Fountain Pen Review: Lamy Studio – Imperial Blue EF

[heath]

If you want to see this review with all the images you can click here to see it on my blog.

This is the Lamy Studio Fountain pen in Imperial Blue. It is a nice pen. It’s not a gold nibbed vintage masterpiece but it’s a retro modern stylish pen with a ton going for it. And, if you spend a bit more there actually are a handful of options that will get you a Studio with a gold nib! I got this one from Pen Chalet who runs unbelievable deals and promos on high quality pens. The steel nib Studio retails for just under $90 bucks but Pen Chalet has it for just over $70. Although I’d love to have a gold nib version in the future my mind was made up when I saw the Imperial Blue. It’s only available in the steel nib but because of a hosts of reasons it was the best version for me.



First Impressions

This pen is a stunner. It has beautiful lines and a seamless cap to body tolerance. It looks professional but can be fun too. It’s also one of the nicest Lamy’s that also uses the swappable nibs!

Appearance

I love the design of this pen. It has Lamy written all over it. I like all the color options to be honest but the Imperial Blue, which is the new blue replacing the original the Studio was released with, is gorgeous. I’m also a big fan of the clip. It’s something different and it’s well executed. The chrome to blue ratio is perfect in my opinion in both the capped and uncapped position. The chrome section and nib keep this pen firmly in the professionals pocket.

Build (Materials, Structure and Quality)

This pen is a Cadillac. It’s like silk on the outside but get rear ended by one and you’re totaled. It’s made of metal. The body is metal and on all but the brushed stainless version, which has the plastic black section, the section is metal as well. The clip is solid and springy. It’s not coming off and it’s got a good grip when it’s in use. It feels like a well made pen and it looks it too. High marks all around.

Capping / Posting

The Lamy Studio is a snap cap and post pen. It’s secure and satisfying to use. when posting it connects at a tiny lip on the end that allows the cap to spin without coming off which I like as it makes it easy to adjust the clip if I don’t post it just right without feeling like a quick spin will eat away at the finish.

Nib / Feed

The Lamy Studio is the high end pen that uses the same nibs shared by many of the rest of the Lamy line. It can swap with the Safari, Vista, Al-Star, Logo and maybe even a few more. These nibs come in EF, F, M,B, 1.1, 1.5 and 1.9. I’d likely not put a black version in it for good but in a pinch you could. It uses the same feed as those as well so the flow is the same as far as I can tell. With the pen being slightly heavier it actually helps a bit with flow because even a light swipe of the pen has a bit more to get the capillary action going. This particular pen has the EF nib and it’s slightly thicker than my black EF I recently gave away. It seems with Lamy no two EFs are exactly the same. That being said, it’s a European EF so it does make a thin line but just not as thin as an Asian one would.

Size

It’s a decent size and weight. It’s slightly longer than the Pilot Metropolitan and a a little bit thinner. It feels good in the hand both posted and unposted.

Filling System

This is a cartridge convertor pen like most of the rest of Lamy’s offerings. It uses the same proprietary cartridge as other Lamy’s but the convertor is the LZ26 for this one instead of the LZ24 used with the Safari’s and others. It’s basically the same with a few minor alterations. The one that matters the most is that the LZ24 has nubs that help seat it into the section which the LZ26 does not have. The coloring and materials are also slightly different. The cartridges come in 8 different colors from Lamy: Black, Black Blue, Blue, Green, Neon Coral (Special edition), Red, Turquoise and Violet.

Section

As I already mentioned all but one of these pens comes with a metal section. It’s a smooth chromed cylinder with no hint of the Lamy notches. It’s comfortable and I’ve had no slipping issues but I’d imagine if you have extremely oily fingers you might slip around a bit, not to mention how many smudges you’ll be wiping off constantly.


Price / Value

You’re paying for a few things that make this a good value at the $70 range from Pen Chalet with the Steel Nib or the $160 range for the gold nib versions. One of the main things you get is the professional Lamy that has fun with the Safari nibs. You take another step up and you get the 2000 but no swappable nib. You also get a tremendously well made metal pen. The final factor in my opinion is that this pen does look as good if not better than almost any other pen at the steel nib price.

Where to Buy?

The cheapest fine pen dealer with this pen I know is also a sponsor on my blog but I’d say go to PenChalet.com. It’s about $8 cheaper on the low end from other fine pen dealers I checked with. Feel free to look around and if you find it cheaper let me know but Pen Chalet doesn't mess around when it comes to getting a good deal.



Pros & Cons

Almost everything about this pen is a pro to me moving up from the Lamy Safari and Al-Star level. If you have issues with those setups, other than the grip notches, you might see some of those same things here.

Pros

All Metal Body
Great Build Quality
Design
Solid Clip
Interchangeable Nibs
Nibs all the way up to 1.9mm
Well balanced posted and unposted
Cons

Proprietary Cartridges
Not all colors available with the gold nibs
Gold nibs cannot be easily found separately
German tuned nibs don’t offer a needle point even in EF

Conclusion

I’m loving this pen. It hits tons of high notes for me and the color and style are right up my alley. This pen will definitely be in my daily rotation for a good time to come.


-Heath
@WeThePPIL

[top pen]

Thanks for the review, I own the brushed stainless steel one it's nice however I haven't used it for a while. Your review is well balanced and I'm sure will be helpful to others.