pelikan 4001 Blue Black, but I have a couple of others.
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
Lamy makes good inks, and inks can be a thing by themselves. Other manufacturers such as Pelikan, Diamine, Waterman, KWZI, Blackstone and others make good fountain pen inks in a rainbow of colors. I find I rarely use black ink. My "business suit" ink is blue black. Primarily Pelikan 4001 Blue Black, but I have a couple of others.
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
- Thread starter
- #4
Appreciate the responses, just got it ordered....hopefully I don’t have the same issues as StuMcB has. The pen seems to get rave reviews as a starter pen, I can’t wait to get it in hand and try it out!
Been a fountain pen guy for a few years, but have not gone into "high end" pens. I try to stay to $200ish or less (though I will be buying a Dialog 3 soon). I also had to narrow myself in to just a few manufacturers, this is a hobby that quickly lead to poverty. I have a nice little collection of: Kaweco, Lamy, and Karas Kustom pens. I do have a Pilot Cavalier & Vanishing Point (they are both such nice pens and the Vanishing Point was my first fountain pen). Throw in my Parker and a couple other odds and ends and I have a nice collection of about 30 midrange pens.
As for ink, I have a couple drawers full. The other thing is I am quick to upgrade nibs, a gold or titanium nib makes a difference as does a little sweat equity in tuning (lots of videos on YouTube if you are handy or pay someone).
BTW, I have purchased 9 Lamy pens, from Safaris all the way to the CP1 and they have all been great. No returns. I purchase from Goulet or Pen Chalet. I hope you enjoy your new pen.
As for ink, I have a couple drawers full. The other thing is I am quick to upgrade nibs, a gold or titanium nib makes a difference as does a little sweat equity in tuning (lots of videos on YouTube if you are handy or pay someone).
BTW, I have purchased 9 Lamy pens, from Safaris all the way to the CP1 and they have all been great. No returns. I purchase from Goulet or Pen Chalet. I hope you enjoy your new pen.
- Thread starter
- #6
I ordered from Goulet, the safari special edition was clearanced for $19.99!
Congrats! They are a great starter pen, was one of my firsts as well. I haven't heard of anyone else having to return them out of the box for nib issues, so the odds are in your favor on that part as well.
Congrats and welcome to the addiction. Lamy's are great pens. The only nib I found not to my liking was an EF sized nib that I found to be scratchy. I had a friend try it and he loved how it wrote so I gave it to him. All three of my M nibs have been great out of the box. Hope you enjoy your new pen! May you never run out of things to write.
Good Virginia company and real nice folks. I had a foul up (they sent me my order and someone else's) and they were outstanding in every regard. They gave me a real nice store credit for "inconveniencing" me. Did not think it was that hard to stick a label on a box and hand it to the mail carrier.
Their ink samples have led to that drawer full of ink I mentioned earlier. Highly agreed on the Goulet company. I use them almost exclusively for pen related purchases.Good Virginia company and real nice folks. I had a foul up (they sent me my order and someone else's) and they were outstanding in every regard. They gave me a real nice store credit for "inconveniencing" me. Did not think it was that hard to stick a label on a box and hand it to the mail carrier.
- Thread starter
- #11
Can anyone point me in the right direction for a good YouTube channel or instructional for learning the differences between using a rollerball and a fountain pen. I know I’ll need to make changes in my writing style and I’d like to come out of this on the other side with a better handwriting.
Goulet has a huge library of beginner information videos up, I think I even recall one of the playlists being a fountain pen 101. The only real differences are going to be keeping the nib facing with the metal part always up, and using way less pressure than a ballpoint needs. Rollerballs are often pretty low on the needed pressure as well, so that you may not even need to adjust to a lot.
- Thread starter
- #13
I’m almost ashamed to post this here but this has been my pen of choice for a couple years now. I keep boxes of them stocked on hand...lol
I’ll check out the Goulet website further. I watched his review videos on a few of the pens I was looking at but didn’t realize they went further in depth than that. Thank you for the heads up.
I’ll check out the Goulet website further. I watched his review videos on a few of the pens I was looking at but didn’t realize they went further in depth than that. Thank you for the heads up.
Those aren't a horrible pen choice, and in a few instances are still a better choice for some tasks vs a fountain pen. If you can't find all the videos linked from the website itself, they are all in the companies Youtube channel.
Just to reiterate, the fountain pen 101 from Goulet Pens is great and to write with less pressure than you think you might need at first. You can find fountain pen 101 on the drop-down menu under "resources" on the Goulet website. They have great information on not just writing with your pen but properly cleaning and maintaining it.
One nice thing about your choice for your first pen is that you can very easily try different nib sizes (as @Runnin_Ute said) and, if you do put too much pressure on your nib and create an issue you might have an easy fix to the problem. A few simple ways to improve your introduction to fountain pens;
As a teacher, I collect all of the misplaced writing utensils and put them in a bin on my desk for students to use. If I need to jot something down for a student quickly and for some reason don't have my fountain pens handy I will typically reach for one of the many Pilot G-2's that have a tendency to find their way into my care.
One nice thing about your choice for your first pen is that you can very easily try different nib sizes (as @Runnin_Ute said) and, if you do put too much pressure on your nib and create an issue you might have an easy fix to the problem. A few simple ways to improve your introduction to fountain pens;
- Embrace inky fingers
- Have a rag/paper towel handy when filling
- Pens in the back pocket of your pants can lead to sad sitting
- Paper matters now
- Have fun
As a teacher, I collect all of the misplaced writing utensils and put them in a bin on my desk for students to use. If I need to jot something down for a student quickly and for some reason don't have my fountain pens handy I will typically reach for one of the many Pilot G-2's that have a tendency to find their way into my care.
I like to look at all pens, nothing wrong with the pen in your hand. Can't wait to see the new pen in your hand when it arrives.
AimlessWanderer
Remember to forget me!
I started off with the Chinese sub-£5 pens, and had such good results, I had no real need to delve much deeper. I did get myself an Ohto Tasche though, which I really like as a pocket pen.
Nothing to be ashamed about. The Pilot G2 is a good writing pen. The 07 is a bit wide for my tastes - we use the 0.38 at work, and it's a good fit for me. Right now I'm trying to use the open pens I have at work, and these are the Uni-Ball Signo Ultra Micro 207. It has a scratchy feel, but is archival.
Writing-wise? Any of your gel pens are going to be a rollerball type. I think the ink is really the thing here, as ball points use a ball as well. A rollerball write smoother than a ballpoint, and can be pretty close to a fountain pen. If I'm going to be journaling somewhere I don't want to risk a drop of Noodler's Black, I use a Signo Micro 207 in black ink, and the feel is very similar. OTOH, I have some non-archival ink rollerballs that work just as well. I think these are various pens by Pilot. The Pilot G2 has come up here, and it's a nice writing pen.
The difference writing-wise is that rollerball pens, like ballpoints, tend to be held more upright to the page. A fountain pen is really a controlled drip, and has to be held more at an a angle. It's usually easy to determine with use, since neither works well if not held at the correct angle.
Nods. I had to retire my Metropolitan from everyday use because it just didn't function well in various conditions I needed to write in. I ended up using a stainless steel Parker Jotter with a Fisher Space Pen refill and that works well most of the time, but the barrel is a bit slick and the refills don't last that long before the start blobbing. Am considering trying the Parker refill that came with it and seeing how that works for my day to day writing conditions.
