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Lamy Safari vs Platignum Studio (This is my first review) Introduction I have owned quite a few budget fountain pens over the years such the Parker: Reflex, Vector, Jotter, frontier as well the rotring: Skynn and Freeway (my favorite). I have always enjoyed using fountain pens the safari and studio are two of are my most recent additions to my collection. I bought both of these pens for about £15, the safari from Paperchase and the studio from Rymans. Both of these pens are similarly priced and appeal to the same consumer and a are probably classed as school fountain pens. Design, Appearance and Build Platignum Studio (Unusual clip design) The studio is mainly made from aluminium with a spring steel pocket clip, brass screw threads and a rubberised grip section. The body has a tapered cylindrical cigar shape throughout with black trims. The grip section is resembles the section found on the parker frontier and is comfortable. The pen sits comfortably in the hand and is well balanced both posted and unposted. The most appealing and unusual aspect of the design is the pocket clip which resembles a nib which I particularly like. The pen weighs 20 grams uncapped and 30 grams capped. The pen is available in a wide range of vibrant colours ( see http://www.platignum.com/pick-your-pen/studio-range/studio-pen-rainbow/) Lamy Safari (The Safari’s apple green colour) The safari is made from ABS plastic with a chrome plated sprung pocket clip. The safari has a unique design with flat and curved sides and finger grip groves on the grip section. The pen is comfortably in the hand and however it is a little light for my liking weighing approximately 17 grams and 10 grams unposted. The pen has never really appealed to me until recently. I’d known of it’s existence for around 10 years however this changed recently when I saw the apple green 2012 limited edition pen in the flesh the colour in my is perfect and really suites the design I knew I had to have it. The pen comes in a wide range of colours varying every year with limited editions. Design, Appearance and Build Winner DRAW The materials used in the studio are more premium and represent better value than the safari however the bold design and vibrant colour makes the safari really stand out. Nibs and Filling (Nibs, grip sections) Studio The studio has a steel nib as well and however only comes in a medium size. The nib writes fairly smoothly however it is a little dry and skips occasionally and unlike the safari it does write in a standard medium thickness. In other reviews it has been questioned whether the studio takes standard international cartridges or proprietary ones? I have tried both standard cartridges and a Faber-Castel converter and both work fine and don’t leak. Safari The safari has also has a steel nib and however is available in a wide range of nib sizes F/M/B/LH. The fitted Medium nib writes a little broad which I dislike as I tend to write fairly small. However it writes extremely smoothly and is quite wet. It takes proprietary ink cartridges as well as a proprietary converter which is available for around £5. Nib and Filling Winner SAFARI The nib on the safari wins it as even though it takes proprietary cartridges the smoothness of the nib is amazing. Price and Value Both pens represent good value for money the platignum has a solid traditional metal design build and the safari has very smooth nib however it very light and doesn’t have the same reassuring weight. Price and Value Winner STUDIO The Al-Star is a good £10 more for a similar build to the studio the studio wins as feels more premium so represents better value. Conclusion Overall Winner SAFARI Both pens are good choices for a budget/school/everyday fountain pen and both represent great value for money however I slightly prefer the safari as I really like the vibrant colour and the smoothness of the nib which makes it the winner. However the studio does represents better value for money it has feels more comfortable in the hand as it is more heavy.