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Apologies in advance for any toes stepped on, but I don't actually love the look of the Lamy Safari -- which puts form over function. But the form is important and certain things just "look right" to each of us (or don't, as the case may be). I know that that pen is probably one of the most popular pens out there, and it is popular for a reason, so I lead with this with some trepidation. However, I bought a torpedo-shaped fountain pen in my 30's and I kind of got aesthetic brain-lock on that basic design. You all will understand that what I am talking about is essentially a failure of the imagination here (mine, that is). You get locked in to thinking a certain way about a topic, an idea, or a product, 'cause you tried it at some point and it fit well. So I bought that black, torpedo-shaped fountain pen with the star on top, and then maybe the German stripy one and a couple of French enameled brass tubes, and there the matter sat for about 25 years. I fully acknowledge that the limitation is mine, but that is essentially what personal taste is. Cut to today, when >duh< I realized that it is sort of an interesting time in fountain pens -- there are a lot of choices out there. And Amazon wanted to sell me FIVE Jinhao copies of that basic Lamy-style pen for about 9 dollars delivered. I don't even know how you ship those pens half-way around the world for $9, let alone manufacture them and sell them at retail. The cost to manufacture the pens must be in the low pennies per unit. I realize that the question of design copies is tricky and one that must come up a lot on this particular subforum. But I don't sweat it too much in my own purchasing. I like to tinker with stuff and am much more comfortable taking a dremmel or a file to a $20 copy of a European design than to the more expensive pen itself. Heck, I never even had the nibs and feeds out of my older, classic pens and didn't have the guts to try until I could practice on my less expensive (cheaper?) Chinese copies of the same. And, I rationalize to myself, that no one is going to purchase a $26 P136 rather than a Montblanc. Ever. They are different beasts, except superficially in appearance. If you want the more expensive pen, you scrimp, you save, you sell off your Vida Blue rookie card -- you do what you have to. But I don't think those two pens are actually in competition with one another for the same customer. The Lamy Safari is a bit different though, because the German pen is soooo reasonably priced for what it is. It is worth mentioning though that at $9 for a pack of five copies, the Chinese pens are an order of magnitude cheaper than the original German design. That being said, these days, buying an actual Lamy would mean skipping one or two lunches and redirecting the funds. So I was skeptical, but $9 is well within a my comfort zone for risk on a home/office product. I ordered them and in due course, the pens arrived in five different colors and I inked up the yellow one at random. And whaddaya know? The 619 has an EF nib, but writes smoothly. Really smoothly. It has sat capped for weeks and starts right up. The quality of the nib on paper is great. My conclusion was that I was completely wrong about the design. And having adjusted my outlook/prejudices accordingly. . . Ironically, the ultimate outcome is this: I have just placed an order for two actual Lamy Safari pens, one black and one white. And I would have never ventured forth on this if I hadn't had such a good experience with the "homage" pen in my pen cup. If I were the executives at Lamy (or Montblanc, or Waterman etc. etc.) I would take a very dim view of how my house's brand has been copied abroad. But I think there is a good argument that the Chinese copies can also serve as "gateway" pens for folks who don't live near a pen store and who can't really make an informed decision about whether a particular style fits them unless they can get their hands on something they can afford. I also know from reading reviews on Amazon and elsewhere that not everyone has had the good luck I have in inking up their own versions of the Chinese pen. But so far, I am very pleased. The thing just works, and works well for my purposes.