The Pen Addict Raffle for St. Jude, featuring a very special Field Notes Collection - Final Update!

This is it! We are getting down to the wire with our raffle to raise funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. With just over a day left to get in on the Pen Addict raffle, the prizes available have been maxed out! Here is the updated list:

— Grand Prize: A set of Field Notes sealed 3-packs, starting with FNC-01: Butcher Orange, through FNC-51. Yes, the entire run! These are mostly from my personal collection, and include all of the rarest, most sought after Field Notes Editions produced. Butcher Blue? Included. Grass Stain Green? Included. Sealed 3-packs? Yes. Every edition between 1 and 51 are included, including a few bonus items that Field Notes sent through the years.

— A one-of-a-kind Spoke Icon barrel, fitted with a custom acrylic eyedropper section made by the mad scientist himself, Jonathon Brooks at Carolina Pen Co..

— A Kanilea Kona Cherry fountain pen with your choice of steel nib from Kanilea Pen Co.. This is the Pen World Magazine Reader’s Choice Award for Best Artisan Pen of 2021, and one of my personal favorite models.

— A Kasama Tala in Ultem from Mark Bacas, aka Nib Grinder, with a steel nib and a custom nib grind of your choice.

— A Schon DSGN Ultem fountain pen with a Fine steel nib.

— The Penwell Craftsman Deluxe in Galaxy Black, courtesy of Good Made Better

— An Additive Pens ACP6 Ribbon fountain pen, with your choice of nib grind (excluding the Tailor grind), courtesy of Nib Tailor.

— A big box of goodies from my friends at Pentel of America, including a new 20-pack of classic and new color EnerGels, two sets of Sharp Classic Series mechanical pencils, and two sets of Sharp Graphite Series mechanical pencils.

— Two complete run sets of Blackwing Volumes (one single pencil from each release) from Volume 725 through Volume 64.

— One set of Sailor x Tinterías Deliciosa: Spicy Chipotle y Homemade Tortilla. This ink collaboration knocked my socks off, so I ordered them for this raffle.

— NEW: Five Opus 88 fountain pens (Four Jazz Models, One Lennon Tool Bar Halo), going to five different winners, courtesy of a phenomenal Pen Addict supporter.

— NEW: Two sets of Gravitas Pens. Each set contains one each of the Pocket, Entry, Sentry, and Normal fountain pens, with your choice of Jowo steel nib for each pen. One set will be in the Black anodized colorway, and one set will be in the Teal anodized colorway.

— NEW: Pen rests from Penquisition. The winner will take home one PenQueue in Walnut, plus two PenQT pen rests.

So, how can you help out the kids at St. Jude, and have a chance at winning some great prizes? Here you go:

1. For every $10 you donate via the Relay FM for St. Jude 2021 page, you will receive one entry into the raffle. You are not limited to how much you donate, or how many entries you have. For example, $20 donated = 2 entries. $100 donated = 10 entries. We are trying to raise as much money as possible for the kids, so go wild!
2. After you donate through this link, forward a copy of your donation receipt, or a screenshot including the amount and date of donation to stjude@penaddict.com with 2021 Raffle in the Subject line. Only donations timestamped on or after September 1st, and before 11:59 p.m. on September 21st, are eligible.
3. All entries will be added to a spreadsheet after September 21st, and Random.org will be used to select the winners.
4. One winner will receive the Grand Prize of the Field Notes Collection. Other winners will be selected for the remaining prizes listed above.

As a group, Relay FM has raised over $500,000 in the month of September for this great cause. We appreciate all of your support!

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.

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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Misfill, Giggle Water Edition

Each week in Refill, the Pen Addict Members newsletter, I publish Ink Links as part of the additional content you receive for being a member. And each week, after 10 to 15 links, plus my added commentary on each, I'm left with many great items I want to share. Enter Misfill. Here are this weeks links:

— A Brief Compendium of Vintage Cocktail Recipe Books (Messy Messy Chic)

— Fountain Pens From My Collection: Lamy AL-Star (Fountain Pen Love)

— A community with heart (mnmlscholar)

— Visconti Bronze Age with 18k Nib (dapprman)

— Ink Review: Private Reserve Old vs New (The Well-Appointed Desk)

— Ink Review #610: Tono & Lims Friendship: Secret\Mint (Fountain Pen Pharmacist)

— State of the Art: Art Journaling, Again (Comfortable Shoes Studio)

— My Recent Media Diet, the Summer/Fall Switchover Edition (Kottke)

— Vintage Pen Primer, Part V: What About Just Opting for a Vintage Nib? (The Gentleman Stationer)

— Furry Adidas Sneakers Pay Homage to Japan’s Favorite Canine Hachiko (Spoon & Tamago)

— The Best Thing About This Year’s Met Gala Are the Memes (Hyperallergic)

— Zoe Whittall's Playlist for Her Novel "The Spectacular" (Largehearted Boy)

— What Makes Basquiat's Untitled Great Art: One Painting Says Everything Basquiat Wanted to Say About America, Art & Being Black in Both Worlds (Open Culture)

— Pelikan M200 Pastel Fountain Pen Review (SBREBrown)

— Matchbloc once again celebrates mid-century matchbox labels from the Eastern Bloc (Creative Boom)

— Leuchtturm1917 Notebook 120g Paper (Gourmet Pens)

— Dingbats* Wildlife Notebook Review (The Poor Penman)

— Esterbrook Estie Sea Glass Review (Writing at Large)

— Fountain Pen Quest Trail Log – September 19, 2021 (Fountain Pen Quest)

— No CG here – Japanese company builds ridiculously gigantic mechanical pencil (SoraNews24)

— 60s Psychedelic drug posters (DJ Food)

Want to catch the rest, plus extra articles, reviews, commentary, discounts, and more? Try out a Pen Addict Membership for only $5 per month!