There it is: my new Lamy 2000 extra-fine. I’ve been wanting to try one of those for years. My old Lamy 2000 with fine nib is one of my favorite pens. I’ve read so much online about how the extra-fine is, variously, lacking ink flow, scratchy and narrow, but also that it’s no narrower than the fine so what’s the big deal. I wanted to see for myself.
I filled my new extra-fine with Waterman Serenity Blue. My own Lamy 2000 fine was in use (for the blog!), so I cadged my son’s fine nib Lamy 2000 and filled that with the same Waterman Serenity Blue. I’ve been writing with both for two weeks, in a sort of throwdown: nib versus nib, fine versus extra-fine, with the same ink and the same papers.
The extra-fine nib is visibly finer than the fine. Here is a 2000 fine on the left and the 2000 extra-fine on the right.
The extra-fine is clearly thinner, with less tipping material. In the following photo, the fine is in the front, and the extra-fine behind.
What does that mean for the Lamy 2000 extra-fine when you write with it? Obviously there is some variation nib to nib, and pen to pen, but my extra-fine is a true extra-fine. It does write a narrower line than either of my fines. It seems to have less ink flow than the fine. It also has a smaller sweet spot than the fines.
Here’s a closeup of a small writing sample. The fine is thicker, and it lays down more ink.
But in this case, the difference can be seen much more easily from farther away. Here is a longer writing sample, with passages of the Gettysburg Address written in the extra-fine and then the fine.
And closer.
I think the extra-fine is a very nice nib in use. It writes very smoothly for such a narrow nib. With Serenity Blue, I feel no feedback. It responds instantly to a very light touch. It floats across the page. And I can rotate it a lot and still write with it, so it seems to tolerate a variety of writing positions.
Nonetheless, I suspect the 2000 extra-fine may be best appreciated by those who already like extra-fine nibs and are used to them. This isn’t a Pelikan “extra-fine,” which is wider and thus more tolerant. Here is a writing sample comparing a few different pens.
I noted above that the Lamy 2000 extra-fine does have a smaller sweet spot than the Lamy 2000 fine, because you notice that when first use it. The extra-fine is just not as easy to use as the fine. It’s precise.
Honestly, I use a lot of extra-fine nibs, so adjusting to the small sweet spot took me about one sentence worth of writing, and I don’t have to think about it when I use the pen, so I don’t want to over-emphasize that. But I can see it being more of an issue for some users. I have a friend who is an experienced fountain pen user, but felt even the 2000 fine had too small a sweet spot; he would not like the extra-fine, I don’t think.
There’s also ink flow. I think the extra-fine has slightly less ink flow than the fine, and I think that extra ink flow is another reason the fine is easier to use.
The 2000 extra-fine will vary from many people’s experience of the extra-fine nib on the Lamy Safari/Al-Star/Studio/etc. The Lamy 2000 is a gold nib. And it’s finer than many Safari extra-fines I’ve used, and I’ve used a lot of Safari extra-fines. The Safari nib can tolerate a heavy hand, but I doubt the 2000 extra-fine would like that.
I found the 2000 extra-fine fairly similar to a Sailor fine nib, which is also a slightly dry nib that requires a very light touch and isn’t the easiest nib for everyone.
The Lamy 2000 extra-fine is wonderful on fountain-pen friendly paper, but it also does well on most of my poor quality paper. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it handles heavy, textured paper beautifully. It’s also been good with very absorbent paper like copier paper. That’s the sign of a really good, and smooth, extra-fine nib. But coated paper that resists ink really resists the 2000 extra-fine.
Comparing the 2000 extra-fine with the fine just left me admiring both pens, and admiring Lamy’s nib quality. The extra-fine really is an extra-fine, and I’m just a little bit excited by that. I look forward to using it with more inks; some of the wetter KWZ inks are going to get a turn in the extra-fine 2000. But I suspect that my 2000 fine will probably still get a lot of use itself. The extra-fine is more of a specialized tool, whereas the fine is more of a Swiss Army knife.
