Lamy Safari Petrol Fountain Pens Reviews

I love the color. I have several Safaris and somehow the nib I got seems smoother than my others!

If you ask most fountain pen users for recommendations for a first-time user, the Lamy Safari is sure to come up close to the top of the list. With their 60+ year history of making fine writing instruments, it’s no surprise that Lamy has a pretty good grasp on what makes a good pen.

One of the defining characteristics of the Safari series is the wide array of colors offered for this pen. While Lamy consistently offers the standard colors of Black, Red, and Blue; they also release a limited edition color pen every year alongside a matching ink. My first Lamy Safari pick up, the 2017 Limited Edition “Petrol,” has a dark green/black body, cap, and grip section with a black nib, clip, and accents. The proprietary nib on the Safari is available in Extra Fine, Fine, and Medium widths out of the box, with Broad, 1.1, 1.5, and 1.9 stub nibs available. This nib is compatible with pretty much every Lamy model except for the 2000, so if you also have an AL-Star or LX, you can easily swap the nib between them.

The Nib is really where the Lamy Safari stands out. Like the pen itself, the nib is made in Germany, and conforms to European width standards; meaning the Lamy Fine will run roughly in line with a Pilot Medium. The Fine and Medium nibs I’ve used both write incredibly smooth out of the box, and are very firm compared to stainless steel nibs from other manufacturers. Obviously, it is not supposed to be flexible by any stretch of the imagination, but there is zero movement in this nib under any reasonable amount of writing pressure. The Lamy always lays down a solid and consistent line and starts up right away, even if the pen has been sitting inked but unused for several days. All of this adds up to a great writing experience, but there is one last thing that really makes the Lamy shine. I have not yet figured out why or how this happens, but the Lamy nibs transform almost any ink I use from nice solid colors, to dual-tone shaded beauties. It might be something with the ink flow that causes the ink to pool at the end of the stroke, but the Lamy nib just adds that extra touch of character to your writing. This shading effect will vary from ink to ink, but it is much more pronounced with the Lamy in comparison to Twsbi, Kaweco, and Bock nibs I’ve used.

So, should you buy it?

The Lamy Safari absolutely carries its own weight for a pen in the $30 price range. With the variety of colors available, you’ll be able to find a pen that stands out from the crowd and suits your unique tastes. If you have the opportunity to pick up one of the limited edition colors, even better! If you're looking for something with a bit of extra flare that will stand out in the crowd, the Safari is not that pen. But as I have discovered over the past year of Lamy ownership, what these pens lack in bold and flashy style, they more than make up for in near-flawless functionality. The Petrol Safari has earned a place in my Sinclair as a Daily Use pen. And I don’t see it leaving any time soon.

WOW. Great color on this pen. The Petrol satisfies my need for subtle blue/green pens. The usual Lamy reliability is there, and the black nib is a perfect match. I personally love the M nib. I just wish Lamy included a converter for that price.

This review is for the newly released Lamy Safari Petrol fountain pen with a medium nib: This special edition pen is a delightful addition to a long line of Safari pens displaying its new pleasant body color of bluish green (petrol) and textured surface along with unique longstanding traditional physiognomies. My favorite features of Safari pen lines are its smooth writing capability and reliability plus easy interchangeability of nibs and carefree handling. I like the body color of this particular edition and its matte surface combined with a black clip on the snap cap and a black coated steel nib to write with, hence this pen is going to be one of my EDC fountain pens. It looks quite classy.

The Safari is always a good pen, durable and dependable. This Petrol version is no different, just in a new attractive color. As I've noticed before, it seems that the black nibs don't glide as smoothly as the silver version. For some reason the black coating gives it a feel similar to a graphite pencil on paper, at least to me. Unfortunately the new Petrol ink isn't available yet, so I just used the included blue cartridge for now. I don't understand why Lamy doesn't include a Petrol ink cartridge, but they did the same thing last year with the Dark Lilac edition and put in a blue cartridge. It's a nice ink but this seems like an illogical policy. I'm glad I was able to pre-order here at Pen Chalet since these special editions don't last very long.

This is my second Safari pen. The look a feel are great. I love color. It looks so much better in person. I really like the feel of the extra fine nib. It is the first extra fine nib I have used. It flows well and puts down nice line.

The order process went well. This pen was a pre-order and the folks at Pen Chalet kept me informed of the status throughout the process. I am very happy with my purchase and would gladly buy again from the Pen Chalet. The added bonus is the sponsor my favorite Podcast!

I was on the fence about this for a while, but I'm very happy I decided to buy one. It writes like a dream. Shipping was fast, and am very pleased for the service.

Love the pen. Bought it as a gift and it arrived sooner than I expected!

The Safari Petrol differs from other Safaris only in color. I really like the dark teal color even though it seems a bit darker "in person" than it appears in the photos. In terms of the pen's performance, value, etc., I have always believed that the Lamy Safari is a great value with great versatility (cartridge or converter filling, multiple nib options at a very reasonable price). People seem to love or hate the Safari, primarily because of the molded grip section and the design of the pocket clip. I fall firmly in the "love it" camp.

I received my Safari Petrol just 2 days after they arrived at Pen Chalet. Great work from the gang. Of course, Lamy has failed to ship ink and other goodies on my order so I'm still waiting to be able to actually evaluate the pen. I expect it to be just like other Safaris I have, though.
I was a little put off by the color as it's much greener than the marketing materials illustrate, but still good looking.
Rating everything in my review as average as a result of the delay.