We have been waiting for this for ages, and it’s finally arrived!

This is our next exclusive pen from Franklin-Christoph, in the same translucent bronze grey finish: the Model 45.

It is joining our Model 20 and Pocket 20 in our shop, and we’re thrilled. This is one of my favourite models, and I already have a few 45s in my own personal collection. A few Christmases ago, F-C had a special run of a neon lime green 45, and we got one for everyone on our team.

F-C sent over a prototype of this new one for us some months ago, and it’s been a wonderful, if oppressive, thrill to hold this secret in my pen roll.

My eyedroppered 45 is on the far left, and the Pocket and Model 20s are on the far right.

These are available from EF to Broad and 1.1.

These little beauties are small, perfect as a pocket pen – in terms of size they are bigger than a Kaweco Sport and just slightly smaller than a TWSBI mini.

These Model 45s fit a No.5 nib instead of a No.6 nib like their larger Model 20 and Pocket 20 cousins. Because of their small size, they take either a standard international short cartridge, or you can eyedropper them.

I’m told it takes a certain kind of person to eyedropper a pen – brave? foolhardy? long-winded? – and I am definitely that kind of person.

If you’re going to eyedropper yours, you should put some silicone grease in two places:

the threads where the grip meets the barrel. the threads on the back of the black housing that holds the nib and feed. This housing screws and unscrews out of the grip.

You don’t need very much – too much may result in accidentally getting some on the feed, which would definitely impeded flow. You should apply about as much as a layer of lip chap. If you get too much on, or if it gets onto the feed, you can scrub with a dry cloth to physically remove it (like wiping Vaseline off something), and then maybe again with some dish soap and a toothbrush.

If you have a TWSBI pen, they usually include a little jar of silicone grease at the back, and we sell some too. You really need very little though, and if you purchase from us in the shop, we can definitely pre-grease it for you even if you’d like to use it with cartridges first. If you’re buying online, you can also leave a comment in the notes.

I’ve inked mine up with Sailor Chu-Shu, a grey with great shading and a hint of purple. With eyedroppering, there’s always a risk of staining, especially with pens that have the grainy texture on the inside of the barrel, but I find Sailor inks do well for cleaning out for me.

Our first batch of these dreamy little pens are sitting on our shelves, and it’s a bizarre sort of dream to have our own set of exclusive Franklin-Christophs. I still remember back in the day when we first opened and we would order pens in quantities of five and ten, and here we are with pens made just for us.