Autopoint's Tab Fillers

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At the Michigan Pen Show, I was strolling by Pat Spidel’s table when I noticed a box for a pen and pencils set.

Pat was the source for several sets I purchased at the Ohio Pen Show a year ago, so I had to take a peek inside:

I pulled the cash out of my pocket quick as a jackrabbit.  This is an Autopoint tab filler fountain pen and pencil set:

I’ve written about the pencils before – most recently when I found a ringtop at the Chicago Show (see http://leadheadpencils.blogspot.com/2016/09/who-knew.html):

Now with a pen in hand,  I can show you how the tab filler gets its name:

Under the blind cap is a tab which depresses the lever by pushing it to one side, rather than pushing in like a button filler.  This pen has a nice Autopoint nib, too:

As I prepared to take the set back to my table, Pat mentioned that he had another one, too - a parts pen.  I couldn’t resist that one, damage notwithstanding, because I knew how nice it would look alongside the others:

This one sports a Welty’s nib, not an uncommon thing to see on an Autopoint pen.

William Welty was a pen seller in Chicago who likely purchased Autopoint’s remaining stock and fit them with nibs of his own.