The Lamy 2000 is the flagship pen model of the Lamy range and with the pen offering excellent performance with a great build quality and one of the best writing experiences available for its price point on the market, it is not surprising that we see so many people reaching out with questions about the Lamy 2000. On top of this, more and more people are switching over from using cheaper, entry-level pens and looking to purchase a decent, intermediate pen and the Lamy 2000 dominates this price point making it the perfect option.
One of the more frequent questions that we have seen people reaching out and asking about is a full Lamy 2000 fine vs extra fine breakdown as many people can’t decide if they should go with the fine nib or the extra fine nib on the Lamy 200. Due to the nib of the pen being permanently mounted to the section and not being replaceable, it is important that you choose correctly. Ideally, you would go to your local pen store to try both the Lamy 2000 fine and the Lamy 2000 extra fine prior to purchasing but we know that this is not realistic for most people.
Our goal with this article is to try and help as many of our readers as possible ensure that they get the correct nib size for their needs from their Lamy 2000. On top of this, we will also be focusing in on the fountain pen variant of the Lamy 2000 but the majority of our advice in this article is also applicable to the other variants of the pen on the market too. At the time of writing, the Lamy 2000 is available in the various variants:-
- Lamy 2000 Fountain Pen
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- Lamy 2000 Rollerball Pen
- Lamy 2000 Mechanical Pen
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The fountain pen variant is the most popular option followed closely by the ballpoint variant and then the rollerball variant with the mechanical and multifunctional variants being the least popular options by far. We will now be taking a more in-depth look at the various features of the Lamy 2000 and comparing them for the extra fine vs fine nib options to cover some advantages and disadvantages for both.
The Lamy 2000 Nib
The nib of the Lamy 2000 is both is main advantage and main disadvantage over the competing options from other premium pen models on the market right now. There is no denying that the nib on the pen is outstanding and performs flawlessly offering you an excellent writing experience the majority of the time. That said though, the main downside of the pen is that its nib is not interchangeable or replaceable so if you do have issues with the nib of the pen then it is not a simple fix.
The nib on both the extra-fine and fine variants of the Lamy 2000 are made from Rhodium-Plated 14 carat Gold offering a great writing experience for the price tag of the pen. Although a higher gold carat rating on the nib may help improve the writing experience, it can also drastically increase the price of the Lamy 2000 too. On top of this, as the Lamy 2000 is more of an intermediate price point pen than a premium price point pen, the majority of people who use the Lamy 2000 may not even feel the difference between a 14 carat nib or a nib over 20 carats anyway.
Both the fine and extra-fine nib variants of the Lamy 2000 are wet writers so we would recommend that you try to always use a fast-drying ink with the pen when possible. Although the wet nib will not be a problem for the vast majority of our readers, if you are left-handed and write at a faster than average pace then a fast-drying ink is essential to avoid smudging and smearing.
When it comes to writing on cheaper, lower-quality, low GSM paper, the Lamy 2000 fine does push out ahead of the Lamy 2000 extra fine as the fine nib variant of the Lamy 2000 does not scratch as much as the extra-fine variant on cheaper paper. If you are planning on using your Lamy 2000 for work rather than writing for pleasure where you may not have control over the paper you have to write on, the fine variant of the 2000 is definitely the better option.
That said though, if you are looking to pick-up your Lamy 2000 for personal use and writing for pleasure in your own home then you can easily pick up some high GSM paper as it usually only costs around the $10 mark for a full notebook but drastically improves the performance of the extra-fine Lamy 2000. Using a higher-quality ink with your Lamy 2000 can also help to improve the writing experience of the extra-fine variant of the nib too.
Finally, please keep in mind that the Lamy 2000 is a western pen with the nib built to the standard western pen sizes. If you are used to using an Asian fountain pen then it is probably a good idea to upsize your usual nib sizes due to Asian pen nib sizes usually being around a size lower than their western counterparts.
For example, if you usually use a fine nib on a Pilot or Platinum pen, go with the Lamy 2000 extra fine as the nib will be a similar size to what you are used to. If you are used to a medium nib size from an Asian fountain pen brand then go with the Lamy 2000 fine for a similar nib size when writing.
The Barrel Of The Lamy 2000
The barrels of both the extra-fine and fine variants of the Lamy 2000 are made from a high-quality polycarbonate with some stainless steel integrated into it. Although this does get some minor criticism from the community due to the majority of the intermediate price points fountain pens on the market having high-quality resin as their main material in their barrel we feel that this is not a major issue.
