A Dialogue With The Lamy Dialog 3

[sannidh]

I was using Dialog 3 for about 4 weeks and I like the design. Nib was pleasant to use with a bit of feedback but not scratchy at all and a bit on the wide side. It was to heavy for longer use but okay for note taking.

The reason I sold it is that you can't see how much ink is left in the converter unless you take the converter out. I know, it is a small design flaw that you can avoid if you are using cartridges but I usually carry just one pen with me and I hate running out of ink. If it was not for that minor detail I would have kept the pen because it is a lovely design.

 

If you are using only one pen at a time, it's better to use a piston filler. You are right about the ink-thing. And we prefer to use converters so that we can write with inks which we like. Thanks for sharing, Sonik

[4lex]

 

If you are using only one pen at a time, it's better to use a piston filler. You are right about the ink-thing. And we prefer to use converters so that we can write with inks which we like. Thanks for sharing, Sonik

 

I must say I regret selling it. It is a great design. I may buy one again, but this time black.

[jkingrph]

I got mine initially a couple of months ago and was at first disappointed because it seemed to dry out overnight. It did not take long to learn that I was being too gentle when closing it, not aligning the two parallel lines on the body and cap. Apparently this was not allowing the ball cover to close completely. I learned to give it more of a "snap" when closing to index the lines together and have had no further problems. I have a fine nib and writing has been very smooth with the two inks I have tried, Montblanc Mystery Black and Pelikan Royal Blue.

[columela]

Thank you for this excellent review.

I just got one of these, second hand, as they are quite pricey. However, it is one of these pens that are more impressive in real life than in pictures or videos. It is such a beautiful, simple elegant design. Just like a mathematical equation or a beautiful melody, it has all that it needs and provides such a pleasurable writing experience. I am just in love with it.

[sannidh]

 

I must say I regret selling it. It is a great design. I may buy one again, but this time black.

 

I am also in two minds - to keep it or to sell it. VP feels a bit cheap compared to the dialog, that's perhaps my only complaint.

[sannidh]

I got mine initially a couple of months ago and was at first disappointed because it seemed to dry out overnight. It did not take long to learn that I was being too gentle when closing it, not aligning the two parallel lines on the body and cap. Apparently this was not allowing the ball cover to close completely. I learned to give it more of a "snap" when closing to index the lines together and have had no further problems. I have a fine nib and writing has been very smooth with the two inks I have tried, Montblanc Mystery Black and Pelikan Royal Blue.

 

The fine nib I have is also supersmooth unlike the ones coming now (in which even medium nibs have an average feedback). Thanks for sharing..

Thank you for this excellent review.

I just got one of these, second hand, as they are quite pricey. However, it is one of these pens that are more impressive in real life than in pictures or videos. It is such a beautiful, simple elegant design. Just like a mathematical equation or a beautiful melody, it has all that it needs and provides such a pleasurable writing experience. I am just in love with it.

 

Thanks columela. Feel the same, the design/finish/materials like you say are beyond comparison for the dialog pen.

[Scampo]

Having just re-caught the FP bug, I recently got a Dialog 3 and VP both in medium. I like them both but the Lamy is much more modern in design I would say, and the clip sinks nicely when the nib is extended, making it very comfy to hold (and not at all heavy for extended use, I find). The VP has a very prominent clip that seems fine till I hold the Lamy.

 

What has surprised me a little is that neither are as smooth as my old Parker 51 but the line and ink flow are, maybe, better on both (the Parker is a touch wet). On smoothness, the Lamy beats the VP easily which is even "squeaky" as it writes and quite audible. I've tried hard to find a "sweet spot" but can't.

 

Another surprise today was that the Rhodia paper I ordered arrived and I thought I'd be in for a treat - but the 90gsm Oxford pad is much smoother to write on; indeed, the Lamy skips on the Rhodia and is smooth and wet on the Oxford pad.

 

I read on another thread here that drawing circles with a fountain pen on brown paper can smooth the nib out more quickly without harming it. I might give that a go!

