Safari Fountain Pen | Blue (L14F)

Came well packaged, but my EF nib was very scratchy, but to be fair, I only gave it a quick rinse with water before using it, and not a good cleaning like I should have, so ink flow may have been an issue. Due to me experimenting with the EF to fix the scratchy feeling, I inevitably ruin my nib. I have sinced purchased a fine and medium nib, both of which write wonderfully. Fine gives some feedback on cheap paper, but the line with noodler's standard black is very nice (use nib nook at gouletpens to get an idea the line thickness of each), but I will admit, the medium is very smooth, even on cheap paper it is smooth, but it's like thickness is pushing the border on what I like my pen's to be, but I only tested it on cheap paper to just have a bigger/wetter nib to compare the fine nib to. I will probably try the medium nib sometime this week on my good paper to see if it feathers a good amount still, but I'm doubting it will feather much with the right paper. As far as the plastic frame, it has been extremely durable so far and I love it. It doesn't have the super loud/solid clip I would like, but it holds in place fine. The cap's airtight seal isn't as "tight" or loud-clicking-solid as I had hoped, and it did dry up after a week of no use while I was waiting on my additional nibs. I just soaked the feed/nib in some warm water for a half hour and all was fine afterwards (obviously take the converter out first), as well as gave it a good soapy rinse, and it has been a work horse since. I do have one note for new fountain pen users: Please do get a quality fountain pen paper if you are going to go the EF/F. They take longer to dry than cheap paper, but I believe you will enjoy it much more. The EF/F nibs may not give the experience you are hoping for if you use them on cheap notebook paper. A medium nib will smoother, but will likely feather on cheap paper, and again, probably discourage you some. I used a pilot v5 for five years before I got into fountain pens, and I would honestly compared the F nib to the middle ground between a v5 and v7, like a v6 I suppose. The F nib with noodlers standard black actually feathers less, even on cheap paper than a v7 in my opinion with less bleed through. The line wdith with a F nib is on par, if not slightly thinner (with the right touch on cheap paper) than a v7, I would say a M nib is right on par with a pilot v7, with similiar feathering, but I feel there is less bleed. I have since purchased more fountain pens, but if you are looking at the safari, look at the lamy nexx too, same nibs, but thicker body, and improved/thiker grip. I would have ordered that first had I known about it, but I have one on order now coming from the UK (I'm in the USA) because the grip is indeed a little small on a safari, and will feel awkward at first because it made to help train you to grip a fountain pen correctly, but since using it and then occasionally using non-fountain pens, I've noticed my writing quality improve a good amount. I've heard the lamy nexx isn't as availible in the USA anymore, or what not, which is why I bought from the UK, if anyone was wondering.

Safari is a cartridge/converter fill pen; the proprietary (Lamy T10) 0.5 mL cartridges are relatively small but sufficient for everyday use. If you plan to write a lot, you would be better off changing to a piston converter (about $5) and refill from an ink bottle. The windows on either side of the lower end of the body expose the remaining ink level. Safari tends to write "dry" (not a lot of ink pours through the nib), which may lead to "skipping" when writing fast; this can be partially remedied by using a fast flowing ink (Noodler's). If you are a very fast writer, test the Safari at the pen store before purchasing. Waterman, Pelikan or Quink inks work well in this pen, but Noodler's is my favorite. Safari's body is made of ultra strong ABS plastic (same as Legos) and comes in many colors. Its clip is a solid piece of springy steel wire, virtually indestructible, shaped in the form of a paper clip giving it a secure clasp. I carried this pen in my shirt-pocket when physically very active sailing, trekking and on photo safari over the years; never lost it. Another great feature of Safari is that the nibs are interchangeable, and available from extra fine to broad, plus unique nibs such as Oblique and stub Italic in widths up to 1.9mm. Most Lamy nibs (Z50) are Fe-Ni-Cr stainless steel alloy. For "lefties" there is the Z50 LH nib and for beginner schoolchildren the Z50 Aufanger helps them develop handwriting skills. Generally steel nibs are not as smooth to write with as premium gold nibs, but Lamy is the exception. Lamy nibs consistently write smoothly and without skipping, provided the right ink is used and the pen is handled correctly. The reader should also be aware that nibs on Eastern pens (Japanese) differ from those produced in the West. The main difference to remember is that a MEDIUM nib on a Western pen is correspondent to a BROAD nib on an Eastern one. If you need a fine line, the extra fine nib on the Safari will not be fine enough! Pens with western nibs write wider lines than their Eastern counterparts. Finally, the Safari is an inexpensive entry-level pen with high-end qualities, its craftsmanship, elegant ergonomic design and overall quality makes it attractive to beginners and veterans alike. It is a great first pen and a reliable everyday go-to pen.

