Pilot Metropolitan vs Lamy Safari: which first fountain pen to buy?

Every fountain pen forum sends beginners to the same two pens, and then argues about which one. I have carried both for years, and the honest answer is that they suit different hands and different paper. The Pilot Metropolitan is the pen for thin lines, cheap notebooks and anyone who wants a bit of heft. The Lamy Safari is the pen for people who want to experiment with nib widths and do not mind, or actively like, being told where to put their fingers.

If you journal on ordinary paper and want a clean, fine line, buy the Metropolitan in F. If you want to try a stub or a broad, or you tend to grip a pen tightly and hard, buy the Safari in F or M.

Weight and feel in the hand

The Metropolitan has a brass barrel under its lacquer. It weighs about 26 grams capped and feels like a proper object. The section, the part you hold, is smooth plastic and tapers slightly, with a small step up to the barrel that some people notice and most do not. The cap snaps on and off, and posts on the back without upsetting the balance.

The Safari is moulded ABS plastic, about 17 grams. It is light enough to forget during a long writing session, and it has a large wire clip that holds a shirt pocket or a notebook cover firmly. The barrel has an ink window, two small cut-outs that show how much is left, which the Metropolitan lacks.

Neither pen is heavy by fountain pen standards. If you like the weight of a good ballpoint, the Metropolitan will feel familiar. If you like a light pen, the Safari.

The grip, which decides this for a lot of people

The Safari section has three flat faces. Thumb and forefinger sit on two of them and the middle finger supports from below. It teaches a textbook tripod grip, which is why it was designed for schoolchildren. Hold it that way and it is comfortable for hours. Hold it any other way and the edges press into your fingers.

Left-handers who write from below the line, the hooked overwriters, often find the flats land in the wrong place. Some adapt, some never do. Lamy makes a left-handed nib with a slightly different grind, but the grip is the same. If you can, hold one in a shop for a minute before buying.

The Metropolitan’s round section lets you hold it however you like. For anyone whose grip is unusual, that neutrality is the deciding feature.

Nibs and line width

Both pens use steel nibs, and both write smoothly for the money. The difference is width and the system behind it.

Pilot grades nibs on the Japanese scale. The Metropolitan comes in F and M, and its F lays down a line most Western makers would call extra fine. On thin or cheap paper that matters: less ink, less feathering, less show-through, and small handwriting stays legible.

Lamy grades on the German scale, so its F is broader and wetter. The Safari is sold in EF, F, M and B, plus 1.1, 1.5 and 1.9 millimetre stub nibs that give your writing thick and thin strokes. The nibs slide on and off the feed with a piece of tape, and replacements are inexpensive. One pen becomes several. That is the Safari’s strongest argument.

Pilot’s nib quality control is famously consistent. Lamy’s is good, but a scratchy or dry Safari nib out of the box is not rare, and the fix is either a swap or a few minutes with a brass shim. Buyers who report a bad experience with the Safari usually report that.

Ink: cartridges and converters

The Metropolitan ships with a cartridge and a squeeze converter, so you can use bottled ink on day one. The converter holds a modest amount, around 0.4 millilitres, which is fine for a notebook pen and annoying for a heavy writer.

The Safari ships with one cartridge and no converter. The Lamy Z28 converter is a separate purchase, holds more, and is a piston type that is easier to fill cleanly. Both pens use proprietary cartridges, so you cannot share them with each other or with the standard international pens most other brands use.

Build and longevity

Both are built to be used, not babied. Owners who have written with a Metropolitan daily for years report lacquer wear at the cap edge and little else. Safari owners report cracked caps occasionally, usually from being sat on, and clips that loosen. Both are easy to disassemble for cleaning, and both have replacement parts widely available.

Who should not buy each one

Do not buy the Metropolitan if you want to explore nib widths, if you write large and want a broad line, or if you post your cap and want a very light pen.

Do not buy the Safari if your grip is unconventional and you cannot try one first, if you need the finest possible line on bad paper, or if you want a pen that looks like a pen rather than a design object. It is a look people either love or do not.

How we compare pens

This guide compares the two pens on their published specifications and on what long-term owners report, not on a brand’s own copy. When we recommend pens in our pens section, each pick lists nib sizes, weight, filling system and the paper it suits, and we say where a retailer’s recommendation might be shaped by what they stock. The full process is on our how we choose page.

Final verdict

For a first fountain pen that writes thin, behaves on any paper and feels substantial, the Pilot Metropolitan in F. For a first fountain pen that becomes a hobby, with nibs to swap and a grip that will either click or will not, the Lamy Safari in F, plus the converter. If you can only afford one and you are left-handed or write with an unusual grip, the Metropolitan is the lower-risk choice.