Vertical door arm rest supports for lowlights?

[catahoula lou]

Group:

I've already searched this forum, but could not find a clear answer to the following question:

Do lowlight doors have the vertical supports that the arm rest/pull strap backing brackets slip into, just like the ones in bugs? I don't have a pair and need to close either door by rolling down the glass and pulling on top of door, which is OK for when it's not raining or snowing.

I've looked all over for a pair, including posting a WTB ad on this site. Can't find any on the big supplier sites (e.g., KGPR, etc.) and received no response from Danny Gabbard (GabFab) when I PM'd him if he would consider fabricating a pair.

Where can I find a pair????

Best,
Thom
_________________
1 great wife
2 Catahoula Leopard Dogs (Mahogany Star and Spartan) - RIP Lucy, Braveheart, & Dusty!
1 1959 mango green Ragtop Bug (the "Mango")
1 1958 pantina red Lowlight Ghia (the "Chili Pepper")

Still looking for:
(1) My Dad's 1955 356 (he raced it amateur-class at Riverside and other courses during 1950s),
(2) My parent's black 1955 hardtop bug (CA license plate FWC 201 or FWG 201), and
(3) My parent's agave green 1957 ragtop bug (CA license plate LFK 734).

[Exaktaphile]

Perhaps you're looking for the L-shaped piece in the middle section of the lift channel

[catahoula lou]

I guess so. Those don't look familiar, in that I bought my Sept 1958 lowlight as a roller (1/2 parts in boxes, 1/2 I had to buy) and put it together a few years ago. Was probably looking for ones that look like the ones on my 1959 ragtop bug, which are made of lighter gage metal.

In case I need a pair, do you have a pair to sell me?

Thanks for the quick reply!

Best,
Thom
_________________
1 great wife
2 Catahoula Leopard Dogs (Mahogany Star and Spartan) - RIP Lucy, Braveheart, & Dusty!
1 1959 mango green Ragtop Bug (the "Mango")
1 1958 pantina red Lowlight Ghia (the "Chili Pepper")

Still looking for:
(1) My Dad's 1955 356 (he raced it amateur-class at Riverside and other courses during 1950s),
(2) My parent's black 1955 hardtop bug (CA license plate FWC 201 or FWG 201), and
(3) My parent's agave green 1957 ragtop bug (CA license plate LFK 734).

[catahoula lou]

I looked at the PDF of this site's 1958 KG parts list and found a diagram of a "guide rail with window lift channel" (Item 72, Illustration 6, Page 8-26).

Is this required for the window glass to operate correctly? I vaguely recall installing something in both doors that the little rollers would track on as the glass is raised/lowered.

Are these what I've been looking for? If so, I may actually have them, but did not recognize their function WRT arm rests/door straps at the time...

Please confirm.


Best,
Thom
_________________
1 great wife
2 Catahoula Leopard Dogs (Mahogany Star and Spartan) - RIP Lucy, Braveheart, & Dusty!
1 1959 mango green Ragtop Bug (the "Mango")
1 1958 pantina red Lowlight Ghia (the "Chili Pepper")

Still looking for:
(1) My Dad's 1955 356 (he raced it amateur-class at Riverside and other courses during 1950s),
(2) My parent's black 1955 hardtop bug (CA license plate FWC 201 or FWG 201), and
(3) My parent's agave green 1957 ragtop bug (CA license plate LFK 734).

[Loren]

Here are the door parts for my 58 Ghia (minus the piece that attaches to the window glass). The vertical rail has a "L" shaped tab that the arm rest bracket fits into (as you can see in the pics above).

If you need more images of parts or of a complete door let me know and I can post some tomorrow.

[catahoula lou]

Well, it goes to show that an older dog like me can still learn new tricks.

Even though I've owned my 1959 ragtop bug since 1979 (38 years so far) and believe that I know quite a bit about them, I'm still learning on my 1958 lowlight Ghia. I partially popped off both door panels and found the items shown in the above photos, which makes sense being that I have functioning door glass on both sides (d'oh!). Not knowing what these were in the first place, I noticed that I hadn't hooked the RHS door handle bracket into place, which I will do after using the RHS door panel as a hole template for the LHS panel, for the LHS door strap (or arm rest).

Best,
Thom
_________________
1 great wife
2 Catahoula Leopard Dogs (Mahogany Star and Spartan) - RIP Lucy, Braveheart, & Dusty!
1 1959 mango green Ragtop Bug (the "Mango")
1 1958 pantina red Lowlight Ghia (the "Chili Pepper")

Still looking for:
(1) My Dad's 1955 356 (he raced it amateur-class at Riverside and other courses during 1950s),
(2) My parent's black 1955 hardtop bug (CA license plate FWC 201 or FWG 201), and
(3) My parent's agave green 1957 ragtop bug (CA license plate LFK 734).