As an exercise in engineering a pen, it is hard to do better than the LAMY Safari. It has the following valuable features: 1) Low cost. If you lose it you won't cry. You might be unhappy, but you didn't just put down a couple hundred bucks or more. 2) interchangeable nib. Really makes for a lot more fun. Do a stub nib for your greeting cards, an EF nib for writing on printer paper, or swap in a left handed nib because you are... left handed! 3) Cartridge/converter. This fill mechanism gives you lots of options. And it holds plenty of ink. 4) Flat surfaces mean the pen barrel won't roll off a tilted table with the cap off. 5) Comes in an endless range of finishes. WARNING: I hear the aluminum models can sustain dings that show. The ABS models will be more ding-resistant at the visual level as the color is solid through the plastic. 6) Light. I do feel that a lighter fountain pen will write better. Now, no version of the Safari, AFAIK, comes with a gold nib. However, gold nibs are available and you can swap those in. I hear that they write quite well; I'm basically happy with the steel nibs myself. They do sometime have a little scratch, but I kinda like that myself. These nib, whether gold or steel, are stiff; there's no flex in them. That is true, and so if you want to do the flex thing you'll have to look elsewhere. I find that writing with a stub nib provides line width modulation without having to slow your hand down. Good 1st fountain pen, good 17th fountain pen.

This is probably the best pen I have ever used. No wonder why people say that you cannot go wrong with a LAMY. Although this is the first LAMY pen I own I probably will purchase another one soon from now. The fountain pen is fancy in its style and color. Its appearance is so elegant itself and there are many colors you can choose from. This pen is perfect for college students who are pursuing a style while wanting to use a fountain pen. You get all options from pearl white to neon green. The stylish LAMY logo and cap design really shines. The silver clip makes the pen looks professional at the same time. The hollowing on the side also shows you the ink level without diminishing its good looking. Many users do not like to use a fountain pen because of the thick nib. I did not like to use a fountain pen for the same reason. This LAMY pen has an extra fine nib and it has changed my notion of fountain pen. The pen is fun to write with and it is so smooth. I never found the nib to be scratchy during my usage of the pen. It is worth to note that this is a cartridge pen. I found it to be easy to use with disposable cartridges. Usually it takes more time and effort to clean pens with bottled ink and sometimes I make a mess with them. I have used the pen under all circumstances. I used it to write on all different kinds of papers and I have used the pen after leaving it in extremely cold weather. Very rarely it gets a little toothy when you write on less glossy papers. The pen is in a fair price and the refill cartridges can be easily purchased. You have the option of using a converter and bottled ink instead of disposable cartridges. It is a great option if you want to stick with bottled ink or there is one specific ink you prefer. All pens come with a blue cartridge. I like to use black ink thus I purchased black cartridges along with the pen. With the stylish design and the extra fine, smooth nib I honestly think that the LAMY pen is great product overall. I personally think that the price is acceptable and I will definitely consider another purchase.

The title sums up a lot of my feelings about this pen; the only other fountain pens I'd used were a Pilot Varsity and some really mediocre dip pens that I got at an arts store. This one blows them out of the water; it writes more smoothly even than the Varsity, it's unobtrusive, and again, has a really elegant look that I dig. (ignoring the cap, which, while bulky, has a beautiful clip that makes up for it.) I write a lot, by hand; this pen gives a really great sensation while writing, which has in turn pushed me to improve my handwriting. While this is a fantastic pen, particularly for its price bracket, I noticed a few things that prevent a five-star review. * The nibs run a bit broad; EF is fine, F is medium, M is pretty broad. This isn't much of a problem for me, but you folks should know. * The pen will occasionally disconnect from the cap in your pocket; I've got a bright blue patch on my pocket from one of these incidents, though if you're not running/climbing/squirming around excessively, I doubt it'll be a problem. * While I'm not sure if it's an issue with the pen or the ink I use (Noodler's Eel Blue), I've noticed a really significant amount of feathering/ghosting/bleed-through in a lot of my notebooks. (Though it's largely just been Field Notes and Moleskines- I hear their paper's mediocre.) Standard copy paper works fine, and some thicker journals I use hold up beautifully. To get around this, I'm ordering some Clairefontaine and Rhodia notebooks, as I've heard they're much friendlier to heavy ink flow. Despite the above issues, I consider this my favorite pen; writing with it is a joy, and the EF nib gives you a great deal of precision, while still gliding across paper. It's definitely worthwhile to buy the Lamy converter cartridge, though, rather than blowing through disposable ones. If you use the pen a lot, you'll save a lot on ink by refilling from a bottle, rather than disposable cartridges.

