Lamy 2000 vs. Waterman Carene

[Emma]

Hi all,

 

I'm looking for a real workhorse fountain pen for a forthcoming term of endless marking. My preferences are a reliable, non-leaky, heavy-ish, plain pen, with a fine nib (EF or F) that won't bleed through cheap paper (students understandably ignore my requests to print their essays on fountain-pen friendly paper).

 

I've narrowed my list down to the charcoal-grey Lamy 2000 and charcoal-grey Waterman Carene - suitably austere contrasts to my usual fancier, pretty pens!

 

I'm not too worried about the fill system - I just need something that will battle through a lot of writing without leaking (even my Pelikans leaked when I approached this task last year).

 

Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.

 

Emma

[Julio]

Lamy 2000! "F" Nib.

[jakelogan]

Carene. I had bad experiences with the last 2000's sweet spot.

[Aysedasi]

Having experienced both - the Lamy 2000, without a shred of a doubt. But pick a good nib. I've just got an OB - and I love it!! And of course it has a filling system light years better than the C/C in the Carene.

Edited May 2, 2010 by Aysedasi

[RHutch]

Without any doubt the Lamy 2000.

[ericthered2004]

Although the 2000 is not heavy-ish, but rather it is light (not even light-ish)

 

Your obedient servant,

eric

[51ISH]

Emma,

 

Interesting............

 

I have been comparing both these pens myself - I shall be watching which you choose with interest...

 

I do like the design of the Lamy, and the warranty/back-up seem excellent.......but on balance........

 

Reliable, heavyish, work-horse, add "indestructable".....what do you have......

 

Says Carene everytime to me......but I'm sure the folks that own the pens can assist better than I....

 

Let me know what you decide...

 

51ISH

[RMehta248]

The Lamy 2000. just got a BB that I had reground to a Stub and ordered another which I am having reground to a Broad Cursive Italic....You can't go wrong. Pengallery in Malaysia has a fabulous deal on Lamy 2000s at the moment (US $ 89). No affilation etc...just customer in love with the 2K. Workhorse and fun! Rajesh

[51ISH]

The Lamy 2000. just got a BB that I had reground to a Stub and ordered another which I am having reground to a Broad Cursive Italic....You can't go wrong. Pengallery in Malaysia has a fabulous deal on Lamy 2000s at the moment (US $ 89). No affilation etc...just customer in love with the 2K. Workhorse and fun! Rajesh

 

Rajesh

 

Did you have to pay import tax / duty to the UK? (Assuming that you purchased your previous L2K from Pengallery)

 

51ISH

[Breck]

Lamy 2000. I don't think there's another pen out there that does reliable, indestructible, or workhorse better. Plus, for me, the c/c filler puts the Waterman out of the running almost completely. I know the OP doesn't suffer from this same bias, but just my $0.02.

[MJSchuelke]

Workhorse? 2000!

[langere]

Let me be contrarian about this. I find that the writing experience of a Carene is superior to that of a Lamy 2k. The reason I say this is because the Carene is much better balanced and would also rate the nib superior to that of the Lamy. So - if ink reservoir is of no concern, the Waterman Carene is better IMO.

 

Erick

[Aysedasi]

The Lamy 2000. just got a BB that I had reground to a Stub and ordered another which I am having reground to a Broad Cursive Italic....You can't go wrong. Pengallery in Malaysia has a fabulous deal on Lamy 2000s at the moment (US $ 89). No affilation etc...just customer in love with the 2K. Workhorse and fun! Rajesh

 

Rajesh

 

Did you have to pay import tax / duty to the UK? (Assuming that you purchased your previous L2K from Pengallery)

 

51ISH

 

I can't reply for Rajesh, but I certainly didn't. May just have been lucky though and the $5 'stationery' declaration may have helped.....

 

And for me, the nib on my 2000 is in a different league to the one I had on my Carene. The only Waterman nib that gets close (IMO) is their stub.

[alfredop]

In my experience if you are searching true EF or F nibs the Lamy 2000 is not a good choice. The EF nib of my Lamy 2000 was more comparable to a western Medium nib. The F nib of the Carene is ok, while I have not tried the EF nib.

 

Ciao

Alfredo

[xuan87]

In my experience if you are searching true EF or F nibs the Lamy 2000 is not a good choice. The EF nib of my Lamy 2000 was more comparable to a western Medium nib. The F nib of the Carene is ok, while I have not tried the EF nib.

 

Ciao

Alfredo

 

i agree. The lamy 2000 is a very wet writer and you almost can't find use for it on cheap paper. As a college student who only uses cheap paper, and as an ex user of a Lamy 2000 Fine, i find that the lamy 2000 causes several bleedthrough, and the F nib is actually thicker than several of my M nib pens. For bad paper, i'm forced to use gel pens. However, a XXF or XXXF nib from Richard Binder may be the solution that we're looking for.

[Ghost Plane]

Lets see. 8 Carenes for me, NO Lamys. That kind of sums it up. Carenes for deployment, Carenes for TDY, Carenes for note taking...

 

I know there's a huge contingent of Lamy addicts on this board. One hears the bleats daily. But as the owner of some $1000+ daily users, ONLY the Carenes remain in my stable alongside the high end pens. 'Nuff said.

 

Pen Seller from France on fleabay, aka J.M. Lewertowski cuts some of the best prices on the planet. No import duty to the UK from France. Just a thought...

[Silvermink]

The Carene fits the bill better for heavyish, but I'm pretty sure the 2000 holds significantly more ink, being a piston filler.

[WendyNC]

I've only tested the Lamy 2000 in my local B&M but just can't cotton to it. It's too light. That Malcron stuff feels, to my hand, like cheap plastic. [ducks, runs for cover]

 

The Carene, on the other hand, is a beautifully balanced metal pen with a thick lacquer finish. The medium I got from Bryant's recent consignment sale writes rather dry--toward a fine--so I'll be having it adjusted. Of course, with nibs, YMMV, but that's my experience.

 

Edited to add a note about the ink supply of the Carene. On its first fill in my hands, I cranked the converter all the way down and, after the converter was empty, I wrote ten double-spaced 8.5 x 11 pages with it. My handwriting is not all that large (miniscules average about 3 mm), so it gives you some kind of idea just exactly how much ink that feed holds.

 

Thanks to Silvermink for picking up my typing error. Corrected!

Edited May 2, 2010 by WendyNC

[Silvermink]

I've only tested the Carene in my local B&M but just can't cotton to it. It's too light. That Malcron stuff feels, to my hand, like cheap plastic. [ducks, runs for cover]

 

You mean the 2000, I think? It is pretty light, yes.

[wide o pen spaces]

I'm adding a vote for the Lamy 2000. I think it's a great work pen. In terms of weight, though, it feels heavy to me. I usually don't post the cap when I write with it, because of this. This could just be the contrast effect of also writing with a Pelikan M200 and a Lamy Safari, which are both very light. But the 2000 is a great, smooth writer. The grip is also nice for long periods of writing.