It is with improved feelings that I again type about my Caran D'ache 849 pen.
To start, after about 3 years of regular use the Goliath refill did acquire an increased measure of smoothness and "flow." Its still not as smooth as a Fischer, but its also been the only pen I have really used for close to 5 years (Maybe 4.5yr if you count experiments with other cartridges.)
Last night while out to dinner and doodling mindlessly on the place-mat they gave me because they know I'm basically a large child, the pen stopped working. This has happened a few times over the past years, and my short lived joy at getting to FINALLY use a Fischer refill in the pen was quickly silenced by my memory of the other times the pen has died and promptly come back to life. The pen came back to life approximately 6" of scribbles after pooping out.
The finish on the pen is not really any worse off than it was 4 years ago, aside from ALL of the paint being chipped off of the very tip of the pen-hole, due to being dropped... Despite this embarrassingly regular abuse the pen-hole is still quite circular and the pen opens and closes as smoothly as one would expect from a sub $20 pen. The finish on the rest of the pen has a few superficial scratches but doesn't show bare metal anywhere but the tip. The pocket clip has seen regular use for the past 4+ years holding the pen securely in my man-satchels and shirt pockets, because I often wear button down shirts like an adult now. The "Swiss made" paint (between the clip and clicker) has faded slightly, but the "Caran D'ache 849" text (UNDER the beautifully sculpted pocket-clip) shows no wear. To be fair I often rub the pen between the clip and clicker as an idle habit which probably didn't help the "Swiss Made" text.