Real Masterpieces?

A couple of weeks ago I was following an auction on eBay (where else? ). The item to be auctioned was a spare parts list for a Kübelwagen from 1943. It was in perfect condition. Maybe a bit too perfect, so the first thing that went through my mind was, “Is it Real?” Also the seller could not confirm whether it was original or just a cheap reproduction. If it was original it definitely went cheap and the winner is very lucky. Normally the original ones go for hunderds of euro’s. I didn’t bid on it as the chances are high of buying repro stuff on eBay these days.

Also the following piece of KdF literature looks repro to me but I’m not 100% sure. It’s some sort of repair manual for a Kübelwagen from 1940 sold on eBay. Can anyone confirm if these items are original or not?

Look What The Mail Man Brought!

Look what I found in the mail box last week… It’s the ultra rare TRANSART KdF brochure ( 1 2 ). The same as mentioned in the Kdf Collectables post. Inside there are transparent pages with phantom views of the KdF wagen. This brochure was an insert in the ‘Motor Schau’ magazine published in March 1939.  No, I didn’t won it on eBay but it was a present for my birthday from my lovely wife. She found it on a local eBay like internet site and knew I was looking for one so she purchased it immediately. Can you imagine the look on my face when I opened the envelope? It’s definitely a nice addition to my VW literature collection, thanks to my wife…

KdF Collectables

I had not much luck in winning these items that were recently auctioned on eBay. The first one is a 20 page KdF brochure ( 1 2 3 ) printed by TRANSART AG, a company in Berlin. The front cover of this brochure has an embossed image of a KdF Wagen in front of the KdF swastika in a cog wheel emblem. I’ve seen this brochure several times on eBay but never had the chance to purchase one.
The second item is a rare user manual for the VW Schwimmwagen type 166 ( 1 2 ). This manual has 48 pages and is dated March 1943. It appears to be in very good condition.
The last item, also in super condition and from the same selller, is a user manual for the VW Kübelwagen type 82 ( 1 2 ). This one is dated September 1940. Almost 70 years old and it still looks like new! Very nice collectables and still high on my literature wish list.

VW Split Bug Bibles

Within one week two Split Bug workshop manuals (German: reparatur leitfaden) were auctioned on eBay ( 1 2 ) . They both fetched exactly the same price. A grand total of € 505,- each. Isn’t that amazing? These are not that rare and have been offered several time on eBay. I bought mine last year for not even one fifth of these selling prices. The manuals are published in the early ’50s and most of the times found written in German. I also have the French version in my collection which is definitely harder to find.