Split door panels

[Jacks]

[type1vwjapan]

Oh Lordy what a cliche that ol' photo is. Really funny and original there buddy!

[type1vwjapan]

Just an update if I may. I got the panels in the mail last week and have been busy cleaning them up the best I can. Wasn't trying to make them spotless, just knock some of the grime off them. They were in much better shape that what I expected too. Didn't have much rot, mold, or staining like I thought I saw in the pictures. Just a few water stains here and there and a few blemishes and tears here and there.

I held them up to my doors and they fit and line up much better than what I was expecting or heard previously in this thread.

There is a small gap at the bottom but that is about it really. I plan on covering that gap with some original split bug fabric I got later. Making a trim piece if you will. The split panels are just just a tad bit wider than my door panel press but is barely noticable.

In the meantime I'm waiting on some original seat covers to come in the mail along with some original split window fabric I sourced to patch them up with. I was told the seat covers were out of a '51 or '52 split but actually looks like they came out of a '53 to me. Not sure. I will post pics later.

The seat covers are pretty rough and have quite a bit of tears and but I don't think it's anyting my wife can't handle.

Planning on patching up my door panels in a few spots too, especially where I've got a big rip going down the entire length of the panel. The seat covers, door panels, and fabric are not the same pattern but should all look nicely once I get them cleaned up and on my car. Just going for an OG interior look and using salvaged pieces to patch up my other salvaged parts I got. The sellers were even telling me that what I bought could be used as donor material.

Plan on still keeping my original upholstery since it's still in remarkably good condition and is comfy and just sliding my grungy old covers over top of them and securing them underneath with something that can be taken on and off easily. I'm not looking for a perfect fit or anything. Again, I'll deal with getting them fitted once I get them all cleaned up and assess it all.

And I guess I'd better admit my biggest sin so far here. I had to make a little hole in the door panels to accept my later door handle. I'm sorry! I'll just patch up the original hole with some of the original fabric I've got coming in the mail if I feel that's necessary.

Last, as for mounting the panels. I found a great solution that didn't require any drilling, measuring or making one blemish or scratch on my panels. It's something called Magic Tape. It's like velcro tape in a way. The adhesive side is very gentle and doesn't rip or peel if removed with patience and carefully. Just tacked the tape going around my door and it should hold the panels in place nicely and come off easily if / when I need to take the panels off to work on the inside of my doors.

This will all be a little bit of a project that will definitely take some time considering how busy I am at work and with my kids.

Just wanted to update what I had in the works. I'm really not trying to upset anyone here, which I know is inevitable with this post...

[sled]

how about post some pictures
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drive your split.

[mandraks]

it might be easier to simply trim your existing panels in the material from the split ones?

You know that your existing panels fit your car perfectly... That way you can also trim it where it is too big, and possible add to where you are missing some material, as you were saying (at the bottom)
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regards

Uli

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'53 3-Fold Oval, L35 Metallic Blue, looking for a narrow hatch panel

[type1vwjapan]

Thanks, Mandraks! Appreciate the advice! I too thought about that. It'd just be a shame to have to cut or trim these nice original panels up like that. It was already nerve racking enough making the holes for my later door handles. Also, I'm a little reluctant to try and remove the fabric from the panels. It's never been off before and delicate. Afraid I'd mangle them up and distort them in trying to move them to my later door cards.

As for pics. I'm terrible about getting around to taking and uploading pics. I'll try and take a few snap shots of my progress and post them once I get everything and get it cleaned up and somewhat presentable. Haven't even got my seat covers or fabric in the mail yet. Seat covers should be coming tomorrow it seems.

More later and thanks for giving me a chance here. Not promising anything spectacular here with all this. I'm not a pro by any means and a little time constrained at the moment. Just doing the best I can do for a driver.

[type1vwjapan]

Sorry still no pics but I've made a little progress.

I was able to line the door panels up pretty nicely and try mounting them in my car for just a test fitting. Didn't look bad at all besides the vapor sheet being exposed at the bottom. I decided to wait and put everything on at a much later time once I get my seat covers and fabric all cleaned up. I plan to just take my time with all and enjoy the process.

I actually have my correct door panels back on. Probably going to keep it stock for quite a while. Besides, don't think my wife will be happy about me sporting original interior when I'm lugging our little ones around.

I finally got the seat covers in the mail about a week and a half ago and dusted them all off. They are not near as delicate and fragile as I was imagining. They've got tons of rips and holes but should't be anything that can be fixed with time.

Man were they filthy! My wife was royally pissed at all the crap that came off them in the yard and front deck. I probably spent more time cleaning up my mess than what I did the seats themselves so far. I was blowing crap out of my nose for days after I handled them. They are old and ratty but I love them.

