With my love for all things Safari, you would think I would have reviewed the LAMY Safari Rollerball by now. I checked, and I haven’t, although Jeff did share his opinion a few years back. It’s time for me to get on the board as well.
The LAMY Safari Fountain Pen has been a long time favorite of mine - this 2008 review is hilarious - and the Safari Ballpoint is a more recent fascination. (Side note: we don’t mention the Safari Mechanical Pencil around these parts.) While those two pens see regular use in my writing kit, it’s only with the 2024 Violet Blackberry Rollerball Special Edition did I commit to using one. So far, I’m thoroughly enjoying it.
Let’s get the obvious LAMY Safari issue out of the way first. This is not a pen for everyone due to the molded grip section that “places” your fingers into a set writing position. That’s all well and good if you have a traditional writing grip like I do, but it is a non-starter for many people for a valid reason.
I’m fortunate that it does work for me, because aesthetically I love everything about the Safari design. All of the bright colors they have released through the years - either in standard or special editions - are right up my alley, and they can design a pretty good dark-themed pen, too. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the famous LAMY Safari pen clip, which I also enjoy. It’s ostentatious, but somehow works.
With design talk out of the way, it is time to focus on what can make or break a rollerball pen: the refill. LAMY uses their proprietary M63 Rollerball refill and, luckily, it is a good one. I say luckily, because the downside of a proprietary refill is that it is difficult to hack in another refill if you love the pen but hate the refill. There is a Pilot G2 hack out there if you want to cut an extender for that particular refill, but otherwise, the M63 is your lone choice.
As best as I can tell without markings, the M63 Rollerball tip is approximately 1.0 mm. This is in the normal range for water-based rollerball refills, and while my preference lies in 0.7 mm tip sizes (there are a few rare 0.5 mm and finer rollerballs out there, but that’s an article for another day,) the M63 is manageable for my writing. Importantly, given the wide line size, it hasn’t exhibited bleeding and feathering on the papers I’ve tested it on, but I’m sure there are some non-compatible fibers out there. My expectations when I pick up this pen are a dark, controllable line, and the M63 delivers.
Fountain pen, top, Ballpoint, bottom.
Should you buy a LAMY Rollerball pen? As much as I enjoy them, there is a solid list of pros (good refill, style,) and cons (grip, broad line,) to consider. At $20, the price is fair if you are interested, so add one to the list if it checks the right boxes for you.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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