Lamy Safari: Bargain Brilliance Or Ugly Utility

[Sailor Kenshin]

Here's that blog post.

 

 

When life gives you lemons, buy Lamys.

 

Oooo... Pretty colors.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8243/8538416425_c1c29a830e_z.jpg

 

It's no accident there's a browser called SAFARI.

[Craig Forsyth]

In France, this pen costs 20€. Waterman school pens, either the plastic Kultur (which can easily be converted to eye dropper and costs 7-10€) or the (I'll never know the name) metallic pen (10-12€) give a better price/cost of use ratio.

 

So I don't really get the fuss about the Safari, especially since the line's thickness is far more important than on the above-quoted pens, which means far more ink-consuming.

I have two of them, a black one and a transparent one, both in M nib, and those are real ink eaters. The nibs are ok but not more than this, and the hole in the middle of the barrel makes it impossible to convert to an eye-dropper. For these reasons, I prefer my Waterman Kultur a lot.

 

It would be a very good pen for 5-10€ (because it's not worth more: if Waterman can sell their made in France Kultur for 7-10€, I guess Lamy should be able to do it too), but at 20€, plus a 7,5€ converter (because proprietary cartridges are very expensive), I don't see where the good deal is.

 

This said, it writes ok, it has one-of-a-kind shape, and it's a fountain pen (at least those who buy it don't use ball points or gel pens), so I'm all for it.

 

The situation must be different here in the UK. I've so far been unable to find anywhere in this country selling the Kultur at any price and, as mentioned before, at around £10 (it was actually £10.50 and included the converter), I'd have struggled to find a more reasonably priced pen than my Lamy, especially as I really wanted a clear demonstrator.

[dogpoet]

The Kultur and its twin the Phileas were both discontinued when Waterman was rebranded as being upmarket after Sanford were bought out.

This led to all of the inexpensive waterman models being yanked, and as the Phileas is a bit of a legend, the NOS that's still floating about ebay has had its price pushed up. A Kultur or a Phileas will cost you more than a Safari does as a result.

[Craig Forsyth]

The Kultur and its twin the Phileas were both discontinued when Waterman was rebranded as being upmarket after Sanford were bought out.

This led to all of the inexpensive waterman models being yanked, and as the Phileas is a bit of a legend, the NOS that's still floating about ebay has had its price pushed up. A Kultur or a Phileas will cost you more than a Safari does as a result.

 

Thanks for the update.

[Astra]

Anyone had their safari with loose caps? Had 2 safaris lost their snap in about a year. My alstar has had no problems (except scratching that is fairly common).

 

I didn't have a problem until my boss borrowed my pen. He tried to screw the cap back on with force and that broke the cap snap. Now I use it as the pen that sits on my desk at work.

[Kcaps]

I love my Lamy Safaris. I have one with a fine nib and the other with a medium nib. I don't think these are the prettiest pens, but there is something nice about it still. The clip is really cool in my opinion, and I like the angled grip section. I think it is nice to have them around because I won't cry if I lose one or it breaks so I can carry them around daily and they write pretty dang good! I'm a fan and always suggest them to friends.

[phineas149]

I just bought another one last week after having sold my first a few years ago. I wanted a EF nib for school work so i decided to buy a charcoal safari and I have been using it ever since I got it. I am blown away with how well they write. considering selling some of my more expensive pens now. i just wish they would redesign the clip, its ugly in my opinion.

[Sallent]

It is only the ugliest fountain pen in the history of the world. The human mind has never conceived such an ugly pen before. I dare anyone to find an uglier pen, because it simply does not exist.

 

I would use one if I got one as a gift, but I'd wear a paper bag over my head so no one would know it was me using the Lamy Safari.

Edited March 9, 2013 by Sallent

[eggshellb]

The situation must be different here in the UK. I've so far been unable to find anywhere in this country selling the Kultur at any price and, as mentioned before, at around £10 (it was actually £10.50 and included the converter), I'd have struggled to find a more reasonably priced pen than my Lamy, especially as I really wanted a clear demonstrator.

 

That's amazing value including the converter. Did you get lucky on eBay?

[Craig Forsyth]

That I did, a new pen too in unopened packaging, though I've seen them pretty cheap on both eBay and Amazon so think you could feasibly pick both up for about £15 including postage - that's about £5 or £6 lower than store prices I've seen.

