Posts filed under Pen Reviews

Gravitas Skittle Fountain Pen Matte Finish Fountain Pen Review

Gravitas Pens is doing some seriously cool stuff. I’ve already reviewed the Skull Pen I impulse-bought after seeing the online shop in one of Brad’s Twitch streams, and now I’m the grateful owner of this Skittle Fountain Pen. Gravitas is such a good name for Ben’s business, because these pens have presence. They have attitude. There’s almost a kind of animas or sentience to them, the way created things sometimes have. They have gravitas. Receiving one feels momentous, and opening the package is an event. And then there’s a rad pen.

Gravitas Skittle Fountain Pen Matte Finish Fountain Pen

This Skittle matte finish definitely lives up to the magic promised by the ambiance of the brand. It is flawlessly rainbow, with each color blending smoothly into the next in transitions that make it look almost like an illusion. The only interruption to the color is a small laser-etched logo at the base of the cap. It’s a super fun color and I love it.

The craftsmanship is also impeccable. The stainless-steel machining is precise and everything is perfectly flush, with smooth joins and easy triple-start threads. At each end of the pen, there’s a small hollow into which is fitted a silicon nitride ball, which protects the points from being damaged.

Gravitas Skittle Fountain Pen Matte Finish

Gravitas Skittle Fountain Pen Barrel End

The one warning I will give about this pen is that it is a beast. It’s very large, comparable to an Opus 88 Omar in size, and is easily the heaviest pen in my collection at 74 grams. If you don’t like heavy pens, you might want to check out some other Gravitas models that also come in this cool finish—or you may fall in love with one of the other colors, or fancy laser-etched designs. I don’t mind a heavy pen as long as it’s well balanced and doesn’t cause fatigue. This one writes so well that it doesn’t wear out my hand when writing, though I wouldn’t use it for a super long writing session. It did fine as my notes pen for an hour-long lecture.

This pen came with a very wet medium nib that writes more like a broad, in my opinion. The bold line surprised me a bit, but it writes very smoothly and I love how it shows ink characteristics. The Gravitas pens come with Jowo #6 nibs, which I have used in many other pens, and I would say this one was out of character for the labeled size. Most of my medium Jowo nibs are true mediums, so I’m guessing this one was either mislabeled or an anomaly. It doesn't bother me, but YMMV. It should also be noted that this nib is interchangeable with other Jowo nibs, so if you already have a favorite nib at home, you can always mix and match.

The pen comes in a vibrant rainbow tube with the Gravitas brand name in Ogham, and includes a converter and a generous six standard international cartridges. It is very reasonably priced at 80 Euros, or about 94 American dollars, and I highly recommend you go get one before Ben figures out he could be charging a lot more for pens of this quality.

I’m an official Gravitas fan, now. I’m sure it won’t be long before my two are joined by more--especially as Ben seems to be rolling out new ideas and finishes faster than I can keep up. If you’re interested, keep an eye on the Instagram page where shop updates are always announced. Just be ready to buy a pen before you look.

(Gravitas Pens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on September 23, 2021 by Sarah Read and filed under Gravitas, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

PenBBS 308 Fountain Pen in Pacific Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

It's been well over a year now since I've been to any kind of pen show or gathering, so I was delightfully surprised to see the PenBBS 308 fountain pen show up because it's made of acrylic. The acrylic body reminds me so much of being at pen shows and touring all the unique and creative custom pens that local makers bring in. A lot of these custom pens are turned with colorful acrylic materials, and it's one of my favorite things about going to pen shows.

While the PenBBS 308 Pacific isn't as cool or well-made as the custom acrylic pens I enjoy at pen shows, it's still a solid pen with plenty to love. For me, the bright color and chunky material really sets it off and convinces me to pick it up over other pens 90% of the time.

Let's back up a little bit. Who is PenBBS? It's a Chinese pen company that takes feedback and design cues from its vibrant community, and produces real products to sell to the rest of the world. It's a fantastic concept, and I've really enjoyed the limited number of products I've used from them so far. Prior to this pen, I knew them solely as an ink brand, but I'm delighted to know they make some pretty awesome pens as well.

The PenBBS 308 model is a traditional shape and size that's similar to a Pilot 74, Platinum 3776, or Pilot Metropolitan. It's a great size that should fit most hands and grips without a problem. The materials are acrylic resin and silver hardware accents. The cap band features some script etched in to show the model number and brand. I'm not a fan of the way they styled the "Pen bbs" brand name on the band, but it doesn't bother unless I look closely. I wish they'd used capital "BBS" letters instead of lower case because it otherwise looks like a single word that you can't really pronounce.

The clip is strong and has a classic shape. It fits nicely with the rest of the pen's aesthetic.

The Pacific colorway that I have is light enough to show some of the inner workings of the pen. I love seeing the outline of thread cuts inside the pen body. The light green/blue/turquoise materials aren't smoothly melted together; instead, they look blocky and jagged under the smooth surface of the polished exterior. This isn't a new material style, but I really love the unique combination of colors and textures that it creates. Like I said earlier, it's nearly impossible to pass by without picking it up.

