PLP Jumbo Review... A Comfortable Jumbo With a Questionable Nib
A Great pen for everyday use for someone who prefers a large pen, Just spec yours out wisely
When you think of an Indian pen, the first thing that comes to mind is a relatively large pen, made of ebonite, resembling old Parkers or Swans, that are filled by an eyedropper, and often came with a wide range of nibs. Thankfully, due to nostalgia, or refusal to change, those kinds of models are still available today, for better or for worse. But nowadays, the pen landscape has changed significantly. With changing needs of the consumers, we had a period of some innovation, well... when I say innovation, the biggest development that had happened in the wider Indian pen landscape in the past 10 years has been the introduction of the so-called 3-in-1 pens, where the pens are made like they were used to, by hand. But instead of the friction fit nib and ebonite feed combo, they now use a screw in nib unit with a plastic feed, most commonly coming from JoWo. Then there are pen makers like Lotus, Fosfor, and the like that have made great innovations in the Indian pen scene, but they're a bit too niche for the general public. Then there's the likes of MagnaCarta who is now mostly focusing on overseas markets. For us budget conscious people, our palette remains mostly the same, ASA, Kanwrite, Click, PLP, Woodex, and the like. with the latter two being relatively new to the scene. Being OEM makers before and now have gone independent, using the same 3-in-1 formula, but incorporating new designs catering to their customers, Woodex in particular, has almost 65+ kinds of pens in their catalogue! PLP has focused on giving value for money offerings and catering to the customer's needs in terms of customization. Both of them, along with ASA, in my opinion are now the go-to when it comes to ebonite pens for a budget. With that intro out of the way, let's get on to the meat and potatoes, the pen I have on hand. From PLP , the jumbo. Introduced in mid 2023, it has been a fan favorite, with many theories also suggesting that this is the same pen as the Gama Madras, with the difference being that the Madras being made of SEM ebonite from Germany, and the PLP being made of Indian ebonite. I bought my first one at the time of release, in red ebonite with a Jowo Broad, and it immediately became one of my go-to jumbo pens. I liked the pen so much that I bought one this year. About a month ago, I placed my order of a second PLP Jumbo, this time, inspired by some of the kim pens that have been resurfacing in pen groups recently, I asked Satish Ji, the owner of PLP pens, to make mine in a flat-top, with an Ambitious #40 nib. And this is the pen that I'll be reviewing. Without rambling more, let's get on with it.
TL:DR
If you want a practical everyday jumbo pen that's great value for money, this fits the bill perfectly well. It's not absurdly big that you feel like writing with a cricket stump, but comfortable enough to be used for long writing sessions. Just avoid the ambitious #40 nib unit, and instead go for the #40 nib friction fit with an ebonite feed for eyedropper use only. If you want the ability to use cartridges and converters, go for the smaller, but still comfortable Jowo #6 nib units.
Build and Design
In one word - Cantankerous. The pen is built like a tank and goes well with the name jumbo. I chose the teal and black colorway of the ebonite, and I do really like the subdued nature of this colorway. The pen feels girthy but totally manageable.
Coming to the design, as I said, I customized mine to be a flat top variant, instead of their typical round top variant that they sell. And the pen has a classic appeal. The design is simple, the proportions are great. Coming to the features, starting from the cap, the finial is flat that then transitions into the cap, with a slit through which the clip is fitted. The clip is an appropriate size for the pen, and the PLP logo is stamped on the top section of the clip. The cap then tapers up a third of the way before straightening out towards the end of the cap, where we are met with a step down to the barrel. The barrel then continues straight till about two-thirds of the way before it starts tapering down to meet at the rear end which is also flat.
Coming to the section, it's again, a classic design with a small taper and a ledge to prevent your finger from slipping out the section. The grip is comfortable to hold. However, smaller hands might find it a bit too wide for them.
At the end of the section, we find the #40 nib unit from ambitious. For the international folks, the #40 nib is kinda... sorta... a #8, but it isn't. It uses the standard 6mm feed often found in #6 nibs, but it is longer and flared out. Kinda like a #6.5 nib. the #40 comes from the length of the nib which is 40mm. The tipping with Ambitious nibs has always been ambiguous, in my experience. this one comes with a fine-medium tipping.