The Lamy 2000 is priced at the lower end of the intermediate price range for fountain pens and the pens with the high-quality resin barrels and caps are usually prices at the higher end of the range. On top of this, Lamy have done a great job of ensuring that the polycarbonate is as light as possible while also being tough too allowing the pen to take a ton of punishment without breaking too.
Although we doubt that most of our readers will care, the Lamy 2000 also gets some criticism due to the limited range of color options for the pen. This is more of an issue for fountain pen collectors rather than people looking for an every day carry fountain pen but we just wanted to make our readers aware.
Both the extra-fine and fine variants of the Lamy 2000 have their piston filler system contained in the barrel of the pen too offering them a solid advantage over many competing pens at this price range that offer a cartridge convertor system. Although some people won’t mind if their pen uses an actual piston filler or a cartridge convertor, the majority of people do prefer the piston filler system.
The Lamy 2000 Cap
The extra-fine and fine variants of the Lamy 2000 both use the same barrel and cap as each other and the cap of the pen is also made from the same high-quality polycarbonate with some stainless steel integration as the barrel of the pen. This offers the same advantages as its use in the barrel of the pen with it being lightweight while also being tough and cheap helping to keep the overall price tag of the pens as low as possible.
The cap of the pen matches the color of the barrel but as we touched on above, the limited colors available for the Lamy 2000 may discourage some people from purchasing it even though it offers excellent performance and functionality. The cap has the same minimilist design as the barrel of the pen too and as our regular readers may know, we prefer the basic, minimilist, cheap designs on pens with better performance than a better look.
The finial of the cap is blank helping to keep to the minimalist design of the pen and the only thing that really stands out is the clip. As with most clips on higher price point fountain pens, some people prefer a flexible clip where others prefer a rigid clip and this will largely come down to your own personal preference. The clip on the Lamy 2000 tends to be on the rigid side of things but this offers the advantage of ensuring that once the pen is clipped onto something for storage, it won’t accidentally go missing.
Unlike most of the other pens in the Lamy range, the cap of the Lamy 2000 is a twist-off cap rather than a push to lock. Again, this will come down to your own personal preference for the cap locking system on your pens but we prefer the twist-lock system on higher price point fountain pens. It helps to add that additional twist to prevent the barrel of the pen from accidentally detaching from the cap when not in use and going missing. Due to the price tag of the Lamy 2000, we see no reason to take risks that can be avoided when it comes to potential damage or loss with parts of the pen.
Thankfully, in this day and age, most of the more expensive fountain pens on the market have been designed from the very start to be as perfectly balanced as possible when posted. This means that if you do post the cap when writing, there are no issues with back weighting and the Lamy 2000 is no different. The cap of the pen posts well too meaning that when posted, the cap will not randomly come off the barrel and go missing.
The Ink Reservoir Of The Lamy 2000
Both the extra-fine and fine versions of the Lamy 2000 are able to hold a maximum ink capacity of 1.35ml in their ink reservoir putting them slightly higher than average when it comes to how much ink they are able to hold. That said though, there are some pens from the Pelikan range in this price bracket that are able to hold close to 2ml of ink at a time.
In all fairness to Lamy though, 1.35ml per ink re-fill should be enough for the majority of people anyway. High-quality ink is easy to source, cheap, and comes in small bottles these days so if you are going to be traveling for work or pleasure and think that your Lamy 2000 may run out of ink while away from home, it is easy enough to just take some spare ink with you and refill the pen while you are away.
Although the Lamy 2000 does have an ink view window on its barrel, it can be a pain to use accurately to see how much ink is actually left in the ink reservoir, especially in low light. Depending on the lighting available, you can hole the pen up so it has a better angle of light hitting the ink view window or check the section of the fountain pen but still, it is less than ideal and Lamy could definitely do better.
Conclusion
That brings our Lamy 2000 fine vs extra fine comparison to a close and although both nib sizes are close to each other in terms of performance and price point, we feel that the Lamy 2000 fine does sneak ahead ever so slightly due to it offering a smooth writing experience on cheaper, low GSM paper where as the extra fine nib can tend to be a little more scratchy. That said though, if you are writing for pleasure rather than work and can ensure that you always have paper with a GSM of at least 100 then the amazon link=”B001D3PYT0″ title=”Lamy 2000 extra fine” /] will also offer a silky smooth writing experience, especially if you use a decent ink with the pen.
