LAMY 2000 V/s Indian Handmades and Nahvalur

[webrowser]

Hi! I'm new to this forum. The only pens that I've owned till now are a couple of Fellowship(an old Indian brand) and a Shaeffer Agio, which gave a lot of anxious days and doubts about my purchase (cosidering it was at least 10x the costliest pen I've ever owned). AFter wrangling with it for a bit (including a novice attempt at grinding!), it now writes excellent. Now, I'd like to make another purchase. I'm confused between the Lamy2k, in extra fine, which is quite costly, and then the Indian Handmades such as a Ranga 9B giant with a JoWo fine nib. I'm very particular about the feel and comfort, so thats a top priority. Also, the Nahvalur's are great looking pens, and I've only heard good about them. Now, what I'm trying to understand is what exactly is the difference between the Ranga/Nahvalur and the Lamy 2k, that people recommend it so much. Would it be justifiable for me to go with L2k or there's not much difference between the Ranga & Lamy.  My heart's set on Ranga/Narwhal for they look just gorgeous, but then I don't want to eventually end up with the L2k. I'll be very thankful of any advice/suggestions to a newbie like me. 

Edited May 30, 2023 by webrowser

[Doug C]

You're talking apples and watermelons. 

The Lamy is the smallest and has a piston filling system as does the Nahvalur.  Two are steel nibs and one is goldMost Rangas are large, lightweight and not quite finished to the same standard. 

 

I have all of them and like them all but your requirements are going to be largely subjective. 

I'd suggest you hit a store with the Lamy and possibly the Nahvalur to see if they work for you. 

 

 

[webrowser]

1 hour ago, Doug C said:

You're talking apples and watermelons. 

The Lamy is the smallest and has a piston filling system as does the Nahvalur.  Two are steel nibs and one is goldMost Rangas are large, lightweight and not quite finished to the same standard. 

 

I have all of them and like them all but your requirements are going to be largely subjective. 

I'd suggest you hit a store with the Lamy and possibly the Nahvalur to see if they work for you. 

 

 

Yep, i understand the reference, however what I'm trying to understand is- which is the most comfortable pen with the smoothest nib. Since (in my very short experience and research) they've been praised too, i wanted to see if I could get a head on comparison. I appreciate your time for this answer, but it's not helpful. Could you please elaborate, so that I understand better? You like them all, but which is the one which you like the most? which can be your daily driver? 

Edited May 30, 2023 by webrowser

[danshap]

One can't tell in advance which is the smoothest nib because of variation from nib to nib. It helps to buy a pen from a retailer that also adjusts nibs. If you want a Ranga, Peyton Street Pens would be a recommended vendor because if you don't like it, Teri Morris will readjust it. Ranga pens are big, but hold no more ink than any other international standard converter pen unless you inkdrop it. I find Ranga pens dry out if not used within a week or so. Lamy 2000 is a more convenient size for me, and doesn't dry out. The nibs are wider than expected and are very variable. Nibs.com supposedly adjusts (tunes) the nib when you buy a fountain pen there.

[webrowser]

7 hours ago, danshap said:

One can't tell in advance which is the smoothest nib because of variation from nib to nib. It helps to buy a pen from a retailer that also adjusts nibs. If you want a Ranga, Peyton Street Pens would be a recommended vendor because if you don't like it, Teri Morris will readjust it. Ranga pens are big, but hold no more ink than any other international standard converter pen unless you inkdrop it. I find Ranga pens dry out if not used within a week or so. Lamy 2000 is a more convenient size for me, and doesn't dry out. The nibs are wider than expected and are very variable. Nibs.com supposedly adjusts (tunes) the nib when you buy a fountain pen there.

Got it. You must forgive my ignorance for lack of experience. Will check out nibs.com. Thanks for replying!

[A Smug Dill]

8 hours ago, danshap said:

I find Ranga pens dry out if not used within a week or so.

 

Not in the case of the only Ranga pen I have (bought, and used).

 

[jchch1950]

Lamy 2000 has been in the market for several decades and is a reference in the pen world. They are durable, and the gold nibs usually don't need adjustments. 

[thx1138]

All of the 2000's I have bought, both new and used, write perfectly. No nib tuning needed and super smooth.

In the case of the used pens this is obviously luck as there is no telling the evil man is capable of when it comes to nibs.

From memory my used ones are 18k broad/double broad. They seem to be no different in writing characteristics than the 14k new nibs.

[amk]

I find the Lamy 2000 is a marvellous workhorse as well as a supremely elegant pen. YMMV. I tend to use broad nibs, but Lamy fines are said to have a quite small sweet spot, so do try out a Lamy 2k before you make the purchase and make sure it's fine for you.