For reference, here it is with my other PLP jumbo, that I bought almost 2 years ago. This is the standard round top with the Jowo nib unit. If you buy from their site, this is the model that you'll get.
As a jumbo pen, it feels manageable. I think it's mostly due to the length. the length feels natural and provides a good balance while writing. the bigger nib also makes you grip the pen a bit further back and have a narrower angle, aiding in the writing experience, especially for my long skinny hand.
As for the raw numbers, here they are... Measurements: - Capped: 150.4mm - Uncapped: 138.5mm - Thickness of the barrel: 17.2 at the thickest and 13.8 at the thinnest - Barrel wall thickness: ~3.0mm - Cap thickness: 19.0mm - Section dimension: 14.9mm tapering to 13.3mm over a length of 18.0mm. After that a flare out to 14.6mm over a length of 3.5mm
Comparing with some other pens, from left to right: - PLP Jumbo Flat Top - PLP Jumbo Round Top - Gama Supreme - Woodex Model #39 - Jinhao 100 Centennial - Asvine V1216 - Kanwrite Desire
In regards to some other models from PLP itself: - PLP Jumbo Flat Top - PLP Jumbo Round Top - PLP Double Ring - PLP Scenic
Overall, the design is classic, the build is solid, and the finishing is excellent. For the price, you're getting a hell of a lot of pen.
Nib And Writing
This is a mixed bag for me. After the excellent performance of my previous jumbo, I was really looking forward to this one. I don't know whether it was an issue with my nib unit or it is inherent with all Ambitious #40 nib, but my nib unit was riddled with flow issues. The nib is a large nib, but the metal is fairly thin, giving it some bounce. But when you push the nib ever so slightly, the contact between the nib and feed is separated, and the flow stops due to the break of capillary action. I bought the nib unit primarily to have the finned plastic feeder, for reducing chances of burping while I am using it as an eyedropper. At first, I used a generic black cartridge, to test the #40 nib, but after some tinkering which included: - Widening the tine gap - Pressing the nib deeper into the housing... so much so that I think I cracked the housing. Didn't cause any leakage though...
But alas... All these never solved the issue for me, I then filled the barrel with pilot black. Still no hope... As a last resort, I tried to heat set the feed. You heard it right!!! Heat setting a plastic feed... I have some spare feeds from some kanwrite nib units, so I wasn't too worried, but this was the first time I was doing it. I heated a cup of water till it was boiling hot, and I suspended the feed onto the water using a clip. I kept it there for about a minute and a half, and gently bowed the feed upwards. I could feel the feed flexing, and held it there for around half a minute.... I could see the end of the feed bowing upwards ever so slightly... I did it a couple more times and inserted the nib and feed into the housing... And voila!!! It worked!!! The pen wrote with a moderate flow, a bit on the drier side but laying down an ample amount of ink. (That's why you'll notice a change in line boldness around the halfway mark on the first page of the writing sample). Since ambitious has always been ambiguous on their nib sizes, I had no expectation on what tipping to expect. The nib I got had a tipping between fine and medium, more closer to the fine side. Like an Indian medium. The nib was a bit scratchy, due to the misalignment of the tines. Though, that must have been my doing trying to get the flow right on the thing. But after a quick adjustment... again... it writes nicely.
For those going to purchase the pen, do yourself a favor and avoid the #40 nib unit. Just buy the #40 nib friction fit on an ebonite feed. You will be limited to using it as an eyedropper, but it'll be much more reliable. Plus the barrel wall is thick enough that I don't think the pen will burp all that much... If you're cautious, you can always ask Satish sir to make the barrel walls thicker, reducing the ink capacity, but offering better insulation.
If you do want to use cartridges and converters, go with a Jowo nib unit instead. Again, it'll be a much more reliable pen.
Final Verdict
I paid ₹2800/- for this pen as specced. And for the price, you are getting a whole lot of pen. But as I said before go with anything other than the #40 nib unit. My experience has been not so stellar. But after these tweaks, it is now one of my favorite pens and one of my go-to everyday carries. So spec yours wisely and you have a great pen in hand.
However, it's not all perfect code and flawless logic. Claude 3.7 Sonnet does show some limitations:
