LAMY AL-star whitesilver vulpen

[Update 1 Year Later]

The pen is a solid representative of the Al-Star line, my review focuses on what makes it a special edition: the colour.

After having this pen for 1 year, I can confirm my earlier impression that the only difference between the Al-Star Whitesilver and the original Al-Star Aluminium is on the clip: the Whitesilve has a chrome (silver colour) clip, while the original Aluminium has a black clip.

I have two Al-Star Aluminium that I modified by replacing the black clips with silver clips from Al-Star spare part caps I managed to buy for cheap elsewhere.

Initially there was a subtle difference between the Whitesilver and the modified Aluminium in that the finish of the Whitesilver was slightly matte while the finish of the Aluminium was slightly glossy. I hypothesized that this was most likely due to the wear on the older pens. That hypothesis is now confirmed as I can no longer tell the three pens apart from each other, unless I check which ink/nib they have and compare against a note I keep telling me which pen corresponds to which ink/nib.

As a result, in my opinion this brings down the number of stars for the pen down to 3=(4+2)/2, for a very unoriginal color from Lamy, particularly on a Special Edition release, as I think that is the main point of these special editions.

Smooth writing as always. Lamy consistently produces a fountain pen that's good straight out of the box. No 'break in' time needed. Comfortable to use as an everyday writer.

Heerlijke pen, sierlijk en schrijft heel gemakkelijk. Keurig ingepakt geleverd.

Good product to keep in collection ^^) really love it.

The body and all parts of the pen are the same as any other Al-Star versions in my collection. No issues there as I already like the weight, feel, and overall design of this line of fountain pens. I bought it with a regular M-nib (which works fine), and switched recently to one of the gold versions (very smooth and nicely wet).

I would like to comment on the colour of the pen itself. I really wish Lamy started making truly different colours from previous editions. The Turmaline is very close to the Pacific Blue, the Cosmic is quite close to the Pearl, and the Azure is similar to the Charcoal Grey.

But with the Whitesilver it seems they didn't even wanted to try. Other than a slightly more matte finish that is almost barely noticeable and most likely a result of my older pens having been used for more than 10 years, this pen's colour is identical to the one in the original Al-Star (Aluminium).

Granted, the original Al-Star has a black clip while the Whitesilver has a silver clip. But a couple of years ago I purchased a few extra Al-Star caps with silver clips from other pens and replaced a couple of my Al-Star Aluminium black clips with the silver ones. So I used this to compare the two modified pens against the Whitesilver and there is absolutely no difference, save for the slightly shinier finish on the Aluminium body, that is simply a result of age and use.

I like the pen, I just wish on releasing a new Al-Star Special Edition Lamy took the time and select a colour that is different from all the ones they have released so far and thus add something to the collection. For example, a bright violet or purple pen, since the Silverblue is a very light shade of the colour.