Near-New Lamy 2000 - Not particularly impressed

[KBeezie]

I got this Lamy 2000 that was less than a month old (according to the original owner) with an extra fine in exchange for one of my Vanishing Points with a Medium nib which he seems to like.

The style, appearance and feel of the Lamy 2000 seems rather nice, piston filling feels real smooth. It also seems really easy to post and clip.

Main gripe was so far every ink I'm putting in is way too dry, and the nib while it is aligned does not appear to be all that smooth, it's not like scratchy but it's not something to write home about either. Worse bit is it seems way too dry, I've tried Lamy Blue, Noodler's Texas Blue Steel, Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo, Iroshizuku Syo-ro and finally Aurora Black. Even soaked the nib/feed in some diluted ammonia just in case there may have been some previous clogging.


Some pictures:

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/box.jpg

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/unboxed.jpg

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/capped.jpg

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/uncapped.jpg

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/posted.jpg

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/nib.jpg

Initial write sample:

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/write.jpg

Checking after extra cleaning and inking with Aurora black which I'm told is "slippery"

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/marks.jpg

[Jon Szanto]

Floss the nib with a brass shim?

[KBeezie]

Copying from the "Other" Site:

K, now we're somewhere.

On some Mead notebook paper
http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/write_.jpg

On some rhodia pad (No.10 2x2.9in) written in the same fashion as earlier.
http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/write2.jpg

The Lamy 2K feels a lot like a 'larger' version of my MontBlanc 225, they're both piston fillers, both platinum coated (except the Montblanc has the cap Platinum coated, and the grip remains resin/plastic up to the nib), both can unscrew from the section, both have the little wires to grab the cap. Main thing is I can't get the nib/feed out of the montblanc. But otherwise feels very similar.

[KBeezie]

Floss the nib with a brass shim?

To catch people up on this side.

I've :
Cleaned the section/feed/nib of the pen which included soaking just the nib/feed in some diluted Ammonia.
Flossed the tines with some brass shims
Widened the tines a tiny bit using the thicker brass shim on a couple of occasions

I *might* have it nailed down but want to try to use the original ink I wanted to use to see if it's fixed by a factor of changing inks or just fixed period.

[speedy400]

Did the same to my Medium 2000 and it's nice and wet now.

[KBeezie]

Flushed it out because I wanted to use a different ink, and took the opportunity to wiggle a brass shim in to make the tines a little further a part, then made sure to adjust the tipping every so slightly so they were closed and not like a microscopic gap (only really visible under my 60x loupe that they weren't touching).

So now it's much nicer to the wetness (right, down, up produce a nice line, left still kind of lacking but doesn't show in normal writing).

Filled it up with Texas Blue Steel, but I was going to go with Liberty's Elysium, however Blue Steel runs a little wetter and seems more pleasant for my everyday usage (also the same ink I'm using in my Pelikan M250 with a Medium). I was also considering Black Eel since it's lubricated and such, but if I made the nib too wet it would take a while for the Black Eel to dry from smears.

Takes about 15 seconds on Rhodia to dry from smear, but near immediately dry from smears on Staple's Arc paper and Mead 5-star.

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/lamy2k/write_bluesteel.jpg

PS: haven't heard from Lamy USA still, I wonder if they will either take a week, or just not respond at all. Either way I'll probably have it adjusted just the way I want it long before they get back to me.

[mhosea]

There are some feeds in the world that just don't work well, or can't keep up, but I find that most ink flow is a matter of nib (and sometimes feed) adjustment. All of my Montblanc pens needed help, for example, which in some cases probably facilitated their arriving on my desk, given that I haven't yet seriously considered buying any Montblanc pens new. ER doctors have a saying that the patient isn't dead until they are warm and dead. Likewise, a fountain pen can't be judged until the nib has been optimally adjusted.

Having said that, I don't prefer metal grip sections or slip caps, so the 2000 is not really a candidate for my personal "perfect pen" list. However, in the 2000's case I'd probably be gripping it just in front of the cap retention protrusions (which might or might not annoy me). The pen is reasonable in price for what it is, so I guess I need to see one in person and "dry write" with it to see how it feels. Is the nib nail-like, or does it have a little "bounce"? I don't care about flex, but I like a little "shock absorber" feeling that I get with some nibs.

[brewsky]

From my brief trial with a lamy 2000, the nib did have some bounce to it. Nowhere near flex obviously, just the typical gold bound you find. I'd compare it to the spring my vanishing point nib has. As for the metal section, i too do not like metal sections. The one if the lamy 2000 feels very similar to the barrel material making it very comfortable.

I have decided against purchasing the pen however, in search of other vintage pens with more character.

[velo]

I will echo what brewsky said. My Lamy 2000 fine and my Pilot Vanishing Point medium have a very similar feel. A touch of softness but no flex.

I would say the Lamy 2000, understated in its design and appearance, has a way of quietly going about its business. Mine is always inked.

[KBeezie]

Is the nib nail-like, or does it have a little "bounce"? I don't care about flex, but I like a little "shock absorber" feeling that I get with some nibs.

