Pupils' Pen (Lamy Alstar Graphit Fountain Pen)

Member Name: MALU

Product:	Lamy Alstar Graphit Fountain Pen
Date:	03/07/09 (106 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: good-looking, reliable

Disadvantages: hard steel nib

When I asked my pupils if they could lend me a writing tool because I had forgotten my pencil case (again!), they nearly always handed me a LAMY fountain pen. This is not surprising, firstly, because we encourage them to use fountain pens instead of biros or felt-pens for better handwriting and general tidiness and, secondly, because LAMY is the market leader in Germany. But not only here, LAMY exports writing utensils to 39 countries.

What does LAMY mean? Nothing, it's the (rare) surname of the founder, a good one, suitable as the brand name of an international firm. The LAMY brand was founded in Heidelberg, Germany, in 1952, in 1966 the famous LAMY design was born which is based on the Bauhaus principle, "Form follows function".

The Lamy Alstar Graphit Fountain Pen is made from leightweight, durable aluminium and has a metal silver finish. A distinctive element is the ergonomically molded grip section which is made of smoke coloured plastic. It has a modern, no frills, 'cool' look in my opinion.

The required ink cartridges T 10 are longer than normal ones which is a good thing, of course, because they last longer. The flexible metal clip enables the user to carry the fountain pen around on the outside of a shirt pocket, but to tell you the truth I don't know anyone who'd do such a thing. People who show their writing tools thusly usually have biros (bosses of supermarkets etc.) On The Fountain Pen Network, a forum for lovers of fountain pens (yes, there is such a thing), a member complains that the clip may be bent out of shape by the thick end of denim jeans. A LAMY fountain pen in the back pocket of jeans? Sounds absurd to me.

More important than the body of a fountain pen, however, is the nib and the way you can write with it. The Lamy Alstar Graphit Fountain Pen has a black, chromium-plated steel nib which is available in extra fine, fine, medium, or broad. I think I should mention here where and why I use a fountain pen at all, I'm a retiree and I go to uni as a so-called 'guest listener' and use it to write down what the professors or lecturers say. I must admit that I can write faster with a biro, but when using a fountain pen my handwriting is better and re-reading a text written this way gives me more pleasure.

I like broad lines more than fine lines, the problem with the Lamy Alstar Graphit Fountain Pen is that even the broad nib doesn't produce broad lines, at least not what I consider broad. Instinctively I press the nib on the paper when writing with the result that after some time my index finger hurts. The nib is just too stiff for me. I've used the fountain pen for over a year now but it hasn't softened which is very well if you're content but not if you hope to make the fountain pen do what you want.

All in all I can say that the Lamy Alstar Graphit Fountain Pen is a reliable writing tool, well built and tough (which doesn't mean that it likes being dropped), good-looking and certainly ideal for the rugged life as a pupil's companion. I've decided to give my specimen to a pupil in the neighbourhood and buy another fountain pen for myself, maybe not as cool looking but more elegant and with a broad soft nib.

Amazon.co.uk sells the Lamy Alstar Graphit Fountain Pen for 19 GBP.

Summary: a German LAMY fountain pen