Lamy Safari: Bargain Brilliance Or Ugly Utility

[Craig Forsyth]

What are your thoughts about the Lamy Safari, particulatly the Vista? What do you think of its looks? How well does it write and how much pen do you get for your pennies? Any problems? I guess I'm looking for any opinions you folks are willing to share.

[dozuki]

I have a Lamy Safari and i love it. I doesn't get all the oohs and aaahhhs that a really fancy pen gets but i can put it down and pick it up two weeks later and it will write like a dream.

[Harlequin]

I'll say this: I just got into FPs in December 2012, of course the first ones I heard about and got recommendations for were the Safari/ALstars and the TWSBIs. After just a quick look at the Lamy, I was very firmly in the "I do NOT like how that looks" camp. But from everyone I've talked to, they are very positive about the writing experience and value. Many cite the modern design or the reliability. One person in my pen posse group is VERY fond of hers, calling it one of the best designed/looking modern aesthetic pens around. Probably not for me though.

[Joker4Eva]

Don't like it. The angled barrel is one that doesn't rest well between my index finger and thumb.

Selling it now on the Classifieds, in fact.

Get an Al-Star. Much more elegant and has a round barrel. Me lovey!

[mAnuscript69]

Don't like it. The angled barrel is one that doesn't rest well between my index finger and thumb.

Selling it now on the Classifieds, in fact.

Get an Al-Star. Much more elegant and has a round barrel. Me lovey!

The Al-Star has the same barrel shape as the Safari, just in a different material.

I was surprised at how light the Al-Star was considering it was machined out of aluminium. Certainly not what I had in mind when I held it in my hands.

[JonSzanto]

I picked one up around the first couple of months of getting (back) into pens, about 2 years ago. As I've gradually added on to the pens, I realized that I never did really care for it. There is a certain amount of good value, and once I swapped the original nib for another (the first was just simply a bad nib), it writes... just fine.

 

But I have never cared for it, and frankly am going to put it up in the classifieds.

 

I even kept it in my selections to recommend for new users because, heck, not everybody has the same tastes as me. However, now that I picked up a Pilot Metropolitan, uh-uh, no more. The only thing the Lamys have going for them is nib selection, but other than that, the Metro blows them away in style, writing experience, and price.

 

But this is all subjective. Someone else will think them the best pens on Earth. Go figure.

[dickydotcom]

I have always thought them ugly.

2 years ago I bought one at the London pen show and found I used it regularly. I bought a spare 1.5mm nib to go with it but was a bit lax about changing nibs.

So last week I bought another Safari and now have the 1.1 and 1.5 on my desk in regular use. And a spare fine nib in the drawer.

I still don't think they are a pretty pen, but they certainly do what I want of them.

 

Dick D

[Nonsensical]

I really liked my Vista, but I as my collection grew, it became neglected. Now that I'm studying in China, and need something a little more rugged, it's come out to play again (and I've added a few more... ). I don't mind the way the Safari looks. It's not beautiful or anything, but it looks modern and simplistic. Perfect for class.

[Joker4Eva]

The Al-Star has the same barrel shape as the Safari, just in a different material.

I was surprised at how light the Al-Star was considering it was machined out of aluminium. Certainly not what I had in mind when I held it in my hands.

 

They do, but I found the curves on the Al-Star not as pronounced and sharp as on the Safari. The Safari had quite sharp curves, which did not fit my hands well.

[phineas149]

In terms of writing I think it is wonderful. But from an aesthetics stand point I think it is really ugly.

[mirosc]

The background of this pen is that it was specifically designed by Lamy in 1980 to meet the requirements of a student's pen in Germany for 10-15 year old pupils - it has to be sturdy enough for kids, has to have the angled grip section (for the way we teach our kids how to hold the pen), has to be a cartridge filler, and so on. Here in Germany it is still almost only a pupil's pen, only few adults use them and if they use it, it's mostly for sentimental reasons, because it's the one pen they still own from their school days. Here in Germany I would never recommend a Safari to an adult, it just looks strange...

 

So, I'm a bit biased towards this pen. I don't like it's looks at all, but appreciate it's functionality (just like it's with the Parker 51). And they are good writers, no doubt about that.

Edited February 2, 2013 by mirosc

[Sasha Royale]

Anatomically, they are the same, though proportions are not. Either is excellently

designed for its purpose. Yet, English Thoroughbred is beautiful, and the Hypopottimus

is ugly. Our culture has so dubbed them.

 

In the eye of this beholder, what a beautiful fountain pen !

