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Oldoiler
138
Aug 5, 2018
I've had this pen for about 6 or 7 years. You can find it for $200 on the internet. Can't recall the name of the place I bought it at, but that was their normal price all the time. I got the stainless version of it. Honestly, I never use it anymore. It's a really heavy pen and don't dare drop it. If you do, it always wants to fall on the opposite of the nib end and it puts dents into the round portion that are impossible to remove. It's going to happen and I'm the most careful of all about trying to protect my stuff. It's not a matter of "if", but "when". Then you've got a roughly $300 pen with dents that you can't remove from it.
The absolute best fountain that I have been carrying for 10 years now, are the Namiki/Pilot retractable fountain pens. They work simply fantastic, have a great weight and balance to them and look like a regular ballpoint pen.........until you click on it and and a fountain pen nip ejects out. They come in a lot of cool colors and designs are just about 1/3rd the price of this pen. Made very well too.
In addition, to that, when you're using it and there are some people that are next to you and all of a sudden they see a fountain pen that ejects/retracts, yeah, you get a lot of comments on it too.
The LAMY Dialog is a cool pen for sure, but not nearly as practical or convenient as the Namiki/Pilot retract fountains. The Namiki/Pilot is just as cool, but in a different way in my opinion.
Cheers!
Oldoiler
138
Aug 5, 2018
OldoilerOh, and parts for the Namiki/Pilots are easy to come by. You want a different size nib, yellow gold vs. white gold? No problem.
Yeah, my LAMY has the nice magnetic case that they originally came with. I wouldn't get another one of the LAMY Dialog 3's. Just not worth it in my opinion.
Oldoiler
138
Aug 5, 2018
Oldoiler@The.Lightist, thanks for the thumbs up!
I wanted to add one more thing about why the Namiki/Pilot works so well for me. It's a typical "click" pen. You know, the ubiquitous types that have the button on the end that you just click to eject the pen tip. My job requires that I do a LOT of writing. I don't like writing with pencils, and fountain pens work great for me due to the amount of ink that I simply use. With that, I'm constantly setting my pen down and picking it up. As everyone with fountain pens know, you don't want to leave the nibs exposed for too long or they tend to dry out.
With any fountain pen that has a cap or a twist mechanism like this LAMY, it ends up being a lot of extra steps when you have to write as much as I do at work. That's why the Namiki/Pilot "Vanishing Point" as it is actually called works so well for me. You simply pick it up in your writing hand and use your thumb to depress the "clicker" on the end to eject and retract the nib. So much more convenient if you do a lot of writing.
Also, Noodlers Bay State Blue is a wonderful fountain pen ink. It's basically Cobalt Blue and it's permanent! Get it wet, and it doesn't bleed, run or anything. Only bleach will get rid of it.
Cheers!
Oldoiler
138
Aug 9, 2018
Oldoiler@shawn524 Thank you!
Oldoiler
138
Oct 12, 2018
OldoilerThanks, Saltedfish and rpm604 for the thumbs up!
I did a little digging to see who I had purchased my Lamy 3 from and it was "isellpens.com". Unfortunately, they are no longer in business which is surprising considering they were so well known and admired by "fountain pen" people on the internet.
http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/316527-isellpens-going-out-of-business/
I noticed on Amazon all of the high star ratings for the Lamy 3 and I just don't get it. Mindy you, I'm not a picky or critical person when it comes to products for the most part that seem to really bug other people. In other words, what other people would give 2 stars to, I'd give 3 or 4.
I'm guessing that most people just don't use this pen to write with a lot. If you want it for it's "coolness factor", yeah, then it's great. I stand by my comment though that this pen is just too darned heavy and don't dare drop it! Because when you do, you're going to have a nice dent in your new $200+ fountain pen that I see no way of removing.
I also stand by this comment. Get the Pilot/Namiki "Vanishing Point" retract fountain pen. In my opinion, it's the best and one of the coolest fountain pens on the market! The most practical too. Amazon has all of the cool ones too.
Cheers and thanks All!
amateriat
31
Dec 29, 2018
OldoilerFunny you should mention all this: Way back when the Dialog 3 was announced, I was regularly using two other Lamy FPs (2000 & Persona), and was seriously looking forward to trying the D3 the moment it was released. But Lamy kept pushing the release date back, first once, then twice, and yet again. It was the better part of a year from their original release date when it finally arrived at Fountain Pen Hospital in NYC and I finally got to try it out...and I discovered why its release kept getting pushed back: the nib housing on the sample I used was a tad loose, which made putting down a proper line on paper a bit tricky. This would be inexcusable in a pen one-third the D3's then-going price (let's just say it was a good deal more than it's going for here), and the experience threw me a curve...Lamy had NEVER let me down in this way. Maybe they'd release something that simply didn't suit me (which has happened a lot), but I'd still have respect for the care in design and engineering taken. But it's what happened a few minutes afterward that changed everything: just for a lark, I asked to see Pilot's Vanishing Point, the pen that obviously was at least partial inspiration for the D3. THAT was Kismet at first write: I fell in love with the thing immediately. From there, I discovered Pilot's Custom 74, and from there the Custom 823. Now, the Lamys I had have long been replaced by these Pilots. Which is not to slam Lamy at all: I still think the 2000 is the best FP (and BP/Roller/Pencil) they've ever made, and one of the better FPs out there in general. But my episode with the D3 on first try should be a lesson to manufacturers: when you release something that's supposed to be a Big Deal, be sure you've got it all set to go before it reaches a potential customer's hands. Over and out.
(Edited)
Oldoiler
138
Dec 29, 2018
amateriatThat is all very well said! Lamy is a great brand and makes a great fountain pen, it's just that their other ones are so much better than the Dialog 3 in my opinion. The D3 is a really cool pen, it's just that it's not that practical for a fountain pen as much as we would all like it to be. If it were a $100 pen, then maybe, and it still wouldn't be that great. I'm sure that there are folks out there that have it and love it and that is great. I don't want to bash the pen, because, again, it is cool. It just doesn't work for me personally very well. And yes, the Pilot/Namiki Vanishing Points are by far the best and coolest in my opinion, along with other Pilots. They just work and are reliable. Thanks for sharing your experience and Happy New Year!