[seffrican]

Curious that nearly everyone mentions the clip as a dislike item. It is one of the very few FP clips that doesn't spring, pull out of the cap, chew on the edge of the pocket, can accommodate thin or thick pocket material, and has a design reference to one of the most iconic designs ever, the gem paperclip.

[PorterPie]

I got the Safari because I wanted a relatively inexpensive pen I could afford to lose and that could be easily replaced. I did think it was ugly and the triangular section awkward and didn't like it very much at first. But, it's now pen I grab regularly for use when going to meetings etc. because it always works, it writes on crappy paper, and I can see whether it has ink left. I use a converter and so far, it's worked with Lamy, Sheaffer, and Noodler's inks.

[Ecriveur]

"I just wish they would redesign the clip, its ugly in my opinion."

 

It's not the prettiest clip I've ever seen on a fountain pen, but it really does its job.

 

The Safari has a definite "down market" kind of look to it, but I consider that a plus rather than a minus. For some types of situations, you just can't walk in with something like a Yard-O-Led Grand Victorian.

[pajaro]

The pen is great. The converter on my pen takes up ink like the ones on the cheapest Chinese pens. Giant air gap (GAG).

 

:roflmho:

[cedargirl]

I bought a Safari soon after joining FPN last year - it gets recommended so often, I thought I should try it. I bought it with two different nibs - an M and a 1.1mm italic.

 

I don't find it an attractive pen, but I don't think it is ugly - just average. It is robust and well made and it is good to be able to try different nibs. But did I like using it? Not much. I found it a bit uncomfortable to use. It is now relegated to my calligraphy kit as a practice pen (with the italic nib).

 

I did venture out more recently to purchase a Lamy Nexx M with a 1.5mm nib. I find it is more comfortable to use than the Safari as the grip section is rubberised (the section angles are softer). I also think it is more stylish than the Safari. It has a metal barrel and clip with a nice olive coloured plastic cap. The barrel tapers to a soft cornered triangle. I'm mentioning this here as I don't see much on FPN about the Nexx M.

[smiorgan]

This week I went from three fountain pens to six; two were safaris.

 

I think they look great - ugly of course, but a Dr Marten's Boot ugly. I really like the clip. Also I won't cry if I lose or break one.

 

However, there's one strange thing. All medium nibs are not created equal, it seems:

 

 

The Vista writes like a fine. The white Safari writes as I would expect.

 

 

Not the best comparison since the contrast is different, but the Safari definitely writes like my other meds, and the Vista like my other fine.

 

Not complaining since it lets me try out two different nibs on my impulse purchases, but I didn't expect the fabled Lamy nib QC variation to be so obvious...

[Craig Forsyth]

I bought a Safari soon after joining FPN last year - it gets recommended so often, I thought I should try it. I bought it with two different nibs - an M and a 1.1mm italic.

 

I don't find it an attractive pen, but I don't think it is ugly - just average. It is robust and well made and it is good to be able to try different nibs. But did I like using it? Not much. I found it a bit uncomfortable to use. It is now relegated to my calligraphy kit as a practice pen (with the italic nib).

 

I did venture out more recently to purchase a Lamy Nexx M with a 1.5mm nib. I find it is more comfortable to use than the Safari as the grip section is rubberised (the section angles are softer). I also think it is more stylish than the Safari. It has a metal barrel and clip with a nice olive coloured plastic cap. The barrel tapers to a soft cornered triangle. I'm mentioning this here as I don't see much on FPN about the Nexx M.

 

The Nexx isn't my cup of tea at all, though I am tempted by the Joy limited edition in white...

[iamchum]

I resent the fact that so many people find utilitarian as ugly. It is beautiful in my eyes, as form follows function, it's like a 101 in industrial design.

Have a lamy safari in apple green, white and yellow The green one gets the most use only because its my favourite colour hehe.

[Flake]

While admittedly i'm not excited about how it looks, I really enjoy the variety of colors as well as the functionality of the pen. They've never dried out on me, I love that I can swap nibs in a flash and I love that they generally just work well. I own three and will probably continue to amass them as time goes on. It's a nice pen that I have no worries about carrying in places I wouldn't want some of my nicer pens to be.

[Craig Forsyth]

Little man got his hands on the pen he bought mummy for Mothers' Day. Good job it wasn't yet loaded with the Diamine Havasu Turquoise that accompanied it...

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8090/8545643766_f8404a28c5_b.jpg