Japanese nibs are slightly thinner than European and American nibs so the broad is more broad than a medium but less broad than a normal broad. It is incredibly smooth. I highly suggest that you try the nibs out in person, because everybody writes differently. Personally, I have a very awkward way of writing so my experience is often quite different than many other people. It was about a year ago and I tried out quite a few of the different Sailor nibs and I remember finding the broad the smoothest. I have heard from others that most of the Sailor nibs are very smooth.