TheSamba.com :: View topic - I bought out my local VW dealships old tool supply today!

Wed Oct 09, 2013 8:17 am

Where do I start? A few weeks ago I was at our local VW dealership buying some parts for a late model jetta that belongs to one of my customers. I was wearing a VW tee shirt and by chance the service manager walks by and noticed it. He asked me if I was into old VW's, and I said "yes". He proceeded to ask if I would be interested in some of their old tools and I said "definately". I was a VW tech at this dealership from '99-'02, but I don't recognize many faces anymore except for a few. At the time I worked there I wasn't into VW's, that didn't happen until a few years after I left there. I had always heard stories about all of the old tools in the attic, but never seen them. So, a few days later I met up with the service manager again, and we went up there and tried to see what was there. With the amount of dirt on everthing and the bad lighting we couldn't tell anything. I asked him "how much for everything", and he said he'd let me know. Weeks passed and nothing, finally out of the blue one of the parts guys that I know called and gave me a price. This morning I went and hauled it all home. I'm a little overwhelmed at the moment from the volume. There are quite a few old Mazda tools thrown in there as well, those will probably be going to the recycling center. I'm not sure what I've got, any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

Here's a few pics:

Wed Oct 09, 2013 11:48 am

Go here and start looking
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/tools1.php

It will help get most of them identified.

Thu Oct 10, 2013 1:26 am

wow what a score. I wish it was me.

I wouldn't chuck the mazda tools, someone will want them. if a mazda guy chucked all the vw tools you'd be seriously un-impressed.

Thu Oct 10, 2013 3:49 am

WM971252 wrote: Go here and start looking
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/info/tools1.php

It will help get most of them identified.

Thanks, I had just stumbled onto that a few days ago. I've looked a few of them up there. Most were there, a few were not.

Thu Oct 10, 2013 4:02 am

henry roberts wrote: wow what a score. I wish it was me.

I wouldn't chuck the mazda tools, someone will want them. if a mazda guy chucked all the vw tools you'd be seriously un-impressed.

So far I've found a few things of value. Alot of it is of little to no value. A few things I can use in my shop. I'll probably sell what I can, I just hope to get my money back. If not, oh well. How many chances do you get like this. If I hadn't bought it, I would've always wondered what was in there.

I'm not going be too quick to scrap the Mazda tools. I also found a few Honda(Kent-Moore) tools, a few Volvo tools, and a really strange Fiat tool. It's about 4' long like an extension with a 19mm wobble socket on one end, and a T-handle on the other. I'll sort out all of the VW tools, then I'm going to do a little research on these other tools before tossing them for sure. I just can't imagine there's much demand for them out there though.

Tue Oct 15, 2013 7:11 pm

This is a better shot of the valve spring compressor. It's a Matra 311h.

This is a crankshaft holding fixture I found in the pile. I haven't had much time lately to sort through this mess. It is cast as a Matra 310, but has a 310A decal on it. From my understanding the 310 is for 36hp cranks, and the 310a is for later crankshafts. This one has the same thread size as a 1600 gland nut. Anybody know what's going on with it? It appears to be in pretty good condition and complete, minus the handle.

Wed Oct 23, 2013 10:21 am

if you are going to sell some of the tools let us know I have a lot of those tools but are looking for some that you have in the box

Thu Oct 24, 2013 3:04 pm

citroen wrote: if you are going to sell some of the tools let us know I have a lot of those tools but are looking for some that you have in the box

I'm planning on keeping some and selling some. Once I have a chance to sort everything, I plan on putting some ads up. I've just been too busy lately to work on it. If there's something specific you're needing just shoot me a PM.

Fri Oct 25, 2013 1:35 pm

Hey Shaun, nice score!

If you happen to come across this little piece, (I am guessing about 3 inches X 1 inch) I am interested. It fits in my engine stand to lock the flywheel.

Mon Oct 28, 2013 5:14 am

joescoolcustoms wrote: Hey Shaun, nice score!

If you happen to come across this little piece, (I am guessing about 3 inches X 1 inch) I am interested. It fits in my engine stand to lock the flywheel.

Hey Joe, sorry I don't have that one. Thats one of the tools I was really wanting as well. I would say alot of those small, commonly used tools ended up leaving the dealership in the mechanics tool boxes years ago.

Mon Oct 28, 2013 5:46 pm

Thanks for checking Shaun!

It can still be bought new through Porsche for around $ 25 plus shipping. So, if you are interested, we could split shipping.

Tue Nov 05, 2013 5:23 am

Shaun Murray wrote: From my understanding the 310 is for 36hp cranks, and the 310a is for later crankshafts. This one has the same thread size as a 1600 gland nut. Anybody know what's going on with it?

Gland nuts all have the same thread pitch / size.

Tue Nov 05, 2013 5:49 am

hazetguy wrote: Shaun Murray wrote: From my understanding the 310 is for 36hp cranks, and the 310a is for later crankshafts. This one has the same thread size as a 1600 gland nut. Anybody know what's going on with it?

Gland nuts all have the same thread pitch / size.

Can this holding fixture be used for any crankshaft then? I thought I read somewhere that the 310 was for 36hp crankshafts, that's what made me think a 36hp had a different gland nut size or pitch. I'm not very familier with the 36hp engines. I've only had one ,and it always ran great so I never had a need to pull it.

So why do you think this one cast 310, but has a 310a decal on it, which appears to have been on it for many years. Thanks for the help, I definately need it. :?

Tue Nov 05, 2013 12:50 pm

310 is for 25 and 30(36)hp engines they have 7 mm dovelpins,later engines have 8 mm pins,310 A have 8 mm holes,so it can be used bouth earlier and later engines,main casting is same on 310 and 310 A.

