Lamy Safari Vs Al-Star

[JackAColeman]

Looking for my first fountain pen, and ive decided on one of these, and they're about 25$ on amazon, and i assume the al-star is a better pen, being aluminum and all. but i like the look of the charcoal safari with black coated nib better than the al-star, since im using this for school, how durable is the abs plastic compared to the aluminium?

[Silvermink]

The Safari is more durable, if anything. The aluminum used for the AL-star scratches and dents relatively easily, whereas the ABS plastic on the Safari is pretty bulletproof.

[bphollin]

The charcoal black Safari (not the shiny black) is my favorite, bar none. The textured Lamys hold up a bit better to dings and scratches. My first Al-Star was a scratch and scrape magnet, but others have fared better.

[sirksael]

The Safari is more durable, if anything. The aluminum used for the AL-star scratches and dents relatively easily, whereas the ABS plastic on the Safari is pretty bulletproof.

 

I agree, while the al-star is a pretty durable pen, the safari is even more so.

[Sasha Royale]

I have a new LAMY Safari, and an old one c. 1960.

The new one is shiny. The old one looks like the family

dog chewed and buried it. Both work fine.

[rcarlisle]

The Safari may be more durable but I like the looks of the Al-Star more. My Ruby Al-Star is just a more attractive pen, to me, than my Aquamarine Safari. It terms of weight and writing there is no difference.

[FlyFast]

I have both and prefer the Safari. My AlStar has dings and chips but the Safari looks new and yet it is much older and has much more use and abuse.

[de_pen_dent]

i have an Al-Star in a M and it writes really smoothly - although a little on the wet side. That wetness is fine for 80% of my writing, but not for 20%. I love this pen - it is what got me hooked to writing in ink, and let me to buy a Sailor 1911 and a Platinum 1776 Maki-E, in M/B nibs.

 

For that 20%, I got myself a Safari F. I don't like it that much - I get a lot of "paper feedback" when I write with it, although it isn't quite scratching. Just "not smooth". And it runs quite dry with the Lamy-provided cartridge - I have a fairly short signature but one that I have to sign quickly to get it right, in order to work on checks (don't ask - long story involving a broken wrist). The Safari is unable to keep up even for that signature (which is essentially 3 letters and a bit of a squiggle).

 

I have ordered a replacement L-handed nib for it, and will use that as an excuse to take the pen apart and clean it.

 

Ironically, it was the poorly-performing pen that got me looking for a better, fine-nibbed pen - and got me to the nibs.com page and here. The result: I have about 6 relatively inexpensive pens on order now (Italix Parsons, a TWSBI 540, Noodler's Ahab, a Jinhao, a Kaigelu 316 and an Eversharp Symphony 313) and, once I figure out how I get along with different nibs, I'm going to get a couple of nicer F/Italic-F pens.

 

Atleast it is still cheaper than road bike parts. All of this, and I still haven't paid what I would for a new pair of tubular race tires

[51ISH]

The charcoal black Safari (not the shiny black) is my favorite, bar none. The textured Lamys hold up a bit better to dings and scratches.

 

+1

 

You may want to check alternative suppliers as I think the nibs are all Medium on Amazon (at least in the UK) of course YMMV

[Pen2009]

Al Star feels nice in the hands; but, when it comes to durability, Safari will be a better choice. I think Al Star is slightly lighter because it is made of aluminum. Since I am very careful with my properties, I am using Al Star now. But, when I know if I am going to drop my pen or something, I will certainly take my Safari instead.

[Rubicon]

Looking for my first fountain pen, and ive decided on one of these, and they're about 25$ on amazon, and i assume the al-star is a better pen, being aluminum and all. but i like the look of the charcoal safari with black coated nib better than the al-star, since im using this for school, how durable is the abs plastic compared to the aluminium?

I had the al-star. I didn't wreck it or anything, and it still looks pretty new to me. I did PIF it, but I assure you after two years of use it still looks pretty damn good. Unless you plan on hardcore abusing the pens, either is fine. Safari is cheaper. Al-Star is just Safari in Aluminum. nothing is actually different.

[rjschwabe]

I'm new to fountain pens. My second Fountain Pen was a Lamy Safari F in the Charcoal Black. I did upgrade my nib to an XF. I enjoy this pen very much.

 

For me there are two concerns with it. The first is personal preference, that the F (and even the XF) give wider lines than I like (I'm mostly writing in journals). The second is weight, the Lamy Safari is very lightweight. I like a pen that has some weight to it, and is a little more balanced.

 

I still like it, and even got a Lamy Safari in Blue.

 

At the Philadelphia Pen Show, I was able to purchase a Red Lamy AL Star F for $25.00. Very nice and shiny. While the weight did not significantly increase, I did find that it had a better feel to it and seemed a little more balanced.

 

I find that it writes a little wetter than my other two Safaris. It is always possible that it is the ink and not the pen, but as someone else wrote that they thought it was wetter, I must agree with them.

 

 

My recommendation to you. Look at the regular pens that you have, and see if you like something that is lightweight or something with a little more weight (or dare I say gravitas) to it. I think the AL Star looks a little classier, and the Safari (Especially the Charcoal one) is very inconspicuous.

 

Let us know how you make out.

 

Cheers,

 

Robert

[Dioxazine]

My brother and I have noticed, in addition to being more ding-able, that Al-Stars have poor gaskets, whereas Safaris have good gaskets. I don't know why that is. My brother actually broke the cap gasket on his, and mine just feels delicate.

 

I second the Charcoal Safari recommendation. Plus, the grip doesn't get slippery when you write too long!

[HDoug]

After a Vista and 5 AL-Stars I just got a charcoal black Safari. It was $22 on Amazon and I couldnʻt resist. Anyway, mine came with a black nib, so I pulled it and replaced it with a bright stainless F nib I had and ground it down to a cursive italic. Really love this pen -- love the charcoal texture and the way it writes and everything. Plus itʻs very inexpensive, yet a serious writing instrument.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7646376728_3d89bb324d.jpg

 

Iʻve been writing with it continually for days and days...

 

Doug

[fountainpen3232]

Safari with the black nib!

[fountainpen3232]

Oh just wondering the does the black nib on the Lamy available with others? The matt black looks really nice. Its less distracting than the silver I thinks !

[bphollin]

The black nibs are available on other Lamys. In the US, I know the Goulet Pen Company allows one to choose the size and color of the nib at order. Others would probably be happy to oblige if you requested it.