[sannidh]

Having just re-caught the FP bug, I recently got a Dialog 3 and VP both in medium. I like them both but the Lamy is much more modern in design I would say, and the clip sinks nicely when the nib is extended, making it very comfy to hold (and not at all heavy for extended use, I find). The VP has a very prominent clip that seems fine till I hold the Lamy.

 

What has surprised me a little is that neither are as smooth as my old Parker 51 but the line and ink flow are, maybe, better on both (the Parker is a touch wet). On smoothness, the Lamy beats the VP easily which is even "squeaky" as it writes and quite audible. I've tried hard to find a "sweet spot" but can't.

 

Another surprise today was that the Rhodia paper I ordered arrived and I thought I'd be in for a treat - but the 90gsm Oxford pad is much smoother to write on; indeed, the Lamy skips on the Rhodia and is smooth and wet on the Oxford pad.

 

I read on another thread here that drawing circles with a fountain pen on brown paper can smooth the nib out more quickly without harming it. I might give that a go!

 

Thank you for taking the time to share an useful angle, Scampo. To add, the dialog 3 writes exquisitely well on Japanese paper too. (midori, Tomoe)

Edited January 31, 2016 by soniknitr

[Scampo]

 

Thank you for taking the time to share an useful angle, Scampo. To add, the dialog 3 writes exquisitely well on Japanese paper too. (midori, Tomoe)

Hi - thanks very much for your reply. I can't quite understand my experience with Rhodia paper as so many people speak highly of it but I am finding it less good. I'll look into the Japanses papers you suggest. I'm growing to like the Pilot pen but it certainly is not buttery smooth. My go-to pens are the Lamy or the Pilot. I read somewhere on this forum that only broad nibs can be very smooth - perhaps so? I prefer a finer line so I think I will press on and see if it becomes smoother with use. If I can find a local nib expert I might try to have it smoothed professionally.

Edited January 31, 2016 by Scampo

[sannidh]

Hi - thanks very much for your reply. I can't quite understand my experience with Rhodia paper as so many people speak highly of it but I am finding it less good. I'll look into the Japanses papers you suggest. I'm growing to like the Pilot pen but it certainly is not buttery smooth. My go-to pens are the Lamy or the Pilot. I read somewhere on this forum that only broad nibs can be very smooth - perhaps so? I prefer a finer line so I think I will press on and see if it becomes smoother with use. If I can find a local nib expert I might try to have it smoothed professionally.

 

If you could change the ink and give it a try! Sometimes, Montblanc toffee brown writes pretty badly (skipping, dry, feedbackish) in MD (Midori paper) and there could be other polar combinations as well. The fine nib of my dialog 3 wrote smooth like butter and the width tends more towards a Japanese medium nib from the beginning.

 

Some of my pilot medium nibs have been very smooth from the beginning, some took 2-3 months of regular use to break in. For some friends who write a lot, it took less than a month. I found normal pilot inks (I often use pilot blue-black, ink-70) pretty good for pilot/platinum nibs for the first few months of use. (less viscous than sailor or iro inks).

[Scampo]

Thanks again - you are very kind to reply. I've tried Pelikan and Waterman inks so far, but I did think I would get some Pilot ink as it is a pilot pen, after all. :-) You obviously have a lot of experience of fountain pens. I think I need to use mine some more before coming to any conclusion, too, since use will smoothen it, I'm sure. I am still surprised though that it does not come smooth straight from the factory, given the price and the reputation of the Japanese for precision and quality.

[sannidh]

Thanks again - you are very kind to reply. I've tried Pelikan and Waterman inks so far, but I did think I would get some Pilot ink as it is a pilot pen, after all. :-) You obviously have a lot of experience of fountain pens. I think I need to use mine some more before coming to any conclusion, too, since use will smoothen it, I'm sure. I am still surprised though that it does not come smooth straight from the factory, given the price and the reputation of the Japanese for precision and quality.

 

I am glad to share my experience, thank you. Pilot was just the perfect nib for me, a few years ago (fewer problems), I think the nib problems are rather a recent manifestation, some of my friends had some 'not the best-tuned' nibs recently. Some skipped during the upstrokes, some tend not to flow at all etc, Our fellow fpn member @Sudhir has home-cured a few nibs with bad flow, upstroke skips etc. You can also send him a pm for a few simple steps.

