Lamy Special Edition Safari Fountain Pens

Bottom Line Up Front: Great starter pen for the price. It is a Lamy Safari, so you know (or should if you have held one before) that it is well made, utilitarian in its design, and whether you love or hate the grip. Color choices are subjective.

Product Quality: 5 – Excellent
I know that the term “German Engineering” is often overused, but there is a reason for it. While the pen is made from ABS Plastic and is extremely light, it feels solidly built. No matter what I do, the pen feels solid in my hand. Even when I knock it around a little, I do not feel I have to worry about the nib or the barrel. The cap feels solidly placed when capped onto the barrel. The fact that Lamy places a spacer between the barrel and the feed to ensure the cartridge does not accidentally open while in transit shows the level of thought and tolerances put into the pen.

Product Functionality: 4 - Above Average
Where the pen falters a little is the grip. The triangular grip is either a love it or hate it situation. I love it as I don’t have to think about where to put my fingers when I uncap the pen, I just plug and write. What I don’t like is the size of the grip. It feels a bit small for people with larger hands (which is kind of hypocritical as the reason the smaller feeling grip is the triangular placement I like, go figure). You can tell from the way the pen is designed that it was made to be very practical. Snap cap, simple metal clip, ABS plastic where you can see the position where mold finished, the pen was made to be simple, practical, and yet reliable.

While I have had issues with their chrome plated nibs, I have yet to have any issues with their black nibs and have made sure that all of my Safaris sport a black nib. Furthermore, the ease of which you can swap out nibs not only adds to their functionality, but also value.

Finally, the amount of ink that their cartridges hold is hard to beat in comparison to some other manufacturers. And if you like using bottled ink, you can do what I do and just clean out the cartridge and use a syringe to put your bottled ink into the cartridge, thereby having a large amount of your favorite ink.

Product Style: 4 – Above Average
The pen was made to be simple, practical, and yet reliable. Can either be a plus or minus, depending on your feelings. But the fact that Lamy comes out with different limited editions, there is little denying that you can find a pen that meets your color palate!

Product Value: 5 – Excellent
When you consider the price of the pen, the ease with which you can swap out nibs, the solidly built design, and the plethora of colors the Safari can come in, I think the value is nigh unbeatable. Further, with the right discounts you can get the pen for a really good price.

I put a Lamy 1.5mm Italic nib on this pen and loaded it with a Lamy red cartridge because I forgot to order a converter. The red of this pen pairs nicely with the Lamy red ink. I am enjoying this pen a lot!

I like it. It’s a cheerful color and it writes well.

Great color pen, and the matte finish is nice.

Great product love it

This is my favorite of the Lamy safari editions so far - good looking yet not too flashy

This is a superb pen. No complaints, smooth writing, effortless refilling. This is my number 1 pen. Never disappoints. I'm definitely ordering more of these. And the colors on the pen really pop!

Ordered the piston fill Converter for bottled ink. Could not be happier with the purchase! Stone cold predictable in how the pen writes and the colors cool.

Love this pen. Bought Terra Cotta in M nib. Very smooth and buttery. I like the matt finish.

I got the special edition Terra (orange) color. It's great! I paired it with Monteverde Fire Opal ink, and it's a match made in (writer) heaven.