TheSamba.com :: View topic - Westfalia-Werke Aluminum Serial Placards

Tue Jul 08, 2025 4:33 pm

Hey Y’all!

Don’t post here often but figured this was a justified topic.

After searching for more than two years (and coming up dry) for a Westfalia-Werke serial placard reproduction, I finally sought to have one manufactured. I reverse engineered every character of this placard and worked with a supplier to produce these screen printed plates on .010” thick aerospace grade aluminum.

The original placards had the fields populated via dot-peen part marking. I have not yet located a dot-peen source but had the supplier provide two blank plates to experiment with and one that simply has the unique ID numbers screen-printed as well.

Throwing this out there to see if there are any other interested Vanagon owners. I can put another order together if so. Would the consensus be that printed numbers are good enough, or would you rather have actual dot-peen identification? Simply throw a post with your opinion and expressed interest below. Let me know what you think would be a fair cost as well. Keep in mind these are produced by an aerospace supplier, on aerospace grade materials, after I spent the time reverseve engineering them to factory spec… and that they are not available anywhere else, I have been able to find.

Cheers!!

Tue Jul 08, 2025 8:33 pm

Nice work! 8)

IIRC, someone repro’d these a while ago, but did it by printing dots to mimic the original “peened” font. Don’t recall if it was on actual aluminum sheet, though.

Ahwhanee, maybe?

<shrug>

- Dave

PS: Found it: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=691489

Another: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8093317&highlight=#8093317

Tue Jul 08, 2025 8:52 pm

Print the dots onto the aluminum and make it real using a punch.

Tue Jul 08, 2025 10:40 pm

My version. Low tech, printed on photo paper and has to be replaced every few years. The dots are printed in body color to stimulate the punches.

Wed Jul 09, 2025 6:24 am

Wow, nice reproduction. I'd be interested if you are putting together an order, just let me know if you get enough interest.

Wed Jul 09, 2025 6:53 am

When did those start being used? Our original paint 82 doesn’t have one.

Fri Jul 25, 2025 10:27 am

MarkWard wrote: When did those start being used? Our original paint 82 doesn’t have one.

Someone else likely knows the facts but I’m fairly certain it was prior to 82. I think pre-Vanagon bay-window Westys even had them. They were in slightly different formats earlier but I’ve seen them, none the less.

Could be yours was removed, if it was a Westy from the factory.