The Pilot Plumix Full Length and Capped
The Pilot Plumix is definitely a beginner level fountain pen, but with that said it still delivers a nice and unique experience for the cost. Personally I’m not a huge fan of how it looks, but when it comes to the writing experience I was very impressed, so lets take a closer look.
The Pilot Plumix Disassembled
The Pilot Plumix as shown above has some pretty unique design elements to it, which at first kind of bothered me. The torpedo-like and very short cap, the swirly markings on the extremely tapered body, and the super glossy and clear grip section all kind of jumped out at me as being a bit gaudy at best. I thought it kind of looked like one of those fancy glass dip pens, but all cheesed up and not as elegant looking. This version being reviewed is the black body, but keep in mind there are available in black, light blue, and purple body colors, all with black or blue ink.
The Pilot Plumix Nib
After taking a look at the nib of the Pilot Plumix, I saw that the tip was flat rather than rounded, leading me to believe that it would provide a more italic style type of writing that you see with calligraphy pens and nibs. As I said before, the cap is kind of visually unappealing, however having those two little fins that protrude from it certainly make it really easy to remove and replace by giving you a great grip on it. Also the cap does post nicely on the super slender back of the pen body.
Pilot Plumix Writing Sample.
Pilot Plumix Writing Sample
The real surprise with the Pilot Plumix came when I actually slipped the cartridge in and put pen to paper. I was correct in my assumption that its flat nib would provide for a more unique style of writing as you can see if you click on the writing sample above for a closer look. Even my typical handwriting style that mirrors that of a 6 yr old looked so much more elegant. The flat tip allows for much more character with each long stroke being wider and bolder than each lateral stroke, which was thinner and more delicate. The combination of the wider and thinner lines definitely gave my handwriting a more elegant look and it even got my mind off what I consider to be some pretty awful aesthetics for the design of this pen. Beyond the improved look of the output, the pen also wrote very smoothly with no skipping, and the ink itself did not bleed or feather in my trusty Black n Red notebook.
I think my next step with this pen might be to try and refill the cartridge with some other ink like Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses which has some great shading to it that will probably look great when used with this nib…I just have to figure out if it can be hacked and syringe filled like some other disposable cartridges can be. If you want to upgrade the look and style of your handwriting without actually changing how you write, the Pilot Plumix is a great option to take a look at.
If you like the Italic/Stub type nib on the Plumix… Try putting the 1.1mm nib on a Lamy Safari, you’ll get nice line variation, but not too wide for everyday use. Another classic is the the inexpensive Pilot 78G with the B nib – which is really a stub at around 1mm.
I would take a Pilot 78G over a Plumix any day. The 78G costs about a buck more than the Plumix if you know where to buy it online (I pay $7.45 USD ea. plus a buck or two for shipping. Price includes a converter – which I toss). But beware, if you’re paying more than ten bucks or so before shipping for a 78G, you’re getting ripped off. I haven’t seen any Chinese fake 78G’s in the wild, yet – but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any.
I wonder if you can convert the Plumix to eye-dropper fill?
Thanks for the review – David
Plumix has a hole in the body, unlike the Pilot Penmanship. To fill the cartridge, take something narrow, place it on the stupid plastic disc where the disc meets with the wall, and spiral it out of it. It makes it much easier that way. I fill mine with Noodler’s Tiananmen red ink. I kinda want to try it with my R&K Alt-Goldgrün, but I don’t write with it much, and wasting ink that is used in my regular use Lamy Safari seems counterproductive.
I like to use these as new ink testers – the italic nib shows color and shading a little better for me, and the clear section makes it easy to see when all the ink is flushed out after.
The Plumix, Prera, and 78G nibs are all interchangeable, as well.
I tried using some silicone grease to seal the threads, for use as an eyedropper, and found the flow to be much too fast. Your mileage may vary, as they say. My Plumi don’t have holes in the body, but there’s a molding mark at the bottom that could leak if the plastic charge was light that day. I’d strongly recommend testing with water or air pressure first.