This fairly normal pen has a nice trick up its sleeve. As I was unscrewing the pen for the first time so I could ink it up, I felt the familiar resistance and soft friction of a rubber o-ring. Sure enough, there's a small o-ring on the bottom of the section so that you can easily turn this pen into an eyedropper. Just add a little silicone grease to the threads, and you're ready to go. The o-ring adds a little extra protection against leaks, and also makes it more secure from accidentally becoming unscrewed while in transit or when unscrewing the cap. According to the marketing materials, it holds nearly 3ml of ink! That's quite a lot to work with, but I haven't made the plunge of filling it yet, as I've been very happy with the size of the included converter.

I'm really happy that they include a converter with this pen. In this case, they're using a proprietary cartridge fitting that isn't compatible with the standard international short fitting. Your options here are using the included converter or eyedropping the pen. I'm sure you could also use Parker-branded refills if you already have some, but that's not something I'm interested in doing since it's a fairly uncommon refill type and I have so many more interesting inks to use.

I inked this pen with Diamine Marine, which I only have in international short cartridge form. I used a syringe to extract the ink from the cartridge and then injected it to the converter. I can tell you that this PenBBS converter holds exactly the same amount of ink as a standard international short cartridge.

Writing with this pen is a dream. The steel nib is smooth and dependable. I didn't have to do any adjustments of my own — it wrote beautifully right out of the box. The fine tip is exactly what I expect in terms of line width, and the ink flow is superb. I haven't had any issues with the nib drying up or skipping, and it's also super easy to clean out.

Overall, I've been really surprised by how well the PenBBS 308 writes and feels. It's a beautiful object and feels great in the hand. What really takes this over the top is the price point. At $38, this is a no-brainer. It's a fantastic pen on its own, and this price just doesn't make sense to my brain. If you're interested in this pen and like any of the 8 available colors nab one for yourself and/or a friend. You only get one nib choice — fine — but it's a great performer and fits this pen perfectly. Along with the pen and converter, it also includes a really nice single pen kimono in a coordinated color. Excellent touch! I'm really looking forward to what else the PenBBS community have in store.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on September 22, 2021 by Jeff Abbott and filed under PenBBS, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Caran d’Ache 849 Rollerball Pen Review

As a Caran d’Ache 849 fan, I’ll admit I was concerned when I saw the first images of the new 849 Rollerball. Residing squarely on the CHONKY side of the size ledger, would this break the magic spell the traditional-sized 849 Ballpoint had on me?

Yes, but that’s a good thing.

The 849 Rollerball is not your Grandmother’s Ecridor. It is not my 849 Ballpoint, or my beloved Fixpencil. What it is is an answer to all of those who previously wished for an 849, but bigger. The Cd’A Rollerball is the pen for you.

This is a legitimately big pen. The marketing says the Rollerball is 28% bigger than the Ballpoint, and that seems about right. My unscientific measurements had the diameter of the Rollerball in the grip area (flat side to flat side) at 10.62 mm, with the Ballpoint checking in at 8.13 mm. In comparison, a standard Retro 51 is at 10 mm in the middle of the grip area, with a taper - wider and narrower - in both directions.

Caran d’Ache 849 Rollerball Pen Comparison

28% may not seem that big of a difference on paper, but in a pen build that is a huge difference. The way these two pens are designed, it looks like the Ballpoint could fit completely inside the Rollerball, like it ate it for lunch.

The question you have to answer is: Is this a bad thing? After having it in hand and using it for a few days, I have to say no. I kind of like the size of it for something different. Somehow, it works, even though I was admittedly unsure about it at first.

Caran d’Ache mitigated the size of the pen with the proper refill choice. The black 0.7 mm Parker-style rollerball refill glides across the page, leaving a smooth, dark line in its wake. I’m a believer that the wider the pen barrel, the wider the refill (or nib, for fountain pens) needs to be. By default, your fingers and grip are wider, which generally leads to wider writing motions, and less precision. The 849 Rollerball and rollerball ink refill are a good match.

It feels good to use, too. The hexagonal barrel works well for me and my traditional grip. Those with a non-standard grip may need to think about how the ridges hit their fingers and if it would be comfortable. I think that is even more of a consideration with this wider barrel compared to the smaller 849’s.

Aesthetically, it is a stunner. Yes, a pen this simple, with classic Caran d’Ache design cues, is right in my sweet spot. At launch, Cd’A went with basic barrel colors - White, Black, Red, Blue, Grey - which is their norm. Once the larger Rollerball proves itself, they will begin to mix in colors and patterns - hopefully. I have no reason to think it won’t make a mark in their product lineup.

The only kicker I find is the price. For what Caran d’Ache is, and what they bring to the table, $46 seems about right. With a huge swath of 849 ballpoints available for $20 or less, I would have love to seen this model launch in the $36-$39 range for the basic colors, then mix in more premium designs and colors around $50, but Cd’A gonna Cd’A. It is priced fairly, sitting right in the premium Retro 51 rollerball range.

Caran d’Ache makes high quality, wonderfully designed, premium stationery products. Why I expected something different this time around I have no idea, but I’m glad the 849 Rollerball hits all the right marks and is as enjoyable to look at as it is to use.

(Goldspot provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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