Lamy Pens Beat The Summer Heat
08/17/2012Never noticed such a difference during previous hot spells but my Lamy Safari and Vista 1.1mm italic pens are drying out less quickly than the other pens on my desk. They start up without skipping or converter priming and that really improves the writing experience.
Another factor is ink. The two black Safaris are loaded with Noodler’s Black and the turquoise colored Sailor Yaki-Akari. The Vistas are loaded with Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses and Diamine Mediterranean Blue. All provide good performance and easily enough color variety for the dog days of summer.
Until the weather cools in October, the four Lamy pens will keep my rotation simple and satisfying but I am open to additions. Do you have any pen and ink combinations that work particularly well in hot weather?
Summer Inks in Three Colors
Note that swabs do not show the dark color that results from writing with a fountain pen but they are good for comparison.
An Inkophile's Blog 
Interesting that you should mention this. My Lamy Safaris never let me down and the Platinum Plaisirs are also excellent – writing immediately every morning. The rest of the pens dried up and the ink evaporated so quickly that they are sitting in the drawer right now. I can’t stand to waste ink like that.
I’ve ordered a bunch of ink samples from Goulet Pens to figure out what my autumn colors are going to be. Then I’ll think about winter’s colors.
Once you start using fountain pens, it sure is hard to pick up anything else!
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You are so right, Joni. The Safari is a true workhorse. Never had a problem with my Safari or AL-Star extra-fine nibs either. I wish I liked the style better but it’s function before form for me so I have a bunch of them.
Funny that you mentioned autumn inks. I was just working on a post about burgundy ink that will go up when the weather changes. That color along with brown and orange will make up my autumn rotation. What are you considering?
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I’m thinking of rustic reds, olive-toned greens, soft oranges, etc. I’m not much into brown or bright oranges. Winter will probably be jewel-tones, deep true colors.
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Sounds pretty, Joni, just like autumn leaves.
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Depending my experiences;
The ink formula or ingredients are determinative for clogging or feeds channels drying.
I am manufacturer of boutique fountain pen ink(ANIKI NOTEBOOKS&INKS) on south of Turkey in an antique Lycian city where the ambient temp reaches around 45-48 degrees celcius in the middle of August. So, I am very well experienced with high temp effects on FP inks.
There is no drying with ANIKI FP Inks on high temps. Because in its formula there is no shellac, varnish or brillant component.
The second determinative factor in drying issue is the absence of inner cap.
And I have a small tip for drying problem as follows;
If you do not write for a long while, please submerge the FP nib very quickly in a waterful glass.
For ANIKI FP Ink samples you can contact with me by the given email addr.
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Thank you for the information. The Lamy Safari and the AL-Star have inner caps as do all of the other pens on my desk. The Lamy is a reliable starter regardless of the brand and color of ink. That is an unscientific evaluation based on observation and experience. That isn’t to say there aren’t brands of ink that perform well regardless of the pen. That’s a good thing, too.
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I’ve tried the nib in water tip before. There are some of my pens that it works with and some it doesn’t. More than anything, the ink simply evaporates!
Do you have a blog or website for your ink? I’d like to learn more.
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Hudson pen, Diamine ink. Lousy combination for drying out…. but nice combination for writing! Looking for a nice mid grey in a non-drying out ink!
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Noodler’s Gray and both of the Iroshizuku gray inks have worked well for me but they might be too dark for you. Testing samples would make sure the ink you choose meets your requirements for color as well as other properties. Happy hunting!
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My Waterman Carenes last for months at a time, then write immediately on start up. The ink doesn’t seem to matter, tho’ Waterman ink is superior if I’m going to have them sit. I’m in Florida and move between air conditioning set on 78F to outside temperatures over 100F/40C with high humidity.
Yard o Led pens behave very much the same. These two brands are my go anywhere, do anything pens. Both brands are snap tops.
Waterman is my “safe” ink if I’m not sure how long the ink will have to sit in the pens. Herbin used to be my second choice, but with all the ink formula changes due to the EU regulators getting carried away, neither the colors nor the behavior is predictable anymore.
I would like to hear more about that Turkish ink since I’m in extreme heat conditions as well. It’s not unusual for the inside of a car to reach 146F inside of an hour in the sun. I try not to leave my pens in a closed car due to the extreme conditions, but I have frequently used them at the beach or pool where 118F “humiture” [what the air feels like combining heat and humidity] is not unusual during the heat of the day.
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That is truly hot weather, Beth. Hard on pens and people and everything else for that matter.
Do your Carenes have stub nibs? The only one I have does but it’s a dry writer. Waterman Florida Blue ink elevates its performance though it still doesn’t flow like a Lamy Safari. It stutters on occasion especially on low humidity days. The nib is great so I grant it some slack and it will go back into my rotation when the weather is more suited to its temperament.
Waterman certainly is a safe ink and anything targeted by EU regulations suspect at the very least. What is your second choice?
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I have a mix of stubs, Bs & one lone M nib. All are wet and juicy. I can’t imagine a dry Carene!
Iroshizuku would be my 2nd choice ink these days. I simply haven’t had a bad experience with it in any pen. To me, it’s worth the premium price.
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Now that’s variety! My dry Carene won’t get tweaked though it could use it. Last thing I want is a Carene hose so I make ink help it along as much as possible. WFB has been the best so far but I might give something different a try next fill.
Iroshizuku is very reliable but so is Sailor in my experience. Some people are put off by the chemical odor but it just reminds me that the ink is highly unlikely to grow anything organic. Really. What could survive in that environment!
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Private Reserve Tanzanite is very wet. Also, if you’re willing to have inky fingers, try Noodler’s Zhivago. It’s horrific for nib creep, which goes EVERYWHERE on a Carene, but it’s fixed otherwise dry writing pens such as a very battered 149 with a very narrow B or slightly stubbed M I picked up on eBay.
My biggest problem with Sailor [I’m fond of the Apricot] is the flattened bottles that are hard to get into with my long nibbed pens.
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Unfortunately, I am not fond enough of Tanzanite to use it in a favored pen. Zhivago is always in one pen or another, most recently a Parker ’51’ medium-fine. I don’t recall ever trying it in the Carene so that could be a good choice for its next fill. The mess might be a deterrent but there are worse afflictions than inky fingers. Thanks, Beth.
Granted Sailor’s bottles leave much to be desired but didn’t they add a well in the last couple of years? That might not help with the monsters you own but it should be suitable for some of your smaller nibs.
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I just got back from vacation and noticed that Noodler’s Saguaro Wine was very free-flowing in an Edison pen (maybe a little *too* free-flowing but oh well). Also, Aurora Blue and Diamine Sapphire Blue have been very well behaved this summer, in my Lamy and Pelikan pens.
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Kate, Saguaro Wine has been on my list of inks to try for ages. Good to know it is free-flowing. I’ve got a few stingy pens that just might love it.
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My Lamy safari pen with private reserve ink is doing well even on Summer. I got no problems with my favourite pen so far.. (Crossing fingers). I also have a caran d’ache pen with the caran d’ache ink in carribean blue and so far so good. No problems with the heat. Or maybe because I use these two often. The problems usually arise when the pens are barely used. So just make sure you empty the cartridge if you wont use the pen for awhile and flush it water.
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