An apparatus for plugging honeycomb bodies includes a controller configured to signal a plugging actuator to move a plugging piston from the predetermined start position to an extended position while a shutter plate is in an open orientation, wherein at least about 50% of the predetermined volume of plugging material is discharged from a dispensing area during a single plugging cycle. The controller is still further configured to signal a control actuator of a plugging material control module to adjust a position of a control piston within a control chamber to maintain a pressure of the plugging material within the dispensing area from between greater than 0 psi to about 200 psi when the shutter plate is moved between a closed orientation and the open orientation at the beginning of the plugging cycle. Further examples include methods of plugging a honeycomb body with a plugging material control module.