TheSamba.com :: View topic

Sat Sep 26, 2009 6:54 pm

Can someone tell me if BD era cargo doors had these factory spot welds visible on the bottom of the doors?

It's hard to photograph, but I think this picture will show what I'm talking about on my rear most door. They are evenly spaced, very noticeable, they almost look like small door dings but because of the spacing and depth, they look too consistent to be dings.

I don't want to overrestore the bus, and would like to leave as many factory "imperfections" as possible.

Thanks.

Sat Sep 26, 2009 8:51 pm

im going to go out on a limb here and say that i believe those are not factory,if they are original they are badly fatigued,judging by the rocker panel curve/dumpy definition i would say some works been done

Sat Sep 26, 2009 9:21 pm

hugheseum wrote: im going to go out on a limb here and say that i believe those are not factory,if they are original they are badly fatigued,judging by the rocker panel curve/dumpy definition i would say some works been done

Thanks Adam, do you have any post barndoor cargos that have visible spot welds in this spot?

Sat Sep 26, 2009 9:32 pm

nope,in fact those spotwelds even look too high for original,from the pic it looks like theres some serious madness going on in the b pillar or the cargo dr,the cargo dr rocker looks old school ww replacement......want that shit fixed correctly?

Sat Sep 26, 2009 10:41 pm

Yes, barndoor cargo doors have spotwelds up that high. The lower framework of the barndoor cargo doors is spotwelded at the top and bottom unlike the later cargo doors. My opinion about dimples is that they are caused from rust inbetween the two layers of metal which forces them apart pulling the spotwelds. I don't think they were all that noticable when the bus was new.

I wouldn't automaticly assume that rocker has been replaced just because the edge is soft. I have seen several original rockers with soft edges like that, but they are more uncommon.

I agree with Adam that the rear cargo door seems to fit funny against the rear quarter panel. I'm not sure how much experience he has with barndoors, but I have noticed that alot of these early busses don't always have the greatest fit and finish when it comes to door gaps and panel seams.

Sun Sep 27, 2009 8:24 am

Ive have just had a look at the cargo doors on my 54 kombi and the top and bottom of the doors have spot weld marks the bottom has 2 rows to match where the strenghther goes on the inside.
Also i have noticed very visible spot weld marks on the roof where it meets the gutters.
I will post up some pictures tomorrow
cheers ben

Sun Sep 27, 2009 7:16 pm

Thanks everyone for the feedback.

I did some digging today, and removed my door panels off of my cargos.

My cargos appear to be very solid, surprisingly nice actually. Super dry, and the spot welds, as crude as they look, appear to be factory. I'm betting that they are factory, it would be easy to fill during body prep and paint, but I really like busses that aren't overrestored. They have a lot of character that way. I'll probably leave them as is.

Mon Sep 28, 2009 4:26 am

Lets see the whole bus, Dustin :)

Mon Sep 28, 2009 5:54 am

Pix coming soon.

Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:15 am

im going to guess its an ambulance......

Tue Sep 29, 2009 10:01 am

Tue Sep 29, 2009 4:36 pm

campingbox wrote:

i would say that is a good guess

Tue Sep 29, 2009 5:26 pm

Brian_Mccue wrote: campingbox wrote:

i would say that is a good guess

Hey Guys, yah, that's my new bus. It needs some small details attended to, but all in all, it's a fully functional bus, runs and drives great. I love it.

Tue Sep 29, 2009 5:33 pm

did it come with the hookers?

Wed Sep 30, 2009 7:59 am

The nurses weren't included in the sale. But the outfits were.

Wed Sep 30, 2009 11:20 am

I want to see more pics of the baja bus parked next to the barndoor.....

Fri Oct 02, 2009 9:14 am

campingbox wrote: My opinion about dimples is that they are caused from rust inbetween the two layers of metal which forces them apart pulling the spotwelds. I don't think they were all that noticable when the bus was new.

I agree. Even if the panels and strengtheners are solid there often is a surprising bit of surface rusting between the layers of sheetmetal, where the primer wouldn't sufficiently creep in and the final paint wouldn't be applied to. You can see these kind of post factory rust dimples on a lot of places on bugs and buses, f.e. engine bay side metal, floorboards to frame beams aso. the bodywork often was supreme. In the old building pics cou can see electro shrunk panels, heat applied by torch, also lead and filler spotted panels as well as colorsanding by hand.
But then maybe yours ist just a Monday car after Franz the bodywork man had a bad weekend with his wife and 7 kids ... :wink:

Fri Oct 02, 2009 11:37 am

Spot welded panels can also look like that after sand blasting. The panels can be warped from the inside when too much pressure is used. Sand can also get wedged in the seams for that permanent puffy look.

Fri Oct 16, 2009 9:14 am

Anchovy wrote: Spot welded panels can also look like that after sand blasting. The panels can be warped from the inside when too much pressure is used. Sand can also get wedged in the seams for that permanent puffy look.

Actually, if kenetic warping occurs from over-aggressive media blasting (its NOT heat BTW) the panel will warp toward the media stream, not away from it. This is because the energy imparted on the near side surface (the side being hit by the particles) causes the material on that side to expand, while the material under it does not. It is more or less a "surface" effect. Seems odd, but that is the way it works. I see it all the time in my blasting cabinets doing brass parts for semaphores, and some thin steel as well.

Fri Oct 16, 2009 10:57 am

johnshenry wrote: Anchovy wrote: Spot welded panels can also look like that after sand blasting. The panels can be warped from the inside when too much pressure is used. Sand can also get wedged in the seams for that permanent puffy look.

Actually, if kenetic warping occurs from over-aggressive media blasting (its NOT heat BTW) the panel will warp toward the media stream, not away from it. This is because the energy imparted on the near side surface (the side being hit by the particles) causes the material on that side to expand, while the material under it does not. It is more or less a "surface" effect. Seems od, but that is the way it works. I see it all the time in my blasting cabinets doing brass parts for semaphores, and some thin steel as well.

Thanks for the info!