Definitely more of a bounce, if not careful the line thickness can seem to get larger on certain strokes depending on the degree of pressure it seems like, but not so much from tipping separation but more from extra ink flowing (like the nib getting enough contact with the roof of the hooding or something) it's hard to explain exactly. It's definitely not a stiff/nail nib.

Also I think it burped on me the other day because I was writing then suddenly on one new line I get an extra flow of ink making it write almost like a feathering B for a few words. So probably something to happen in the same day as a fresh fill if you don't pre-burp it (the materials probably transfers body heat very well).

I also have a VP with a 14K Fine that writes even finer than the Lamy's extra-fine, and that has a bit of spring to it, but doesn't cause subtle line variations either, but it's also a much drier nib for me using Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo in it at the moment.

From the look of the nib/feed design, I'd say the 'bounce' has more to do with the portion of the feed that the nib is attached to, than to the actual nib itself. Just the way it seems, like it was designed to give a little.

[Laura N]

I just want to say, Karl, that it's possible you are having these problems because you kind of hacked at that nib a bit. No offense, but it's an extra-fine, and those tend to be extra-fine, and they tend to be dry. They are supposed to be. One thing everyone who works on nibs should know is that if you go too far you can do damage, unintentionally. Or if you use the wrong technique.

Of course, it's your pen and you should do what you want. All I'm saying is, don't necessarily blame the pen for that. Because, when I read your posts and look at your photos, it seems you wanted this pen to write very wet, which isn't something you'll often get with an extra-fine nib. In fact, it almost looks like you widened the tines or increased the wetness enough so it's not really an extra-fine any more. In retrospect, you might have been happier buying a fine or a even a medium nib. Or with just mailing the pen in to the professional in Lamy's service department and telling him it wasn't writing to your satisfaction.

The Lamy 2000 is a piston filler, so when you have to release a few drops of ink when you fill it. That's the case with a lot of pens, actually. Also it is a bouncy nib but you aren't supposed to put a lot of pressure on any nib except those designed to flex. That's another thing that can spring a nib.

These things aren't aimed at you, Karl, as I'm sure you know. Your experimentation seems fun for you. I'm just thinking that in the future people may run across this thread.

[mhosea]

Also I think it burped on me the other day because I was writing then suddenly on one new line I get an extra flow of ink making it write almost like a feathering B for a few words. So probably something to happen in the same day as a fresh fill if you don't pre-burp it (the materials probably transfers body heat very well).




The Lamy 2000 is a piston filler, so when you have to release a few drops of ink when you fill it. That's the case with a lot of pens, actually.


Yes. I noticed the other day in an on-line post that the Montblanc instructions for filling one of their piston-fillers was to lift the pen out of the ink and expel three drops. I've also noticed that my Bexley Corona benefits from this, and an analogous thing is recommended with Parker Vacumatics and Parker 51s of both filler types. I like to turn the pen upwards before turning the piston back again to facilitate pulling as much ink out of the feed and back into the reservoir as possible. One needs to have a rag around the grip section already for that maneuver, though.

[Jon Szanto]

Yep, this is standard, if not always heard-of, procedure for a piston fill. Just had this reiterated to me by Syd Saperstein when I purchased one of the piston-fill W-E models from him in San Francisco.

[velo]

If anyone is interested Massdrop have the Lamy 2000 for $109.99 for the next five days.

[ilya2193]

I'm glad that you made the pen work for you with the adjustments. I have a Lamy 2000 with a medium nib, and I find it to be a pretty wet writer... if it's on the "sweet spot". The cross strokes and up strokes are very inconsistent though, just as you've shown in the writing sample. It seems these nibs just have a tiny sweet spot and if I want to have a smooth and wet cross stroke to the left, I have to twist the pen slightly to the right and vise versa. It's pretty frustrating but I still love how it writes from daily usage.

[RuiFromUK]

My Lamy 2000 with an OBB nib works perfectly.

[KBeezie]

I just want to say, Karl, that it's possible you are having these problems because you kind of hacked at that nib a bit. No offense, but it's an extra-fine, and those tend to be extra-fine, and they tend to be dry. They are supposed to be. One thing everyone who works on nibs should know is that if you go too far you can do damage, unintentionally. Or if you use the wrong technique.


I was having the problems BEFORE I even touched the nib, if it was fine to begin with, I wouldn't have attempted anything. There's a difference between just being dry and thin, and being so dry that it doesn't even put a line down without pressure. And I've had PLENTY of extra-fine and Fine nibs before, mostly in the Japanese pens which are smaller. Japanese Fine and smaller is usually my preference. Not my first rodeo in terms of what to expect from an extra-fine nib.

[AtomicLeo]

I"ve got 2k an EF and M. The M is a wet smooth writer but closer to B nib. I bought the EF and found that it was much dryer and a bit scratchy. I used it daily at work for a few months and it finally writes well now. Dunno why it took so long. The M nib did not have the same issues.