Is It Weird That, After "moving On" To Higher End Pens, I Want A Lamy Safari?

[inkstainedruth]

There’s definitely something about the Safari. I don’t like how they write but love how they look. That u shaped clip is something else!

 

It's funny, but I'm the complete opposite. I didn't like the super-industrial look of them for the longest time, or think I could get used to the feel of the triangular grip. And unless the clip is a color, it looks too much like a paper clip (although perfectly serviceable *as* a clip). Not wild about a lot of the colors, but at least there's a variety (I would love to see them re-issue the French Blue/red clip model, because I'm NOT paying a three figure price for a Safari ; and I think a matte yellow one would be awesome).

I know that they didn't come onto the market until the 1980s, but I really could see a Safari as not being out of place as a prop in the old TV show The Prisoner....

It's kind of the ultimate in "form follows function": the grip is so you hold the pen correctly without rolling it. The plastic (at least the matte plastic on the Dark Lilac) is robust and sturdy. The clip does what it's supposed to do and does it well. The nibs are *easily* interchangeable. The pen is expensive enough that you'll take care not to lose it, and inexpensive enough that you don't hyperventilate about taking it out of the house, or toss it into a backpack. The nibs are nails, but, hey, well so are the nibs on most other modern pens. The cap posts. And being a c/c pen, you have a choice of easily changeable cartridges or a converter to use bottled ink (plus the converter is a twist/piston type so easy to use.

And I do like how they write. Well, not the EF nib I tried -- it was scratchy. But the F nib? I like it.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[bemon]

It's funny, but I'm the complete opposite. I didn't like the super-industrial look of them for the longest time, or think I could get used to the feel of the triangular grip. And unless the clip is a color, it looks too much like a paper clip (although perfectly serviceable *as* a clip). Not wild about a lot of the colors, but at least there's a variety (I would love to see them re-issue the French Blue/red clip model, because I'm NOT paying a three figure price for a Safari ; and I think a matte yellow one would be awesome).

I know that they didn't come onto the market until the 1980s, but I really could see a Safari as not being out of place as a prop in the old TV show The Prisoner....

It's kind of the ultimate in "form follows function": the grip is so you hold the pen correctly without rolling it. The plastic (at least the matte plastic on the Dark Lilac) is robust and sturdy. The clip does what it's supposed to do and does it well. The nibs are *easily* interchangeable. The pen is expensive enough that you'll take care not to lose it, and inexpensive enough that you don't hyperventilate about taking it out of the house, or toss it into a backpack. The nibs are nails, but, hey, well so are the nibs on most other modern pens. The cap posts. And being a c/c pen, you have a choice of easily changeable cartridges or a converter to use bottled ink (plus the converter is a twist/piston type so easy to use.

And I do like how they write. Well, not the EF nib I tried -- it was scratchy. But the F nib? I like it.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

I think the colours are something else I do like about it. I like the idea of variety! I’ve only ever had one, but it’s something first time users like about it when they ask what pen to start with. I actually don’t often recommend the Safari right out of the gate. It it always winds up being a recommendation after someone balks at a higher priced suggestion.

 

I still keep one around because from time to time my wife wants to swap out her rollerball for a fountain pen. She doesn’t take care of pens so the Safari is the obvious choice when she’s not using her Cross roller.

[ethernautrix]

A lot of my collecting has been about chasing the perfect writing experience for me.

Yeah, this was the cause of my inadvertent collecting of pens. But I finally realized my favorite writing experiences came with the Pilot 912's PO nib and the Pilot Faclon's SEF nib. That helped (along with other factors) in curtailing my purchasing (after pruchasing a few Pilots, *cough*) and boosting my divesting (in progress for several years now). It's become easier to identify when I won't be using a particular pen much anymore, cos Pilots and Nakayas, and while I'll glance at other pens, I don't feel any *want*.