They still need a good washing and I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to do that. Not looking to remove stains really. Possibly lighten them a bit like I did with my door panels and that's it. Mainly looking to get all the loose grime and dirt off before I start patching them up with my wife.

I did manage to clean up my Streifengrau azurblue fabric I got in the mail last Friday though. That stuff is in great shape. I even got a whole front seat bottom piece (which was the only piece I was missing from my first shipement of seat covers.) Not the same pattern but period correct. Good enough for me.

My only problem will be getting those covers to fit my later 65 and earlier seats. I roughly layed the back seat covers over my seats and they seem like they will work with a little adjustment. However the front ones are considerably smaller. Only tried the front seat backs so far. I'm sure if I removed the red viny covers and trimmed some of the padding down they might slip on.

But even if I did that there would still be differents in length I'm sure. I've got quite a bit of spare fabric so I might try and have my wife help me with the size differences.

My goal is to not cut up any of these pieces any more than I have to turn all of these remnants of seat covers into something that can still be used. I will have a bit of a Franken interior but man will I love it.

Right now I think I'm going to just enjoy my car the way it is and the way I have been for the past few years. There will be a day and time though when those red seat covers will take a hike though.

If you all have any advice about getting the seat covers to fit or repairing them then by all means any feedback will be great. I really don't want to get into a discussion about not backdating my car or people accusing me of destroying original parts. You are entilted to call me as you will but I don't feel like entertaining or engaging in all that any more. I'm the bad guy here. Okay, I get it.

I've only made two small holes in my door panels and that's it. I think that's pretty fair given that all of this is going in a much later car. I love OG stuff too and realize how rare and special it is. It just happened to be me that found and righfully bought it before someone else did.

Thank you! Again, pics will come up once I finish cleaning everything off.

[Mr. OGPaint]

Best thread ever! (Besides your other threads that are similar). Perfec trolling. I really like how you threw in the detail about the upholstery being Steifengrau lower front seat upholstery from an Azure blue car just to make it more rare and to be exactly the fabric that people in this thread are looking for. I hope it works great on your car that it comes no where near fitting on from a completely different era. Well played my man!

BTW, pics are for losers...don't ever post pics when asking for advice.
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https://instagram.com/mr.ogpaint
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Patrick Hall

[type1vwjapan]

Mr OGPaint. Umm, K...

Why don't YOU quit trolling me. You're the one being the troll in this case.

But I'm sure my accusation isn't going to hold much weight here or weigh for much since I don't have an actual split sitting in my driveway. Guess I'm out of line like ol' Jim Douglas in Thorndyke's showroom. Fair enough.

Oops...broke my promise about not wanting to entertain such remarks. My bad.

[type1vwjapan]

And in case I stuttered, Mr OGPaint, I'll get pics up once I get the time and it all cleaned off. I work a lot and only have time late at night once my kids are in bed. I did good enough to get pics of my speedometer and flasher relay in anther recent thread I started. Had to do it on my way in the front door to work.

Everything is much cleaner than when I got it but in no way sharpe or form would I bring it into the house to try and take some pictures.

I apologize for the delay and realize pics would be a real plus when asking for help. However, I haven't asked any really technical questions yet and was just fishing for some general ideas here.

I start my summer break over here (I'm a teacher) at the end of the month. I'll try my best to uploads some pics by then.

[type1vwjapan]

And just for the record, all the stuff I bought had been for sale for quite a while; the salvaged seat covers years. The fabric for months.

I highly doubt I stole anything out from someone's nose. If I did I apologize. I came across the stuff fairly easily so someone REALLY needing original fabric to patch up their upholstery in their "real car" could surely find it. Rare, yes. But it's definitely out there.

And that seat bottom piece is not even complete and has long cut going around the bottom part. It needs some attention for sure. These are only remnants that I have. Looks to be mostly from a back seat that was salvaged.

[type1vwjapan]

Had a few minutes this morning and snagged a few pics of the door panels. Got them as clean as I could without causing any color distortion. I'm happy with them! Very happy.

Worst spots are obvious. The gigantic tear on the right hand side panel and as well as the dry rotted vinyl at the bottom in that one spot. Rear is missing the ashtray but are in great shape.

Again, I had to make those very tiny holes for my later window regulators. Please don't get onto me for that. These are for my car now and no one else's. So it's okay.

Just be glad I didn't remove them from their original hardboard and trim them all up to fit my doors perfectly like what was suggested earlier. That was a great idea in terms of getting them to line up and fit possibly more better but they will honestly fit pretty well as is so I didn't see the need or have to stomach to do that to panels that I've wanted for so long, and that are in that good of condition like that.

Believe me or not, I'm not a troll and trying to offend anyone here. I knew it would not make me a very popular guy here but that is the price I have to pay. I've been getting positive remarks from folks here though.