I have been a fan of fountain pens since I first discovered them as a kid. It's been a long learning curve, and while there are many great pens I enjoy from Waterman and others, the Lamy Safari Medium is my overall favorite for everyday use. I had two a few years back (sort of an oriental red color and an aluminum finish), and LOVED them, but both were stolen a couple years back. A hard economy made buying a new one out of my reach for a couple of years, but as soon as I was flush again, I made it a point to see if the Safari was still available. I was delighted to find that it was, and quickly placed an order for a medium point nib with a blue body. And the new pen is just as wonderful as I remember. Some things I specifically enjoy about this pen for everyday fountain pen use: 1) Durable Body - not all fountain pens were designed for the rigors of every day, work-a-day life. Enamel bodies can be easily scratched. Some plastic bodies don't hold up to bangs and crunches. This plastic body is TOUGH and wears really well. 2) Durable / Smooth Nib - Gold trimmed nibs are very fancy and wonderful, but not really appropriate for my work environment (I'm a technical writer). The iridium tip on the Lamy is very strong and delivers a surprisingly smooth, easy flowing, even line. I speak only of the medium nib, as it's the only one I've tried. 3) Ink Window - Lamy built a small window into the body of their pen to aid in the process of determining how much ink you have left; a feature missing from some of my favorite fancier pens, requiring that I unscrew them to see how much ink is left. 4) Tight Ink Seal - many of my visually favorite fountain pens have an issue related to cap seals that aren't tight enough to prevent the ink from drying over long periods of time. OK, it's true, as much as I love using fountain pens, occassionally, I do forget where I left one and a few months go by before rediscovery. Ooops ... the ink dried out. Well, I once misplaced one of my Lamy's for the better part of a year ... the ink flowed perfectly the first time I touched pen to paper, with no remediation process on my part. Impressive. 5) Easy Grip - the triangul-arch (two triangular flat faces and a third arched face) shape of the Lamy grip area fits my fingers perfectly. The light weight of the pen makes it a dream to use, with never a touch of writer's cramp, no matter how long I write. 6) Shirt Pocket Friendly - the paper clip like design of the clip on the cap of this pen is not visually my favorite, but I LOVE the way it works on ALL my work shirt pockets. Some of my pens have clips that loosen with time, won't work on thick shirts, or stick out from the surface of the pocket more than I'd prefer. Not this one. The strong grip of this clip never seems to expire, and the low profile (combined with light weight) make it easy to forget you're "wearing". Very pocket friendly. If you're going for fancy in a fountain pen, this one is probably too simple, practical and modern looking. But for a sharp, professional looking "every day" fountain pen, I know of no other to match the Lamy Safai ... which is available in a dizzying range of colors. Enjoy!

The Lamy Safari fountain pen is my favorite pen for everyday use. I have been using a charcoal grey safari pen for years and recently realized that I could use a second one. The first with black ink and the second with red ink. The safari pen is quite stylish and gets noticed whenever I use it out in public. I use a fine tip which is very strong and provides a smooth line, so writing is easy. The grip is unique and assures that I am holding the pen correctly. It is very comfortable. The body of the pen is very durable and the cap fits securely with a satisfying click. I have never experienced an ink leak! The pen comes in a cardboard box with no documentation and one disposable T10 ink cartridge (blue). There is a cardboard ring which prevents the cartridge from connecting to the pen tip. This is for shipping. You would remove the cardboard ring and screw the end piece to the tip to connect the ink to the tip. If you wish to skip the disposable ink cartridges and use ink from a bottle, you will need to purchase a model X28 converter, sold separately. (NOTE: Lamy makes two different converters for their fountain pens and only the Z28 is compatible with the safari fountain pen.)

Going to be honest I just saw a youtube video on this pen that got me interested and I got one for the cheap price, it makes writing such a pleasure to do now and not some tedious task! Handles smoothly, fine tip works great for even small pocket notepads. I was concerned about bleeding through thinner papers with it being a fountain pen but only found one or two types that don't work for me. The value for money is amazing, the ink flows so well, and the refills are cheaply priced. If I want to dabble in bottles inks I certainly can in the future. This pen has got my feet wet with fountain pens and has been a pure joy. 💯 would recommend to a friend.