Clip ball dings/divots. - A question for the expert repairpersons

I have had a couple of vintage pens with a divot/ding somewhere on the cap at the same level as the clips ball tip.
I have done a lot of ding and scratch repairs but this is one I never really put a lot of thought to on how they happened. Then I was thinking about how rigid some of the clips are and I, myself have heard the click of the ball hitting the cap when pulling a pen from my shirt pocket. I am assuming this repeated removal from the pocket over a number of years is most likely what causes this particular ding on vintage caps?

Hi

I would have thought is more of a sign that the pen was dropped onto a hard surface and the ball part of the clip hit first, they do seem to get dented far easier than it is to get the dent out.

Paul

I could see that being a reason, too. But I would think the clip/clip ball would have some evidence of being dropped. this clip/clip ball is unblemished.

I know, sometimes it looks like someone has taken a potshot at the cap but the clip is alwsys undamaged, if it was not for the fact that the dent is always under the ball of the clip I would have said the cap was dented and the clip moved to hide it, had it not been the case that the dent was always exactly were the ball would hit.

I suppose it might be that the the clip was damaged in the fall and replaced, butvthey dent was left as it was hidden by the new clip, that might explain some of them.

Paul

Slightly off-topic factoid: Don't sweat a damaged or missing clip ball. Have a jeweler solder a ball from an earring onto the end of the clip (credit to the late Bert Heiserman).