Wed Nov 06, 2013 7:29 am

8287111 wrote: 310 is for 25 and 30(36)hp engines they have 7 mm dovelpins,later engines have 8 mm pins,310 A have 8 mm holes,so it can be used bouth earlier and later engines,main casting is same on 310 and 310 A.

So that's the difference, thanks, that answers my question on that one. Now I'll have to check mine.

I've been sorting through this pile of tools trying to figure out what I want to keep for my personal use, and what to sell to recoup some of investment. I have alot of time in it already. In the end I hope to have a few tools that I've been looking for, and find homes for the things I don't need while hoping not to loose too much of what I have into it. The more I sort through this stuff the more confused I get it seems. Yesterday I put a few things up for sale, then later found that I wasn't completely clear on the function, and/or the application. I want apologize again to a couple of you guys out there for that.

I'm trying to sort through all of this, and group the tools together, that belong together. That brings me to my next question. I have a tool #287a, which in the description says it needs to be used with the tracer pin of tool #299. I'm not sure if that is what I have. I have this pin type tool that is #299, but there are other pieces to that kit as well. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Here's a few pics:

Wed Nov 06, 2013 3:16 pm

Did you find a small tool that looks like this?:

Wed Nov 06, 2013 6:52 pm

lemke wrote: Did you find a small tool that looks like this?:

No, I don't think I have that one.

Thu Nov 07, 2013 7:35 am

Shaun Murray wrote:

I'm trying to sort through all of this, and group the tools together, that belong together. That brings me to my next question. I have a tool #287a, which in the description says it needs to be used with the tracer pin of tool #299. I'm not sure if that is what I have. I have this pin type tool that is #299, but there are other pieces to that kit as well. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Shaun,

I bought a large cache of tools from a retired VW mechanic, some of which were in the original box while others were strewn together. I had to play detective by hitting some of them with a wire wheel to expose the tool number and also the manufacturer (ie. Matra, Hazet, Peiseler). Once you have that information, the rest will be fairly easy for you as 99% of what you need is located in the Samba Technical Archives.

Click on the supplied link or look at the top right portion of the forum for the Technical menu dropdown and select Owner's Manuals.

Scroll down to the section of the screen labeled VW Tools.

Click on the menu option VW Tool Listings

The default start page is the 100 Series tools. You'll note links across the top of the page for 200 Series, 300 Series, etc. Where possible, there is a scanned thumbnail image from a tool manual of each tool and possibly a picture of a specimen.

In reference to your above question, VW Tool 287a can be found on Page 3.

Click on each thumbnail to get the full picture:

Here is a link to my Gallery of the various tools I identified for the Samba archives:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/album_search.php?...t_dir=DESC

The additional links below the VW Tool Listing links may also be of use for you in case you have any Zelenda tools or even Local Manufacture tools in the mix. Sometimes you'll have to study an illustration many times in order to identify various parts and attachments for fixtures that all comprise one tool. Some are identified with a suffix (ie. Tool #/1, Tool #/2, etc) , while others have no identifying marks.

The key is patience. Sometimes, you may root past the same few pieces several times before something clicks in your mind and you realize you spotted the piece or pieces in a diagram.

One final suggestion is that Google is helpful for identifying the tools you have for the other make of vehicles. The batch I had included a special tool for working on Fiat automatic transmissions that was apparently hard to find and in demand by Fiat enthusiasts. Those are great to unload on either e-Bay or Craigslist.

If you find anything in my Gallery that matches what you have and you need some assistance with pricing, drop me a PM. I kept a record of all of the tools I sold and what their prices were.

Good luck!

Thu Nov 07, 2013 9:36 pm

Gary, I just went through your entire gallery, and all I can say is........WOW! I've been hanging out in the archive section, trying to figure these tools out. Now I'll be lurking around your gallery, I hope you don't mind. :D I have a ton of the same tools as you. You did an amazing job photographing, and describing all of those tools. I really appreciate the help, and I'm sure I'll have some questions for you. I'll bet you had ALOT of time in sorting all of those tools and documenting everything. I know nobody would believe how much time I've already put into my stash. It's a good thing I enjoy it, it's kind of like solving a mystery everytime I figure one out. :idea: Maybe I should've been a crime scene investigator. Who am I kidding, I wouldn't have time for that, I have a giant pile of rusty, dirty old tools to sort through. :lol: It appears that your tool score had been a little better cared for than mine.

It's strange that you mention the Fiat tool, because I found a single Fiat tool in mine as well. It's about 3'-4' long(like an extension), and has a 19mm wobble socket on one end with a T-handle on the other. It has a Fiat # on it, but I haven't looked into it yet.

Thanks again for everything!

Fri Nov 08, 2013 8:25 am

Shaun,

Thanks, but I didn't do anything special. All I did was examine each tool for the tool number and then scour the tool listings pages. From there, I utilized the scanned images to properly identify tools and their associated parts. I used the verbiage from the image in the description for each item I loaded in my Gallery.

And yes, it is necessary to play detective when sorting through all of the parts. It gets frustrating when there are a lot of little pieces floating around with no identifying numbers or marks, but once you can ID the main part then the rest will come into play. IIRC, I went through most every single image in order to identify VW Tool 665 because that was a local manufacture. VW Tool 288c was another that I had to spend time studying once I was able to ID the main part.

Again, a good bench grinder with a wire wheel helps. The tool numbers may be: 1) cast into the body; 2) a sticker that you hope hasn't been worn or damaged; 3) stamped; or 4) etched with some kind of special dye/ink. In the case of the etched tool numbers, the wire wheel didn't obscure or wear them away much, but I did have to use a magnifying glass.

Again, good luck!