It's pretty popular to backdate bugs in Japan. Probably has to due with the overall lack and shortage of earlier models. I've only seen one split for sale here in the past 7 years I've lived here. The other one I saw was just a rusted out shell going for 30k.

The split I saw has been for sale a couple of years now by Flat4. Its about 80k with tax.

https://www.flat4.co.jp/cars/forsale/51t1mbrown.html

A really nice bug but from what I read it's not a numbers matching engine, although period correct. Forgot the POs name who brought it here to the show and sold it. Really famous in the VW scene though, as I follow him on FB as well as his buddy Shin Watanabe who is the new editor for HotVWs.

Ovals are pretty rare and pricey too. A good unmolested one will easily be between 35k to 50k.

Seat covers and fabric pics to be continued...just glad my front panel came with an armrest. And it's even on the drivers side over here.

[type1vwjapan]

Correction. I made a new whole for my door handles. Not the window regulators. Those lined up fine and didn't require and modifications.

[type1vwjapan]

And here are my azurblue fabrics cleaned up lightly after a very gentle soak, wash, and rinse. Was surprised how much better they look with such little effort!

Here's a before pic.

And how they look now. I have eight pieces total. If anyone can tell me what part of the upholstery some of the bigger pieces came out of that'd be great. If not that's okay too. I'll number them 1~8 for easy reference.

I'm not even sure about #1 being a seat bottom piece anymore. It initially looked like that but not so sure anymore. Even if it is, it's been trimmed down quite a bit. I also hate how someone sliced open two of the pieces of fabric to
remove the padding...guess those are from a rear seat piece.

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Thanks in advance for any help!

[type1vwjapan]

I'm thinking #2 could be a seat bottom piece too? Looks like it has the shape for some reason.

I'll get the pics of the seat covers uploaded too. For now here's the seller's pics. Again, I'll number them for reference.

They look much better now and aren't laying all the ground like trash. Just glad this person hung onto them for years and didn't end up tossing them in the dump.

The seller even included an extra whole rear piece! It's one of the best pieces I've got and it's a shame it's not in this pic. It has the hardboard piece still attached even. Not sure I can use it but neat nonetheless.

I'll post some good shots of them cleaned up later on.

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And, could someone tell me the name of this fabric? I was told it is original to a '51 ~'52 bug. Is that correct?

The covers really aren't as bad as they look. Look a million times better just dusted off, off the ground, and straightened out. These will definitely not be easy to fix but we're going to try. I'm just wanting them to cover my seats basically. Not looking for an exact fit of course.

[type1vwjapan]

So, I'm finally trying to kick my butt more in gear and get to working on these seats. There's even a damn typhoon approaching and I still went out into the dark and rain to test fit some of the upholstery.

I just test fitted the one seat bottom I've got and it fit like a glove. Slips right on top of my red vinyl covers and looks awesome! Just like I was wanting. I didn't even sexure it down with anything and it's looking great just like I imagined. Even with the huge ass gash in the center. I plan on patching that up entire section with some of the azurblue fabric I've got. Should look quite nicely I think.

Sorry, just a small update. And sorry to burst your bubble ol' Mr OGPaint. Everything is fitting good so far. Just have to figure out the front seat backs and that's it really. The upholstery in the rear should slip on too.

[type1vwjapan]

Ran out into the rain again to snag a shot. Probably the first time this stuff has been on a car in decades.

I really couldn't be happier even though everything is a long ways from being complete. Just glad they fit well and nothing needs to be modified.

I'll definitely paint my seat frames black or a light brown by time everything is said and done.

[type1vwjapan]

Yet more progress. Sorry no pics though. Looks like the front seat backs fit too! They are a bit tight going on over my red vinyl covers but they worked nicely from what I could see in the dark. I think when I wash them I'll soak them for a bit in an attempt to soften and stretch them just a hair. They should go on much easier then.

I'm just all pumped that I don't have to alter anything heavily it seems. Just clean, patch, sew, and go.

[type1vwjapan]

Awfully quiet...I cleaned up all my covers over the past couple of days to see what I really had. I was a little disappointed and sad to find extra rot on the covers after a good, gently wash (that's the name of the game with these old cars though, lol) and rinse but I think everthing should come out nicely in the end after my wife tackles it all. Really, you'd all be amazed at how crafty and neat Japanese people are with their work. Can't wait to see how they look all patched up.

Right now I'm thinking to use my extra rear piece to patch up my front seat bottom. Then I'll use what's left to patch up the front seat back since they are rough too. Then I'll use the azurblue fabric to patch up the rear seats and other areas that still need attention.

[type1vwjapan]

And any insights into what the name of that fabric and suppliers of it would be nice. I'm not going to have enough fabric left to fabricate another front seat bottom I believe. I'd even go with a new cover if anyone knows who sells the fabric like I've got for my covers. Thank you!!!