TheSamba.com :: View topic - Need Proper 1971 VW Bus Side Marker Seals

Sun Feb 07, 2010 11:25 am

Please help! I've been looking for the proper side marker seals for my bus, so the lenses sit flush against the body. My original Hella Seals are much thinner than whats is offered today.

The new ones don't fit flush into the lens housings. I've tried tons of stores and they all sell the same thick seals. Make my lens markers stick out and look bad. Where can I find new or good quality thin seals? Thanks as always guys.

Original Seal against newer style

Sun Feb 07, 2010 7:08 pm

No comments? Nobody has run into this problem before?

Sun Feb 07, 2010 7:16 pm

i have not even tried to buy new seals- didnt even know they were out there. i know what you mean about the thickness, and i cant imagine why all aftermarket seals are too thick. it's like the designers are all sniffin glue or something.

anyway, i think i have some original seals kickin around in a box, i you want them. i keep a whole box just for rubber parts, and just about everything is in there.

Sun Feb 07, 2010 7:20 pm

Same here, I've just salvaged an OG seal if I need one or used closed cell weatherstrip, can't say I've ever had my hands on one of those.

Sun Feb 07, 2010 8:13 pm

Hiya Trin,

Trinidad5 wrote: ...... I've tried tons of stores and they all sell the same thick seals......

Let's have a list of those stores!

I have been looking for repops of these seals for years. Never a hit. I'm always told that if I wanted a replacement seal I'd have to buy the rear bulbholder or the front blank.

I am most anxious for that list of stores - please post up with the info.

Oh and by the way................a nifty approach to the no-seal situation in the past has been to slit a 3mm rubber hose and then fit it around the outside edge of the bulbholder/blank. It works just fine but I'd still like to have a set of those seals in my hand.

Sun Feb 07, 2010 8:51 pm

Bookwus wrote: Hiya Trin,

Trinidad5 wrote: ...... I've tried tons of stores and they all sell the same thick seals......

It works just fine but I'd still like to have a set of those seals in my hand.

he will probably send them to you just to get them out of his sight :lol: and then i will send him a set of germen ones. everyone will go home happy.

Sun Feb 07, 2010 8:57 pm

we went through the same on our 1977 resto. Some of the seals are more like wax the way they crack and fall apart. I found some that were more flexible and took a razor blade to the part that sticks up too tall. OG Hella seals and backing plates come up from time to time but they are rare. Get a hold of Hoody. He found some silver Hella NOS ones a while back.

Sun Feb 07, 2010 10:15 pm

You guys are awesome. Thanks for all the feedback.
Option 1: dansvan if you can find any I'll buy them off you for a fair price. I need 3 of them. Shoot me a PM
Option 2: I'll try the weatherstrip or 3mm hose.

Option 3: I can't believe nobody manufactures these right. Usually Wolfsburg west makes stuff if it's not available. Maybe I'll see about making these myself with a manufacturer!

I tried the razor blade but mine were so new and rigid they weren't cutting right.

Mon Feb 08, 2010 6:10 am

Is it conceivable that the original seals were the same size as the new ones when first installed? We know that the rubber seals seem to shrink in some instances over time. Maybe we have become accustomed to seeing buses with used, shrunken seals so much that makes the new ones look odd. Just a thought.

Mon Feb 08, 2010 6:38 am

barefootwestie wrote: Is it conceivable that the original seals were the same size as the new ones when first installed? We know that the rubber seals seem to shrink in some instances over time. Maybe we have become accustomed to seeing buses with used, shrunken seals so much that makes the new ones look odd. Just a thought.

here's what NOS seals look like:

Mon Feb 08, 2010 7:19 am

Trinidad5 wrote: Option 1: dansvan if you can find any I'll buy them off you for a fair price. I need 3 of them. Shoot me a PM

if you dont take them, they will never be put to use. so i am not going to charge anything for them. just pay for the shipping, and they are yours if i have them. just give me a day to check for them.

Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:58 am

Yeah those NOS seals look right, before they compress down, it has a small ridge on the back.

The new style is super thick, and has two ridges, plus it doesn't fit flush inside the housing, which the old does.

Dansvan, sent you a PM. Just let me know if you find any. Thanks everyone.