Pilot Plumix Eyedropper - Long Term Review

As many of you know the Pilot Plumix is easy to convert from a cartridge pen to an eyedropper simply by greasing the threads with silicone grease and plugging a hole in the body when it happens from the mold injection point. My experience with the Plumix line, as eyedropper pens, has been negative. This pen seems very sensitive to heat and is the worst at 'burping' of all the eyedropper conversions I have done which is a significant number as a class across different brands. Maybe it is the plastic or maybe the ergonomic design increases the surface area contact with the skin, or both. I don't know why. I love the pen. It is a good performer with a cartridge. It is probably the most comfortable pen I have ever used. It is great for my arthritic fingers and helps with longer writing sessions which is the reason I converted them to eyedroppers in the first place. However, at least one in three will burp almost continuously. Even the ones that don't behave that way will burp unexpectedly even if nearly full of ink. It isn't a nib alignment problem. Keep in mind I live above 6000ft or 1829m which might have something to do with the behavior I have observed.

Overall, the Plumix is a great pen if used as designed - a cartridge pen. I cannot recommend it for eyedropper conversion based on the behavior I have seen. Roughly, I have converted a half dozen or so of them over the past couple years. So take the one in three with a grain of salt since that is hardly a large sample. But, all of them will burp rather easily even when cold. I have used Noodler's ink in them which isn't the easiest flowing ink. Usually I would keep one Plumix inked in one of Noodler's black inks. The ink used, if anything, indicates the severity of the problem. Eyedroppers, as a class, have been good pens in my experience with little to no burping. The Platinum Preppy is a good example. So, this behavior of the Plumix stands out as an exception.

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Since the TWSBI Eco came out I have migrated away from eyedropper conversion pens. The Eco is nearly 'my' perfect pen. I keep three of them inked up for writing all the time. They perform well, hold a reasonable quantity of ink for longer writing sessions. This mean you don't have to ink them up every few days. Being a piston fill, it gives you great control over ink flow. They don't dry out if sitting filled for extended periods. The 1.1mm stub is easy to write with and the feed easily keeps up with the stub nib. It has a longer section that is large enough in diameter to not cramp my hands, both major points it it's favor for me. The price point is low enough that I can keep several of them in rotation all the time. So, the Eco has eliminated the reason I used eyedropper pens in the first place on a purely practical level.