Lamy Studio Review - a very classy pen with a smoooth nib.

[CrazyDesi]

Great Review. I just bought a black Lamy CP1. It hasn't come in but I think it might be something you like. It has the same interchangeable tips as the Safari and it has a rubber grip! I have the same problems of my hands becoming slippery.

[biffybeans]

That's a good way to describe the Lamy nibs, because I know that they have a certain personality to them that my other pens don't have. Yes - they do great things for my handwriting as well, but I always thought it was because they were a really firm smooth nib.

 

Value for money - exactly.

 

 

... a Lamy EF nib doesn't even come close to a Japanese F. Who would have thought eh?

 

You might say that your Lamy EF doesn't come close to a Japanese F. My Lamy EF is finer than my Pilot F.

My experience is just the opposite and that's from using at least a dozen Pilots with fine nibs and a half dozen Lamy Safari and Al-star EFs. The Lamys are definitely wider than the Pilot fine nibs though not by much. One consistent difference is that the Lamys have a slight squareness to them reminiscent of a stub nib. It does wonders for my penmanship. The Lamys do have good flow so that may make lines wider even if the nib isn't truly any larger.

 

When it comes to value-for-money though, the Safari and Al-star are hard to beat. I would expect that from the Studio as well.

 

[oldnavy1988]

Biffybeans,

 

Do you realize how much money your reviews are costing me? Each time I read one of your excellent articles my checkbook snaps open. I'm shopping for a Studio now. Thanks for all of your posts and despite financial output, please keep them coming, I look forward to them.

 

Warmest Regards,

 

Don

[ballboy]

The Studio is my go to pen for journaling and other noodling exercises. Mine's in brushed steel with a nice rubber section: very comfortable.

 

I advise anyone who hasn't seen Stephanie's flicker pics of her Lamys to do so....

[toomanypelikans]

What a great review of the Studio! It looks sharp and I thoroughly enjoy the Lamys in my collection but your comment that it is "heavy" saved me from buying a pen that isn't likely to work out well. Thanks, Stephanie.

 

The Brushed Stainless model is lighter than the Blue or Black version. Blue and Black are around 33-34 grams where the Brushed stainless is 28 grams (all with convertor full of ink and cap posted (caps weigh 10 grams)). As I all 3 above I have been toying with the idea of swaping the parts around to see what the Black on looks like with the black plastic grip of the Stainless - Probably will look very black... :-)

 

These are great everyday pens and with a selection of Z50 stainless nibs that are fairly easy to swap you can change the nibs to suit you mood. My EF nib is broader that my Pilot Nakimi soft fine when I don't apply pressure to it. I fine most of the Lamy nibs to be fairly wet writers.

Edited December 15, 2010 by justdaveyb

[thaugen]

Thanks for the helpful review.

[mholve]

Anyone know of a good source for the two-tone "gold" nibs? I only seem to be finding the steel ones - short of going to Lamy's Website and paying $65...

[JasonF]

The Brushed Stainless model is lighter than the Blue or Black version. Blue and Black are around 33-34 grams where the Brushed stainless is 28 grams (all with convertor full of ink and cap posted (caps weigh 10 grams)). As I all 3 above I have been toying with the idea of swaping the parts around to see what the Black on looks like with the black plastic grip of the Stainless - Probably will look very black... :-)

I have the black and brushed and did exactly that. It looks great - especially the all black. Black/Blue might be a nice combo, too.

 

In my opinion, the brushed pen is too light. I like the extra weight of the black model.

 

My only complaint about the Studio is that that it's a bit scratchy. I definitely feel the paper a lot more than I do when using my Visconti Rembrandt. Some of that may be because the Studios are XF, although they put down a line that's pretty similar to the Rembrandt with the fine nib.

[a m a r g o]

Too much fancy clothing for a safari nib I guess.

[toomanypelikans]

The Brushed Stainless model is lighter than the Blue or Black version. Blue and Black are around 33-34 grams where the Brushed stainless is 28 grams (all with convertor full of ink and cap posted (caps weigh 10 grams)). As I all 3 above I have been toying with the idea of swaping the parts around to see what the Black on looks like with the black plastic grip of the Stainless - Probably will look very black... :-)

I have the black and brushed and did exactly that. It looks great - especially the all black. Black/Blue might be a nice combo, too.

 

In my opinion, the brushed pen is too light. I like the extra weight of the black model.

 

My only complaint about the Studio is that that it's a bit scratchy. I definitely feel the paper a lot more than I do when using my Visconti Rembrandt. Some of that may be because the Studios are XF, although they put down a line that's pretty similar to the Rembrandt with the fine nib.

 

I own a flock of Pelikan M400 and M600s so the Brushed stainless to me is weighty and the Black and Blue heavy. Its all about prospective. Lamy EF nib is wider than my Pilot Namiki Falcon SF.

[magicryan]

Ah yes! My very first FP! I still love it! I bought it while in university as a workhorse, and has yet to let me down. In regards to it's weight, I find the pen is very well balanced in my large banana hands, not a light pen by any means, but also not a chore to write with.

 

A very sexy pen indeed.

[beluga]

Too much fancy clothing for a safari nib I guess.

 

 

Safari nib?

That depends....

 

 

The majority of Lamys is fitted is one of two nib designs; the Lamy 2000 being the most notable exception.

 

The lower end pens have steel nibs and basic Studio models share indeed the nib design with the some of the Safaris.

Most upmarket Lamys share the same gold nib design, and more expensive Studios, similar to the Accent series, are fitted with these nibs.

These steel and gold nibs are interchangeable and it would theoretically be possible to "upgrade" a lower end Accent, Studio (or even Safari) to the higher end gold nib.

You could also fit a black Safari nib on the black Studio, if that is what your heart tells you.

 

The steel nibs can be quite good and if you should own a pen with a nib that doesn't suit you it's easy and (at about $7) fairly inexpensive to change the nib; or you could even buy a few spare nibs if you want to experiment with point sizes. Of course, at this price nibs are not hand-tuned and variations in the degree of smoothness and line width are more common than on the more expensive gold nibs.

 

Lamy gold nibs are usually very smooth and I have always liked these nibs.

 

The only potential trouble spot are the ink feed mechanisms and I have come across a few pens where after changing nibs I realized that the skipping on fast downstrokes was caused ultimately by the ink feed rather than the nib itself.

 

Lamy Customer Service, which I rate among the most helpful and efficient in the Industry, was usually able to rectify the problem.

 

 

 

B.