[Scampo]

Thanks again. That's interesting to know. I think I would do well to be a little more patient trying to smoothen the nib with use, then get in touch with @Sudhr if that fails.

 

I keep looking at Pelikan pens thinking it would be interesting to try one, but again I read of mixed reviews from users and, in fat, a preference for the lowest priced steel nib. Have you experience of that brand?

[sannidh]

Thanks again. That's interesting to know. I think I would do well to be a little more patient trying to smoothen the nib with use, then get in touch with @Sudhr if that fails.

 

I keep looking at Pelikan pens thinking it would be interesting to try one, but again I read of mixed reviews from users and, in fat, a preference for the lowest priced steel nib. Have you experience of that brand?

 

All the best for getting some smooth nibbage

 

Pelikan produces some fine pens. As for me, the experience has been pleasurable with gold nib variants (souverän collection). Pelikan standard steel nibs have rather a 'standard' experience (nothing special, all built to high quality, nothing to complain too). For the steel nibs, you can try some of the Faber Castell Design pens (they have some nice springy steel nibs).

 

Common advise I have found and agree with, is to save up for a m4/6/8XX gold-nib pen (try/test the size first) rather than going for m2/1XX steel-nibbed pens.

 

You can find some reviews of my pelikans here .

Edited February 2, 2016 by soniknitr

[Scampo]

Ah, I had already read your excellent review but it was good to read it again. I read another reviewer last week who suggested the M200 steel nib was, for him, smoother and better than the M400, but that the M600/800/1000 were easily better than both (i.e. his suggestion was to skip the M400 series). I have large hands so probably would prefer an M600 as it is a little longer, I think. It would be an indulgent purchase for me at present - so unless you have one you would like to sell, I will hold fire until my local dealer has an offer! :-)

Edited February 2, 2016 by Scampo

[sannidh]

Ah, I had already read your excellent review but it was good to read it again. I read another reviewer last week who suggested the M200 steel nib was, for him, smoother and better than the M400, but that the M600/800/1000 were easily better than both (i.e. his suggestion was to skip the M400 series). I have large hands so probably would prefer an M600 as it is a little longer, I think. It would be an indulgent purchase for me at present - so unless you have one you would like to sell, I will hold fire until my local dealer has an offer! :-)

 

I have had a nice experience with Pelikan customer service (Germany) for a misaligned m400 nib. In most cases, they will replace it. Wish I had an additional m600 to offer you , you can also try out the m800 if you have large hands. might be a perfect fit for you.

Edited February 3, 2016 by soniknitr

[Scampo]

I've enjoyed our conversation - thank you for your help and advice. When I get a Pelikan I'll be back in touch.

[4lex]

I regret selling my Dialog 3 so I decided to purchase it again. I got it on eBay, new from WHSmith for 130 pounds which I think it is a good price. I will just have to bear with the fact you can't see ink level when using the converter. BTW i think they resolved this issue with the new piano black and white Dialog 3. I got the palladium version.

[Scampo]

Gosh, that was an excellent price. I bought mine (the "piano black" version) from Pen Sense in Nottingham (UK) for twice that. I decided to buy from a local dealer since we've used them before and, the owner is a pen expert, so it's an enjoyable experience buying from there.

 

The nib is medium width but compared to the Pilot, quite broad, yet finer than my older Parker 51. The ink flow is quite generous. I enjoy using it a great deal but, rather like my Pilot, it isn't entirely smooth yet (but distinctly smoother than the Pilot). Neither pen is suited to the Rhodia paper I've just bought with each skipping on strokes occasionally. I'm waiting to try out some Pilot ink and Japanese paper to see the effect on smoothness and ink flow.

[sannidh]

I regret selling my Dialog 3 so I decided to purchase it again. I got it on eBay, new from WHSmith for 130 pounds which I think it is a good price. I will just have to bear with the fact you can't see ink level when using the converter. BTW i think they resolved this issue with the new piano black and white Dialog 3. I got the palladium version.

 

That's a steal deal for a new d3. And the build & finish seem another level compared to VPs.

New one seems better with some ink indicating slits