 

Lamy is also a piston filler, which takes a good load of ink. Of course with most Indian pens you can eyedropper them... though that comes with its own problems.

 

Of course the Lamy comes in different colour varieties such as: black, black, blue that is so dark it's nearly black, brown that is so dark it's nearly black, and black. 🙂

 

Ranga pens are good to deal with, reputable maker, fantastic range of colours and patterns, but a different writing experience. I find some of their larger pens a bit too big for me (but then I have small hands), but the nibs are good and of course writing with an exposed nib rather than a semi-hooded nib is a different thing altogether. I'd have to say my Rangas don't deliver quite as much luscious writing as my Lamy but their ebonite swirls cheer me up just to look at them.

 

Horses for courses! My collection has room for both, maybe yours does too.

[K Singh]

4 hours ago, amk said:

I find the Lamy 2000 is a marvellous workhorse as well as a supremely elegant pen. YMMV. I tend to use broad nibs, but Lamy fines are said to have a quite small sweet spot, so do try out a Lamy 2k before you make the purchase and make sure it's fine for you.

 

Lamy is also a piston filler, which takes a good load of ink. Of course with most Indian pens you can eyedropper them... though that comes with its own problems.

 

Of course the Lamy comes in different colour varieties such as: black, black, blue that is so dark it's nearly black, brown that is so dark it's nearly black, and black. 🙂

 

Ranga pens are good to deal with, reputable maker, fantastic range of colours and patterns, but a different writing experience. I find some of their larger pens a bit too big for me (but then I have small hands), but the nibs are good and of course writing with an exposed nib rather than a semi-hooded nib is a different thing altogether. I'd have to say my Rangas don't deliver quite as much luscious writing as my Lamy but their ebonite swirls cheer me up just to look at them.

 

Horses for courses! My collection has room for both, maybe yours does too.

Off topic: I recently came across your old blog post on Ratnam celluloid pen. Only realised it's your blog after seeing your signature in this post today 🙂

[webrowser]

Thanks for sharing thx1138, amk and K Singh sir!. I went ahead and bought the lamy 2000 in fine. Truly amazing pen! It feels very smooth, though I do feel it is more so if i slightly tilt it towards the right(i'm a right handed writer). Any theories as to why? Bought the lamy ink to go with it, but an Indian maker- "great Indian Ink" writes much better with it. Hoping to now rest in peace forever- though every single time i pick it up again- if i feel the slightest hint(or rather overthink) that the smoothness has gone down- I go into full blown panic mode. ANy suggestions on this? Thank you!

[amk]

Ah, that's the famous 'sweet spot'! Just accept that your Lamy 2000 is a fine thoroughbred pen with a little racehorse temperament 🙂 so you don't need to panic, it will settle down once you have shown it a little love.

 

I'm so glad you are enjoying your Lamy. My pen collection consists mainly of bright colours, all kinds of vivid celluloids and acrylics.... and a bundle of Lamy 2000s. It's not "my kind of pen" at all but it just captivated me 🙂

[Runnin_Ute]

Sounds like a sweet spot issue. I never experienced that withmy 2000 as I had used some other semi hooded and hooded nibbed pens and had already adjusted to it. (Mine is a fine as well)

 

I have had great experiences with my Indian pens as well. (Guider Capsule Schmidt B, Ranga Zayante Z2 from Peyton Street Pens with Jowo 1.1) no dry out issues with either. The Capsule is a 1 of 1 because of material used. Not his normal stock. The Zayante Z2 (shorter than regular Zayante) is a beautiful red/black ripple ebonite. 

[subbu68]

Congratulations on your getting Lamy 2k. 

 

Good you got with F nib. I got one with OBB that I thought would suit me (since I used to use Lamy 1.1 on other Lamys I have). That OBB was tooo..ooo broad. Got a F nib now but was eyeing a EF like you (in your original post). Good that I did not go for it. The shop that got me the spare nib said it was not as good as F. It cost me nearly half the pen cost but worth it. Now after several years the pen in inked. 

 

I believe you are writing about Syahi ink. It is good but I found it feathers and bleeds more than Lamy. Tested the Turquoise of both on the same every day paper I use (nothing fancy). Syahi looked greenish and the swatch instantly became broader than what i drew and also could be seen clearly on the reverse of the paper. Syahi Fractal Blue too could be read from the reverse side of my note book. 

 

Your pen would become smoother as you write. Don't get upset and use it gently.

[webrowser]

Thanks subbu68, Runnin_Ute and amk! It's been a year and over the year- I get it :).

Recently purchased a VP in matte black to the collection. A unique pen and I am thoroughly enjoying it. A bit worried about the finish though, thinking of applying some kind of varnish to keep it protected.

Would dislike loosing the Pilot logo.