Edited February 2, 2013 by Sasha Royale

[Joker4Eva]

The background of this pen is that it was specifically designed by Lamy in 1980 to meet the requirements of a student's pen in Germany for 10-15 year old pupils - it has to be sturdy enough for kids, has to have the angled grip section (for the way we teach our kids how to hold the pen), has to be a cartridge filler, and so on. Here in Germany it is still almost only a pupil's pen, only few adults use them and if they use it, it's mostly for sentimental reasons, because it's the one pen they still own from their school days. Here in Germany I would never recommend a Safari to an adult, it just looks strange...

 

Yup, I think the people here do have that mentality, that school pens should be reserved for those still in schools. Surprisingly, just the other day I saw my Deutschlehrerin using a black Safari.

[mallymal1]

Unpleasant...unsightly...repulsive...menacing...the Lamy Safari? Not at all.

 

'Tis surely bargain brilliance. :notworthy1:

[UK Mike]

If you don't appreciate German post-Bauhaus design then you won't appreciate the Lamy Safari.

 

If you value a pen for the way it writes, the Safari, and all its versions using the same nib, are great writers and very reliable and durable pens. I personally find the nibs smoother than the much vaunted budget Pilots but I am mainly using standard medium nibs so your mileage may vary.

 

The Safari is the benchmark pen in its class.

[dogpoet]

I really can't understand the fuss over the Safari. There's nothing wrong with the design, but for what's basically a good but undistinguished school pen, it's overpriced. If that's the benchmark in its class (rather than, say, the Parker Frontier or the Scheider Base, both of which can be had for the same or less money), then things aren't as they should be.

(And the damned thing uses somewhat overpriced custom cartridges, as well. Bleah.)

[Bjorn Keizers]

Sure, it has its faults. The Safari is not for everyone, but it has a great function over form appeal and a near indestructable build. It's also versatile when it comes to the colors, options for rollerballs, ballpoints, pencils, nib sizes, etc.

 

Is it the best pen you can buy? No. Probably not even the best pen in its price range. But if you like the design, why not try one? They don't break the bank and if you don't like it.... there's always someone who's willing to buy it from you or receive it as a gift.

 

I'm definitely happy with my Lamy pens - FP and all the others I've used.

Edited February 2, 2013 by Bjorn Keizers

[Lorna Reed]

I don't like them. I have four with various nibs. I can't get used to the shape of the section - it actually makes my hand ache after a while. The nibs are not smooth compared to some other pens I have, and I get no pleasure or satisfaction from using them.

[Wheatflower]

What are your thoughts about the Lamy Safari, particulatly the Vista? What do you think of its looks?

 

I don't have a Vista, sorry, but I have 4 Safaris and an Al-Star and I like them a lot. All of mine have written smoothly out-of-the box, and they are rugged little things that don't complain about being thrown into my purse or gaming bag. They are not conventionally pretty, I'll grant that, but as I've used them their stringent functionality has grown on me.

 

On the other hand: A friend of mine who really wanted to like the Safari (because of my good experiences) found that the grip just didn't work for them. IIRC it wasn't even the shaped barrel, it was the placement of the step between the section and barrel. So if at all possible, you might try to hold one before you buy.

Edited February 2, 2013 by Wheatflower

[brunico]

I think it is a beautiful design, though I prefer the matt and Al-Star finishes, but then again I'm in the Bauhaus school and I think most Bexleys look as hideously ugly as onyx telephones...

 

Even the clip that seems to repulse so many I find has an elegant line to it, far more discreet than some gold-plated extravagance. And there's no unnecessary ornament to the pen. The Pilot Metropolitan looked good at first sight - I'm a fan of Pilots - but that banding in the middle puts me off: even plain, it has no use and just disrupts the line of the pen. So although the Lamy's a relatively inexpensive pen, to me it never looks cheap. And the Metropolitan ends up looking cheaper than my Penmanships.

 

I remember the first time I saw a Safari, after a morning of browsing pens that seemed to be distinguished from one another only by their size and the amount of bling they sported - a p*ssing contest in a glass cabinet. So the Safari came as a revelation.

 

Writing experience? Never had one leak, and they always start first time. The Pilot italic nib has a slight edge on the Lamy, though not enough that I wouldn't want to make either of them razor-sharp, and the Lamy's other conveniences (I can click the cap off, and the pen doesn't roll around) make me prefer it, on the whole. But I don't really notice a difference writing with either one. If you don't like the Lamy's ergonomic grip, the Pilot's will be more forgiving.

 

I think the closest pen to the Safari is the Pilot Prera (simple design, click cap, range of bright colours, transparent versions, interchangeable nibs - not that Pilot sells them separately), but here in the UK it's £55, which is way more than it should be. (You can get one for less than £25 on ebay, though, and hope Customs doesn't sting you.)