Comparison Between Lamy Safari And Diplomat Magnum Soft Touch

[kikopens]

I own a Lamy Safari F nib (though I think it writes on the broader side of F), its writes very very smooth. A friend of mine bought a Diplomat Magnum F nib recently though. Both of these pens look a bit similar except the nib part. Can anyone tell me how much the writing experience on the Magnum differs from the Safari?

[OCArt]

Although you've asked a fair question it would be very hard to answer as it is so subjective. A little along the lines of comparing two cars of different brands and asking how they drive. The best you can do is read reviews of the two pens or, better, try your friend's pen out yourself. Nibs can vary even in the same brand and size but I would not expect them to write significantly different.

[kikopens]

Although you've asked a fair question it would be very hard to answer as it is so subjective. A little along the lines of comparing two cars of different brands and asking how they drive. The best you can do is read reviews of the two pens or, better, try your friend's pen out yourself. Nibs can vary even in the same brand and size but I would not expect them to write significantly different.

 

yeah thats the obvious suggestion, but my friend lives quite far from where i live. its not an option for me go try it out

 

thus i am asking if anyone owns both the pens can help me out a bit

[Bo Bo Olson]

Owning a Japanese pen will make Euro pens seem wide. There is @ a full size difference between the two.

If you print Japanese if best, in the nib is designed for a tiny printed script.

 

Then there is normal tolerance where a Fat F can exactly = a Skinny M. (more on this if you ask.) Can also be a difference between a Fat F and a Skinny F....and still be in tolerance even if it don't seem like it.

Then Each Company has it's very own standards....so one company's F can be another M...M-F. Parker made fatter nibs than Sheaffer back in the day of One Man One Pen, so their customer didn't make a stupid mistake and buy a Sheaffer....one bought a new pen every 7-10 years. If Parker made the exact same width a nib as Sheaffer........mistakes could be made.

Ford vs Chevy....fat Parker, skinny Sheaffer.....as the brand loyal folks were taught to want.

 

Lamy has it's own standard....seen the robot nib making machine in a factory tour. Diplomat might well be using a Bock nib.....to either what Bock sells as a width or it's own width. Diplomat is an old company....still family owned I think.

 

So different maker....different standard........different width.

 

One is lucky to be dealing with half widths when it comes down to it.............you will end up with a lot of nibs that are F-EF, F, F-M....and that from one company....the next fatter, the one after that skinner.

 

So very skinny, skinny, middle skinny, middle, middle broad, broad and wide.......and the so called numerical nib sizes are no more accurate than the letters.

Your pick, horseshoe close or hand grenade close.............no matter what letter or number, half you pens will be off 1/2 a width wide, or 1/2 a width narrow....or be right in the middle of tolerance....and really screw up the statistics.

 

You can decide exactly what width is your standard...and have a nibmeister make a nib that wide...and different ink and paper will make it write wider or narrower.

 

If you want a skinny nib get a Japanese one.....a fine Japanese poster said, Sailor was the fatter one, Pilot the thinner.............other non-Japanese fans say other wise.....but Japanese nibs are @ 1 size narrower than western.

 

 

Wet Ink and poor paper can make a nib seem fatter too. Dry ink and slick paper skinnier.

 

My Diplomat pens are of different eras so would be of different widths. :doh:My old one ('50-60's) with the Maltese Crosses all over it....semi-flex.....had no nib markings....guess it a Euro F....looking at it Skinny F.....really not worth hunting up a EF to check.... ...Did is very close to a Pelikan 200's EF..... So it's an EF....

It is semi-flex and I do write a tad heavy, the copy paper is run of the mill 80g...so that's a paper that will make a nib run Fat...........Gee I didn't know it was EF.

[ParkerDuofold]

Hi Arijitdutta,

 

I own many, many Safari's; alas, no Magnums.

 

That said, my experiences with other low-echelon Diplomat pens hasn't been the greatest... unless you're looking at a Diplomat Esteem... which I think is the model that gives you the best ROI in the Diplomat steel-nibbed line... I'd go for another Lamy.

 

Just my 2 cents... YMMV... as will your friend's, most likely.

 

 

Be well and enjoy life.

 

 

- Anthony

[ParkerDuofold]

Just to follow-up...

 

I recall now... the Diplomat I bought was a Traveller... and i bought it based on the praise it received here from another member,... but the one I got had a wretched nib... writing with a piece of broken glass would have been smoother.

 

- A.C.

 

 

ETA: I know a lot of will recommend tuning and adjusting it,... but I don't have that kind of time.

Edited March 5, 2019 by ParkerDuofold

[TSherbs]

I like the Lamy nibs a lot more. My Magnum is a lemon. I wouldn't even give it to you free.

[kikopens]

Just to follow-up...

 

I recall now... the Diplomat I bought was a Traveller... and i bought it based on the praise it received here from another member,... but the one I got had a wretched nib... writing with a piece of broken glass would have been smoother.

 

- A.C.

 

 

ETA: I know a lot of will recommend tuning and adjusting it,... but I don't have that kind of time.

 

sad, i thought diplomat nibs are pretty good out of the box. some other people in the forum are also talking about defective diplomat nibs.

[kikopens]

I like the Lamy nibs a lot more. My Magnum is a lemon. I wouldn't even give it to you free.

i guess leaving the magnum out of the race is a better idea.

 

i dont want to buy another safari or alstar. they are basically the same nibs. any other lamy nibs except the 2000 that has a different character?

