Fountain Pens—Lamy 2000

    This week’s post is about my experience with the Lamy 2000. It is my most recent fountain pen acquisition from several months ago as a graduation present. Since then it has been constantly inked and has become the pen which I use the most. Much of the novel I am currently writing has been written with this pen. It is a standard makrolon model with a medium nib. Like the vintage Conklin Nozac from last week, it is a piston filler. Since the pen was commemorating my graduation with a master’s degree, it was engraved with my name as it appears in my thesis and on my diploma—Jeffrey R. Nau.

​​     Although I haven’t had this Lamy 2000 fountain pen for as long as many of my other pens, it is already the one I have changed inks most often in. I write with it until it runs out of ink and then put a different ink in it rather than just refilling with the same ink. Usually, I settle on one or two inks I will repeatedly put into a pen. For the Lamy 2000, I started with the Lamy Special Edition 2019 Bronze ink I had gotten at the same time and didn’t like the look. It was too light of an orange on the page. So, I decided to go through all the inks I have just to try them all in the same pen (almost all the inks; there are few specialty inks that I only use in certain pens). I might have settled on which inks I will regularly use in my Lamy 2000, but I will need to go back to those inks and write more. One of the things I enjoy about fountain pens is how different inks can look depending on the fountain pen and paper. Each ink I have tried in the Lamy 2000 almost makes it a new writing experience, while maintaining the now-familiar comfort of the pen design and smooth nib.

     The Lamy 2000 has a stainless-steel version and the classic makrolon model. I have the makrolon model, which is a type of fiberglass. Part of the grip section is stainless steel. It has a snap cap with a very springy clip. There is a piston knob on the back that perfectly transitions into the pen body. The grip section with the stainless steel and a makrolon collar can be removed to clean inside and for piston maintenance, but I haven’t done so yet. It has been cleaning out well enough so far without taking it apart. It may, however, become necessary to take out the piston eventually to put new silicone grease on it. There is a small ink window just above the makrolon collar. It isn’t the clearest ink window, but it works well enough when held up to the light. The whole pen has a brushed finish with many small striations running length-wise (except for the finial of the cap, which is glossy). They aren’t so pronounced that they can be felt, and just enough to provide some texture to better hold the pen. The texture even makes the stainless-steel grip not feel slippery.
     The nib is hooded, which can help it keep from drying out when uncapped, is 14k gold, plated in platinum to give it a silver color matching the stainless steel. Lamy 2000 nibs are special compared to other Lamy nibs. While many Lamy nibs are interchangeable with different Lamy fountain pen models, the Lamy 2000 nib can only be used for that pen. Besides being smaller hooded nibs, the Lamy 2000 nibs are ground a little unconventionally. Even on my medium nib, it is ground with a slight stub and a bit more rectangular than rounded. I like this about the Lamy 2000. However, it introduces a more finicky nib that must be kept within a smaller degree of rotation to write compared to conventional rounded nibs. Some people may not like this about the Lamy 2000. I personally love how the pen has a personality different from my other pens, like a magic familiar that has let me in on the secret of its ability to write. It is also one of the smoothest nibs I have used. On glossy papers it sometimes even squeaks a little.
     I got the Lamy 2000 from Pen Chalet because they had an engraving option. I think the engraving turned out well, although it looks a little fuzzy. I’m not sure what material it was filled with, but it feels a little soft. I will have to see how it holds up long-term. I’m still glad I got it engraved and it looks good to me. It’s the first pen I have engraved with my own name (I have a few vintage pens with names of previous owners on them). It was a pen I had long anticipated getting to commemorate my graduation, so it was worth engraving, but won’t be something I do regularly. I might get one other pen engraved with my author name J.R. Nau to commemorate the publication of my first novel (I don’t know what pen yet). The Lamy 2000 has become one of my favorite pens that I am regularly writing with. I find it to be one of my best for long writing sessions, while the snap cap also makes it great for quick notes. It is very comfortable to hold and write with. I rotate which pens in my collection are inked, with a few that almost always are. The Lamy 2000 has joined those few.