How were Wahl nibs and feeds secured in their section before the Gold Seal, Personal Point screw-in nibs? And how does one tell the difference?

Prior to the Personal Point Section, nibs and feeds were held in place by friction fit, like most other pens before and since. The diameter of the section opening was close enough in tolerance to the size of the nib and feed to make it a very tight fit. To tell the difference between a standard and a personal point look at the cleaned section from the nib end and look for a fine line between the outer section barrel and what would be the inner personal point collar that would hold the nib and feed. If you see a small space or line there, chances are the line indicates the mating area of the section and the inner collar. So go ahead and try to unscrew the nib and feed and see if your observations are correct. Carefully! do not use so much force to test this possibility that you could crack the feed if you are wrong. If it does not yield, look again to see if your observation was correct. If you do not see a line, or maybe better said you see the section as one piece with no indication of it being 2-part, it is not a personal point section and it is a normal knock out situation. Of course even the collared personal point assembly is itself a knock out...but always do that with the collar screwed into the section as the outer section provides protection from the possibility of damaginfg the collar during knock-out.

While the personal Point Pens were all originally Gold Seal models, it is possible that you will find a non-Gold Seal, non Personal Point pen sporting a gold seal nib, or a Personal Point section so nibs alone and Gold Seal or not does not tell the tale.
Syd

Thanks for the great information, Syd! Excellent to know for this and other pens that might come my way. (My current pen is NOT a personal point-- section is clearly one piece.)