Source for headliner material

[choup]

I have sourced the correct printed dot headliner and have it available for sale in bulk. Also have matching perf material. See my ad. Search "printed dot vinyl headliner.
Thx

[squareweave]

[squareweave]

Well after a long hunt this arrived today. Enough for late split deluxe.

[dualport]

and... How or where did you order the dotted vinyl?
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[squareweave]

[nlorntson]

An older post, but where can I find the printed dot headliner these days?

Do any of the usual suppliers make the correct headliner and pieces around the windows for a 67 21 window?

Any recommendations on the white sunroof cover as well?

[BarryL]

[DesignBuild]

Everettb referred me to this series of posts, but I don't have a bus.

I have a 1972 Super Beetle made in Wolfsburg for the Europeans market. The headliner has 6 bows and 8 panels. The 4 center panels are truly perforated, while the remaining panels look perforated but ar actually printed with dark gray ink. Since I have a Beetle, it came with all the pieces separate. The headliner is all sewn together as are the parts below the headliner. So the pieces around the rear defroster window are sewn together including the sail panels and the upholstery under and above the quarter windows. All of this is printed to resemble the perforated material. If the car came with a cloth headliner there would have never been any need for perforated material because a cloth headliner breathes through the cloth. All of the headliners that are fuzzy are made from brushed cotton.
Consider the cost of real mohair containing fabric in an inexpensive Beetle. Even Packard automobiles from the 1930s used cotton napped headliners in closed cars. Cotton is/was used because it can be shrunk to remove wrinkles and get the headlining tight.
Sorry but wool or animal hair fabrics don't shrink like cotton. Insects also eat fabrics made with animal hair. Animals hair was used in carpeting and door panels, but in the early 1950s dye products could be used that would kill the moth larvae that eat animal fibers.
Not sure about buses, but the Beetles made for the European market had complete cloth upholstery offered even into the 1970s. Mine is a base model Super Beetle and it came with cloth upholstered seat cushions in front and back, all seats were low back. I have looked at European brochures and Beetles were available with a complete fabric interior using the same napped material as that used in the headliner and in some cases the colors were slightly different. My seats are a medium dark blue corduroy and the optional colors for the interior were a light blue, a very dark blue and aqua.
When I restore my interior I am using plain weave fabrics that match the headliner fabric. Door panels will be fabric too though how I will get the panels to look like the vinyl material, I don't know yet. In the early 1950s cotton batting was used to shape the surface of door panels with stainless steel strips with staple backs shaping the areas in the panels. I will have to look at some pictures of European interiors to get some ideas. Some panel areas could be sewn to the door or side panels with contrasting stitching or welt between panel areas.
Now that the VW museum is no longer supplying the birth certificates for production cars, what your vehicle interior was like new will be unknown. So you can do whatever you like, but printed material at $75 per yard is far too steep. You can come up with a screen printing method to print the little dots on vinyl material after its cut and sewn together. Use a cloth headliner that matches the color of the solid vinyl on the side panels and be done with it. At some point in the future perforated material will be unavailable just like the material for popular American cars is now.

[DesignBuild]

I forgot to mention that the headliner in my Beetle is light blue with and without perforations. The remainder is the ivory printed perforated fake leather-look except for the B-pillar. That is covered with a plain ivory strip of vinyl (Naugahyde) sewn at the top and just under the quarter window to the fake perforated material. Vinyl material today has a stretch backing whereas Naugahyde has a woven heavy weight material on the back. Naugahyde behaves much like real leather and is 'tough-as-nails". I believe it still available today.
So if you think you have problems finding the correct material imagine trying to find light blue printed and perforated naughahyde.

[BarryL]

Like the elusive Mountweasel.

[nate9871]

Hey all,

Apparently this printed headliner is pretty common and available in south America.

Using google translate I searched the Brazilian "Ebay" and found this:

https://produto.mercadolivre.com.br/MLB-1158474108...511094c821



I may try and get in contact with the company and see of they would just send a roll of the vinyl material. I don't speak Spanish but worth a shot...

Nate

[Tizian]

[Tizian]

I just had a quick look around on the vendors page once more turning on the translate button. That does help. But hey, this is not Spanish!

It looks like they do have both materials in stock. Dotted and perforated. The headliner pieces are pre cut to specific models though. Would be interesting if they sell this material as yardage... Keep us updated Nate!

https://www.bunnitu.com.br/loja/catalogo.php?loja=...o&pg=2

[Tizian]

And yes, it seems as if the manufacturer is still the same one mentioned years ago in this old thread. Vulcan.com.br.
The page is inactive though.

Does anyone know if any yardage had been shipped to the US in those days?
They still seem producing this stuff.

[nate9871]

I never got a response back via email unfortunately. Anybody here speak Portugese?

[ChiapC]

Hey all,
After trying to locate this material myself, I ended up just using the plain off-white for around my windows. I already spent the money for the headliner kit and didn't want to shell out another few hundred just to have "correct" headliner when there are other parts of the bus that aren't perfectly correct either.

I was able to successfully find this material. Figured this thread has been ongoing for 15 or so years, so an update would be helpful!

I contacted SMS Fabrics in Oregon who had it. They actually shipped me a sample. Looks pretty good. They wanted $95/yard. See photos for contact info.

In case photos don't work years from now:
SMS Auto Fabrics
350 South Redwood St
Canby, OR 97013
503-263-3535
[email protected]

[BarryL]

All I can say is wow great intel. I wonder how much they have?

[matthew henricks]

FWIW SMS is great for material they have in stock. If they do not have it and say they can make it then put your seat belt on and enjoy the very long ride...

Also. A few years ago i compared their black dot material to the perforated you can get from other headliner suppliers. My goal was to make an original style bug headliner. Like suggested earlier in this thread try to buy your materials from the same source so the white matches. This material was very different in color from what the typical VW kit has.

Anyways....
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