Lamy 2000 and the Origins of Lamy Design

[drgoretex]

What an incredible write-up! Thoroughly enjoyed it, thank you very much!

Ken

[Adhizen]

Thank you for taking ther time to write and post this. Very informatave.

[Runnin_Ute]

Very nice review, Brandon. You had me looking at the FPN marketplace for a 2000 - even though I am not currently in the market for another pen right now. (just bought a Esterbrook J with 9550 EF posting nib)

[85AKbN]

Your very thorough review led to my Lamy 2000 ( Markalon ) purchase (fine nib). Very satisfied customer.

[folksathome]

Great Post! Thanks for sharing. I have used this as a reference many times in my L2K searches.

[myu]

This is a terrific post -- so glad to see so much information posted by many people could be assembled together for a super comprehensive posting. This has so much valuable information about the LAMY 2000, becoming a phenomenal and indispensable reference.

[adhoc]

I read through this post twice now already. What a great, great post. Thank you!

[marist]

Good read! I do wish that Lamy would embraced their 1980s era more. The Lamy Unic is perhaps their most interesting pen to me and while I like the CP1 a lot it pales in comparison. The 2000 is of course a great and iconic pen, but Lamy has done so much more that I feel like the 2000 is overly recognized/examined I'd implore people to look at the Unic/ST/Linea series in to the same depth!

[azkid]

Neat pen. I have toyed with picking up a Lamy 27 but I didn't know about many others outside the current lineup.

[Runnin_Ute]

Well I finally pulled the trigger on a 2000. It was offered at a price I couldn't pass up. ($99.99)

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[Jon Szanto]

Well I finally pulled the trigger on a 2000. It was offered at a price I couldn't pass up. ($99.99)

It's really funny: they ran that exact sale about a year ago and I did the same thing. I've got tons of pens and an awful lot of the "iconic" pens, but I had never gotten a 2K. It's really a great pen, and while it doesn't get any passions flowing in me, it is always available and works just right. I hope you enjoy yours.

[welch]

I've just read this series again. Breath-taking work by Brandon Hollingshead.

Incidentally, people should read MYU's work on the Lamy 27, to which Brandon links. That one is also superb.

Oh, and although my hand has grown so comfortable with the Parker 51, I think it is time to pull out my Lamy 2000. Always found the shape too thick in the middle, and that too-thick-ness forces an awkward shape-down toward the nib. And any stainless-steal grip is too slippery for my dry old fingers. But still, for Gerdness-sakes (as Brandon might say)

[Biber]

I keep thinking I want a 2000 but my impression is that it might be too big for my tastes (an impression reinforced by the previous post). Maybe one day I'll stumble across a steal of a deal and will take a chance on one.

I've long thought I'd like to have a "modern" style pen, and whenever I ask for suggestions the 2000 is usually the first mentioned. But at this point it's a 60 year old pen based on 90+ year old design concept. Hardly modern. Would that the 2000 had a contemporary progeny.

[pajaro]

I think that open nib pens look more old-timey than the Lamy 2000, the Parker 51, or some of the semi-hooded nib pens from the 40s to 60s.

[brandonh]

Thanks for the kind words, all. I'm working on a follow-up. I hope to have it ready in the new year.

[BoBo Olson]

Great Post........


In 1966 I was an American Army Brat living in Germany. I was not impressed with the brand new Lamy 2000.
I happened to walk into a German pen shop having seen the advertising outside. I couldn't understand it's roughness; not knowing MB had such a thing.

& MB was not the big name among Americans as it now is. Nor was cheap, small, under powered BMW or Mercedes. (the wise EM bought a used diesel Benz with only 150,000km on it, looking to get 500,000km/300,000 miles out of it) ....they were not status items, in the Dollar was All Mighty.....and the DM wasn't...............when the dollar became worthless or next to it, then MB, BMW & Benz became status items.

I had never heard of Bauhaus in 1966....now I know of it and have plans as soon as Corona lets up to go over and look in the East at Bauhaus School buildings and what they have there.


1966, then the King of Pens was a Sheaffer....Imperial or Snorkel ...which I couldn't afford either. For Americans, Pelikan was ugly. There was a 8th grade girl with one, and a clunky looking 146 was had by a Col.'s kid.............the rest of us were using metal capped Esterbrooks, Wearevers or new on the block Bic's.
There were a couple kids with Snorkels or P-51's....but such pens were't taken to school much....there was a plague of fountain pen thieves. I had my fountain pen stolen every year from 4th-10th grade, along with the Jotter.
Then came the Bic, where if you kept the cap in hand it didn't get stolen.

I was then a ball point barbarian. It was hard to get up 50 cents** in silver to go down on Friday night and have a few beers with the boys at a local gasthaus and cartridges cost too much beer money.

**Told you the Dollar was All Mighty.

The few times over the last decade when I did look on German Ebay fro 2000's there were no used ones for sale...........so even the Grand kids liked that pen when inherited.
I didn't chase it, in it's too nail-semi-nailish for me.

[pajaro]

I like the feel of my 2000. After I dropped it in the grocery the EF became a medium, after straightening the nib. Keeps on going.

[Chrissy]

Lamy is the best pen manufacturer I've ever needed to deal with. Long may they continue to make pens.