Lamy Safari With A 1.1Mm Italic Nib - Frustrated!

[shortwizard]

This is my first Lamy italic nib and I must be doing something wrong. I received a letter from a pen pal with writing samples of different pens and this was the one of a Lamy Safari with the 1.1 italic nib.

 

 

So, I ordered a new Safari and a 1.1 italic nib, but this is what my attempts look like. I actually used the back of the letter (I apologize if you are the pen pal and are reading this :-) ) so it would be on the same paper - apples to apples, if you will. It's not even close! It doesn't matter which angle I hold the pen, I can't get the same result. The stroke is much wider than I expected and I am rather disappointed. Is it me or is it the nib, or a combination of both?

 

[brunico]

The ratio of thick to thin stroke widths in your green and turquoise samples is much more than you'd get from a 1.1. Have you checked the marking on the nib and made sure they haven't sent you a 1.5 or 1.9 by mistake?

 

I like the green ink, by the way. What is it?

Edited August 24, 2013 by brunico

[mbankirer]

The 'trick' is the angle of the nib to paper and then holding the angle throughout the writing process. An angle of about 45 degrees will give the 'thick and thin' variation.

Sorry I don't have access to a scanner today to post example...but you can find many examples and instructional videos online...try looking for "cursive italic' calligraphy as just one example!

 

Don't give up!

[swanjun]

I logged on and saw the title of this post in the right sidebar and thought, "Oh, I have one of those!" and so clicked on it and passed a baffled few seconds before I went, "Hey, that's my handwriting!"

 

I can't really describe how I am holding the pen. I'm not rotating the nib, I don't think, so it's pretty much "straight on," but the angle between the paper and the nib probably is about 45º. Maybe in my next letter I'll include a sheet with alternating lines full of 1.1 Safari script, leaving you space to write in between. I'm by no means an italic expert or anything (far from it, in fact!); this is just the way I've found it comfortable to write.

[bluesky]

I agree please check the nib marking to make sure it is a 1.1

Please do not press the nib to the paper to hard, let the nib do the work, let the weight of pen be yor pressure, let your hand/forearm move the pen.

Agree with the need fo maintain the appropriate angle nib to paper consistently during writing as noted above.

Don't write too slowly

Make sure you do not have a blob of ink in the feed from just filling the pen

 

If above does not work it may not be you. Consider talking to your vendor for an exchange

 

I have several Lamy Safara calligraphy nibs including the Lamy Joy Calligraphy set. It is what got me started with improving my handwriting

 

By the way John Neal Booksellers here in North Carolina is a nice resource vendor.

 

Hope this helps. Let us know how you do.

 

Best regards

bluesky

[Bo Bo Olson]

As one of the posters said, cant the nib 45 degrees and you get the script you are looking for.

[shortwizard]

I logged on and saw the title of this post in the right sidebar and thought, "Oh, I have one of those!" and so clicked on it and passed a baffled few seconds before I went, "Hey, that's my handwriting!"

 

I can't really describe how I am holding the pen. I'm not rotating the nib, I don't think, so it's pretty much "straight on," but the angle between the paper and the nib probably is about 45º. Maybe in my next letter I'll include a sheet with alternating lines full of 1.1 Safari script, leaving you space to write in between. I'm by no means an italic expert or anything (far from it, in fact!); this is just the way I've found it comfortable to write.

It's all your fault! :-) Just kidding. I have a letter going in the mail to you on Monday, with some samples of the 1.1 nib. It's really broad!

[shortwizard]

The ratio of thick to thin stroke widths in your green and turquoise samples is much more than you'd get from a 1.1. Have you checked the marking on the nib and made sure they haven't sent you a 1.5 or 1.9 by mistake?

 

I like the green ink, by the way. What is it?

The green ink is Diamine Meadow, my very first - and only - bottle of ink. I really like the color and it isn't too wet.

[shortwizard]

I agree please check the nib marking to make sure it is a 1.1

Please do not press the nib to the paper to hard, let the nib do the work, let the weight of pen be yor pressure, let your hand/forearm move the pen.

Agree with the need fo maintain the appropriate angle nib to paper consistently during writing as noted above.

Don't write too slowly

Make sure you do not have a blob of ink in the feed from just filling the pen

 

If above does not work it may not be you. Consider talking to your vendor for an exchange

 

I have several Lamy Safara calligraphy nibs including the Lamy Joy Calligraphy set. It is what got me started with improving my handwriting

 

By the way John Neal Booksellers here in North Carolina is a nice resource vendor.

 

Hope this helps. Let us know how you do.

 

Best regards

bluesky

Thanks for the tips, and I have tried all of them, but I get the same results. I have even tried different papers - no change. I may ask them if I can exchange it for another EF nib and save myself the frustration.