I haven’t had any trouble refilling the cartridges. Also, these are interchangeable with the mixable ink cartridges made for the Pilot Parallel. The boxes that the carts come in say that they are only for the Parallel, but they work fine with the Plumix. This starter pen has become Minipeanut’s favorite, and he really likes the Pilot mixable turquoise ink. He’s 8 and just recently began to learn to write in cursive, so this pen has become his cursive practice pen.
I tried the seal the hole with epoxy to convert it to an ED, but I had flow problems with it that I didn’t have with the cartridges. I personally don’t like the little bitty cap and think that it looks very strange when posted. On the other hand, the Plumix is readily available for around $6 in a major chain store, so it’s a pen that might get many people started on fps.
I regularly refill my spent cartridges on the Plumix with bottled ink using a syringe. There’s a little plastic disc that you have to work out of the cartridge (maybe remove with sharp tweezers).
Man I keep putting off getting one of these. I really should, as they are cheap and I can put the nib in my Prera.
+1 for the 1.1mm on the Lamy. That’s a very day-to-day nib.
Hey David – Thanks for the suggestions, I’ll definitely have to take a look.
I’m with you on the wasting ink thing…I have to find the right time and place for doing it, but thank you for the information.
I’ve got three of these puppies. They come in a clear body, too. Target used to have them but I haven’t seen them in close to a year. (Target dumped them about the same time they made the switch from Rhodia to Moleskinne. The fools!) I bought converters for mine so I can fill them with whatever. And yes, it makes any handwriting look great.
Thanks for the review!
Not a bad idea at all for testing new inks. Makes sense to test with water or something else first.
That is awesome that the little guy is using a FP! 🙂
I’m with you on the tiny cap…kind of odd and awkward.
I need to get myself a syringe…I’m just afraid of feeling like a druggie when I buy one. 🙂
Definitely worth grabbing one, its a fun little pen if you dont mind the looks of it.
Links on where to get the 78Gs if you have them handy please! I got one used and it’s still one of my favorites.
A friend of mine tried to convert a Plumix to an eyedropper using some silicone grease and it leaked everywhere on her. Don’t think you could get an O-ring in there, but if you discover something please let the world know about it. There’s a lot of pen body going to waste there.
I’ve gotten some recently from Target (three separate stores) but they’re to the very edge and near the bottom of the Office section every time so you’ve got to search them out.
Yay, gotta love the squid pens! These are consistently my favorite cheap fountain pen. I had six, but one made its way onto the boyfriend’s desk and somehow hasn’t come back yet. I love the multicolored cartridges you can get for them off of Jetpens, and Noodler’s Bulletproof Black in the black pen is quite aesthetically pleasing.
I got my 78G’s for $7.45 ea. plus a couple of bucks for shipping from here:
http://www.stationeryart.com/
I’m not affiliated with this seller, just a satisfied customer. The spelling in the link is “stationery” not “stationary”. The seller is in Hong Kong. Shipping to the U.S. East Coast takes about a week via Hong Kong Post. I always pick the trackable shipping option. I’ve purchased about a half dozen times from this seller without any problems.
I finally got one of these the other day, after not getting one for years because of my mixed feelings about the styling, and now I’m glad I did. I bought it when I realized it was a stub/italic nib and used regular Pilot cartridges (which can be refilled via syringe or substituted with Pilot converter, and have since found the styling to have grown on me, although I don’t post the puny cap. The rounded triangular section is shaped to guide the fingers into the proper grip, so it would be good for beginners. The clear section makes it almost a demonstrator, and the stub/italic nib is great. I’ve had no flow problems (always flush w/ bulb syringe before 1st fill), and am enjoying the expressive nib. Also the nib and section are easily removable for a thorough cleaning; just be sure to put them back in the proper orientation relative to the section. Nice to know the nib is interchangeable with other Pilots such as the 78G. Overall I highly recommend this pen, and I might have to get some more soon if it’s true that Target is phasing them out.