[artart]

I own a Diplomat Magnum Soft Touch with a steel nib

in my opinion it is a good pen, light and inexpensive, the nib is very smooth - it is labeled "M", but it is on the broad side of medium - it is fairly rigid

I can't say anything about Lamy Safari as I don't own one

[Holon]

I have five Diplomat Magnum with M nibs (I got them together for around 12 $). All their nibs are a pleasure to write with. They are a bit soft (but not flex!) an have a pleasant feedback. I like them a lot, but I only use them in other pens, because I don't like the Magnum pen body. Too small for me and the soft rubbery finish wears off quite quick.

Lamy nibs are stiff but usually very smooth, with lesser feedback then the magnum nibs.

 

 

i dont want to buy another safari or alstar. they are basically the same nibs. any other lamy nibs except the 2000 that has a different character?

 

 

No other steel nibs. The Aion has a different nib, but I read from several reviewers (never used one myself) that the writing experience is the same.

But there are Lamy gold nibs, I have one in EF and it's much much better then the steel Lamy EF nib.

[ParkerDuofold]

sad, i thought diplomat nibs are pretty good out of the box. some other people in the forum are also talking about defective diplomat nibs.

Hi Arijitdutta,

 

The only trouble I've had was with the entry-level models, (the Traveller, to be specific).

 

The nibs on my three Esteems, (which remind me of the Studio), are all pretty good... right out of the box... fairly comparable to the nib on the Excellence A I tested... that's why I recommend the Esteem... I think they give you the best ROI... I haven't tried their gold nibs, (available on the A's).

 

Be well.

 

 

- Anthony

 

 

Edited for typos.

Edited March 6, 2019 by ParkerDuofold

[Bo Bo Olson]

If you have $350++, the Lamy Imporium has a grand 'Springy' nib.....great tine bend, only 2 X tine spread.

If it would go 3 X, which would make it semi-flex; I'd have one. As a 'Springy' nib it is better by far than an MB.............would think better than an unmodified Falcon also.

 

Some folks say the 2000 is not a nail, others say it is. ?????

Didn't like it in '67 when it came out...it was not the King of Pens...a Snorkel. A rough pen was alien to all I knew. Never heard of Bauhaus either.....and they wanted Snorkel prices for it.

...And no one sells Gramps laid in the draw a generation pen on German Ebay.....or didn't the 5 or so times I went looking.

 

Do see if you can find a used 2000......even if it don't work, which I see no reason why it shouldn't, Lamy will repair it for free no matter if you are not first owner nor how old it is...........it can only be 1967 at oldest.

 

Do not expect a gold nib to be automatically soft, or softer than steel. I have a 18K nail Lamy Persona.....a nail is a nail, be it gold or steel. Those who claim their gold nail is softer than a steel nail, must IMO be comparing a steel nail with a gold semi-nail.

[kikopens]

If you have $350++, the Lamy Imporium has a grand 'Springy' nib.....great tine bend, only 2 X tine spread.

If it would go 3 X, which would make it semi-flex; I'd have one. As a 'Springy' nib it is better by far than an MB.............would think better than an unmodified Falcon also.

 

Some folks say the 2000 is not a nail, others say it is. ?????

Didn't like it in '67 when it came out...it was not the King of Pens...a Snorkel. A rough pen was alien to all I knew. Never heard of Bauhaus either.....and they wanted Snorkel prices for it.

...And no one sells Gramps laid in the draw a generation pen on German Ebay.....or didn't the 5 or so times I went looking.

 

Do see if you can find a used 2000......even if it don't work, which I see no reason why it shouldn't, Lamy will repair it for free no matter if you are not first owner nor how old it is...........it can only be 1967 at oldest.

 

Do not expect a gold nib to be automatically soft, or softer than steel. I have a 18K nail Lamy Persona.....a nail is a nail, be it gold or steel. Those who claim their gold nail is softer than a steel nail, must IMO be comparing a steel nail with a gold semi-nail.

 

i have heard good reviews about the lamy 2000, but i cant afford to spend that much right now. i am a student right now, i am not that much into springy nibs at the time, but in the future i have my eyes on nibs of different character. perhaps for the time being i want to get something in my budget.

[kikopens]

Hi Arijitdutta,

 

The only trouble I've had was with the entry-level models, (the Traveller, to be specific).

 

The nibs on my three Esteems, (which remind me of the Studio), are all pretty good... right out of the box... fairly comparable to the nib on the Excellence A I tested... that's why I recommend the Esteem... I think they give you the best ROI... I haven't tried their gold nibs, (available on the A's).

 

Be well.

 

 

- Anthony

 

 

Edited for typos.

 

ahh thanks. i also saw mixed reviews about the diplomat. and the body is a big issue too. esteem is out of my budget for the time being, perhaps sometime in the future. i think i will keep looking for something else. thanks for the valuable opinion

Edited March 6, 2019 by Arijitdutta

[Bo Bo Olson]

$ is a good reason to buy used good pens.

I've got @ 90 pens, and only 5-6 were bought new.

 

One can get ex-flagship pens at affordable prices with nibs in the direction of flex you wish....nails. A P-51, but a better buy would be a P-45....cheaper and a classic. Easy to take apart to clean. US P-45 would be a nail, is my guess. My English made P-45 is regular flex..........and that is not a 'flex' nib either....but not a nail.

 

The 2000 is not a flexible nib.....it may or may not be a nail....depending on who was telling the tale. Could be a semi-nail. But Lamy is almost always a nail.

[Honeybadgers]

I hate my diplomat magnum. it creaks, it feels nasty and cheap, and the nib is only okay.

 

I don't love the safari, but it's the better pen, hands down.

 

The diplomat traveler is a huge step up in quality from the magnum. THAT is a stellar pen.

Edited March 7, 2019 by Honeybadgers