 

Where in NC is John Neal Booksellers? Do they have a storefront or are they only online?

[shortwizard]

The ratio of thick to thin stroke widths in your green and turquoise samples is much more than you'd get from a 1.1. Have you checked the marking on the nib and made sure they haven't sent you a 1.5 or 1.9 by mistake?

 

I like the green ink, by the way. What is it?

Yes, the nib is marked 1.1, clear as day.

[guilhermejf]

Just an example to make sure you get the 45 degrees angle idea.

 

It was not written with a 1.1 Lamy because I did not have my Lamy inked at the time. The Safari has got a bit thinner thick stroke and a bit heavier thin stroke, but it is not bad. Thick and thin is quite noticeable.

Edited August 24, 2013 by guilhermejf

[swanjun]

Going by that image, I was most likely holding the pen at 90º when I wrote the lines pictured above. That's usually how I write with that pen, though I do rotate it sometimes.

 

I'm wondering if this isn't another case of variability in Lamy nib sizes.

[cbaytan]

It hardly looks like a italic nib writing, my guess is you are writing way slow, try writing faster without worrying the angle, italic nib will correct your angle anyway after couple of lines in most cases. Smoothest angle is the correct angle, thats all. (Considering you have no tine aligment problems of course)

[PAKMAN]

All factors involved when writing with an italic nib can change the outcome.

 

Ink can make a big difference a very wet ink can cause everything to run together and eliminate the look of variation.

 

Angle, technique, speed all affect how a nib like this writes. Sometimes lots of practice is needed.

 

Also size of writing, you may have to write bigger to be able to get the effect you seek.

 

Bad paper / wet ink both affect how much variation you see in the line.

 

Since you are trying the same nib from the same company this would not necessarily apply but italic nibs can be Stubs, Cursive Italic and Crisp Italic. Each of these gives different levels of line variation for the same size nib. (ie 1.1mm)

[bluesky]

In answer to your question above.

 

John Neal Booksellers is in Greensboro North Carolina

They are a web online store but do allow visitors

They carry calligraphy pens, bookbinding equipment, paper, etc. Check out their website.

 

Franklin Christoph fountain pens is in Raleigh North Carolina. They carry a number of pens of their design with choice of stub, italic, etc. 1.1 stub in high performance steel is very nice. I have this in their Stabilis 66 model deskpen. Check out their website. They provide very good service.

 

Also before giving up on the really neat experience of italic writing consider a 1.1 stub nib, a little less line variation but easier to handle. Hisnibs.com online sells Monteverde and Conklins with stubs and checks out the pen to make sure it writes well out of the box. Have Conklin Crescent filler with stub, very smooth.

 

I am not affiliated with any of the above.

 

Hopes this helps. Let us know how you do.

 

Best regards

bluesky

[shortwizard]

Thanks for the help and suggestions, everyone. I think it may be a defective nib so I have written to the company to see if they will exchange it. I hope the replacement will be less frustrating.

[akustyk]

http://i1297.photobucket.com/albums/ag32/akustyk/Photo0017_zps57e42df7.jpg

[shortwizard]

I've contacted the company where it was purchased and they are graciously sending me a new nib, which should be here this weekend.

[ac12]

@Jackie,

I don't understand, in your post you said the inkline is wider than you expected.

 

Is it that your 1.1 nib writes wider than the 1.1 nib of the letter that was sent to you?

I am still a newbie to italic nibs, but here are a few variables to think about.

• If your pen writes wetter than the person that wrote to you, the ink like will be wider.
  Wet can be due to the pen and/or the ink. A wet pen + a wet ink and you have a real WET writer.

• Writing speed. If you write slow, a wet ink line will get wider.
  I had that trouble when I first used a 1.0mm italic tip, and had to writer faster to see the difference between the vertical and horizontal lines.

• if your nib is slightly wider, the ink line will be wider.
  I have not measured italic nibs, but with standard nibs, I found a pretty wide variance in the width of the tips. I have measured a wide F tip that was wider than a narrow M tip. So the nib of the original writer could be closer to 0.9mm and yours could be 1.3mm (1.1 +/- 0.2mm). Without measuring the nibs with a caliper, you can't determine this.

• This could also be a case of a miss-marked nib.
  As was said, you could have a 1.9 nib but it is labeled 1.1.

Don't give up on the italic nib. I found that italics are fun to write with. I like how the ink line looks different without having to use a flex pen.

[JulesSilvan]

Another variable not mentioned is that paper surface is slightly different on each side of a sheet. One side is typically smoother than the other - sometimes that can mean one side is more absorbent.

Edited August 29, 2013 by JulesSilvan