Fountain Pen Follies 
Great review and totally accurate! I’ve used both Lamy 2000 fines and extra fines for years and I couldn’t have described the differences better. I actually prefer the extra fine now. One blogger/ink reviewer told me the Lamy 2000 extra fine is “almost like a fine italic” totally true. Anyway, thanks!
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You’re welcome, and thank you! I ended up keeping my Lamy 2000 fine, and moving along my extra-fine, but that’s because I wanted to buy a Sailor extra-fine. The Sailor extra-fine is remarkably fine, and suits me, along with the Sailor fine, perfectly. But I think I’ll always keep the Lamy 2000 fine — it’s just kind of a perfect workhorse pen.
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Hi Laura, thanks for this review. I’ve been considering whether to get the Lamy 2000 Fine or Extra Fine. Currently, I have a Lamy Safari Extra Fine which I really enjoy, but I’m not sure whether that would translate to a Fine or Extra Fine in the Lamy 2000. What would you think? Thanks so much!
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Hi Laura, thanks for this review. I’ve been considering whether to get the Lamy 2000 Fine or Extra Fine. Currently, I have a Lamy Safari Extra Fine which I really enjoy, but I’m not sure whether that would translate to a Fine or Extra Fine in the Lamy 2000. What would you think? Thanks so much!
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Hi Justin. That’s a tough one. The extra-fine is finer than the fine, in both the Safari and the 2000, but the nibs are so different there’s unfortunately not a one-to-one correlation between the Safari and the 2000. Also, there is sample variation so nib width is more a range. You can get narrow fines and wide fines, and so on. That’s why I think nib width charts, though a good idea, don’t really work. There is always a range.
I like the Safari extra-fine very much, and it’s not really a nib that’s difficult to use. I always recommend the extra-fine Safari, instead of the fine, to students or anyone who has to use poor paper.
With the 2000s, however, I think the 2000 fine is the better choice for most people, especially if you can pick yours out in person and make sure you get a finer one. It’s not really width, it’s more how it writes. The extra-fine in the 2000 has a small sweet spot, and I like to use my extra-fine with a wetter ink. If I could only have one, it would be the fine. But if I only used lower-quality paper, the 2000 extra-fine would probably get the nod.
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Hi Laura, that’s really helpful advice. It’s been really bothering me as I read online posts about how variable people’s opinion is on the difference between the extra-fine and fine nibs. So your comments about how there is a variance even within the ‘fine’ nib explains a lot! (and why nib charts aren’t that helpful) I think I will be leaning towards the Lamy 2000 Fine with some good paper now given your advice. So thank you very much!
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I have a Lamy 2k extra fine and a Pilot Custom 823 fine, and although the one is filled with Lierre Sauvage and the other with Tsuki-yo, I find both lay about the same line. Given the variability of nibs it is hard to say if this is representative though.
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Thank you, thank you, thank you for this comparison. I’m stuck trying to decide if I want to get a Lamy 2000 in fine or extra-fine. I tend to write small and need something to use for class notes on everything from notebook paper to cheap copy paper, so I’m leaning toward the extra-fine. Do you have any Pilot Fines? If so, how would you say the Lamy Extra-Fine compares to the Pilot Fine? Thank you so much for your help!
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Hi Victoria. That is a tough decision. 😊 I’m on vacation so I can’t check but I think the Pilot fine is in the middle of these two Lamy nib sizes. If you were looking at a Safari I’d say “get the EF” with no hesitation, but with the 2000 I still favor the F. You can pick an ink that does well on poor paper and writes a narrower line, and that will make a big difference. Pelikan Brilliant Black, for example. Enjoy!
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well if that’s a bad thing, I don’t wanna be good! lol.
I never expected there to be such a visible difference between XF and F! your photos show this very clearly, it’s fascinating. It’s also incredible to see how much variation in line width there is between nibs from different companies that are labeled as the same size!
Love the two-nib shot at the bottom – what a surprising view!
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I quite always use Lamy EF nibs, and I find they are precise, neat and fun to use, as they immediately follow my mind in tracing letters.
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