Walloth Nesch belt line trim nuts and bolts update.

There was a discussion a bit over 2 years ago about these infamous trim nuts and bolts. At the time the consensus was that the current batch of W&N bolts were too thick and did not fit in the original trim pieces. The suggestion was then to buy the nuts from W&N and the bolts from Bmw directly.


Because W&N was selling a set (both nuts and bolts) for not much more than the nuts alone, I decided to take a chance and ordered their complete set of 90 pieces last week and they arrived today. I don’t know if they were modified since the time of that original thread, (wouldn’t be surprised if @sfdon ’s towering voice of discontent scared them back to the drawing board) but I am pleased to say that this current batch fits perfectly. They’re a little bit smaller than the originals but apart from that they fit just fine.

New vs originals
How well do the nuts fit on the W&N bolts? It looks like the threads are rolled vs cut on the BMW bolt. That could result in a sloppy fit. I don't suppose it's really critical, but I wouldn't want them to vibrate loose, or start galling while tightening up and freeze onto the bolt threads.
 
Maybe my car is different but I count this:

Rear fender: 9
Door: 5
Front fender: 6
Total for each side: 20. Both sides: 40

Front nose piece: 9

Grand total: 49

Is this a '74 difference maybe?

IMG_7054.jpgIMG_8256.jpgIMG_8258.jpg
 
Not sure, but it is easy to ADD an extra hole+bolt ofcourse.
If you had, say, 48 holes then I'd be really curious.

I'll check on my car tomorrow (except the doors, they are tucked away for another 2 weeks)

Update 15/02/2022:
My car has 38 holes in the body:
- I did not count the doors
- Clearly one hole has been closed by PO, under the c-pillar roundel as it is present on the right, but it is missing on the left. As a result on the left it spans for ~60 cm unsupported.
So total should be 39 on my body +10 on the doors would give me 49 as well. @Bmachine : our cars are alike! This is becoming intriguing.....
My car was build may 1973.

Realoem shows 45...
1644931964849.png
 

Attachments

  • 20220215_131902.jpg
    20220215_131902.jpg
    182.9 KB · Views: 92
Last edited:
I've checked some random images on teh web of various cars in their restoration process. most, but not all of them match the number of holes per panel reported by @Bmachine and my car (49)

(note: BMachine quotes the front fender as having 6; were the fender actually as 7 holes. That is because Bmachine counts the numbers linked to the chrome trim: the front hole on the fender is actually holding the leading front edge trim eventhough it is a hole in the front fender.)

Oldenzaal; 5 on door, 9 on rear panel (8 visible from this angle) = matching to 49 total

6 on fender, +1 on fender from front trim = matching to 49 total

I did spot one CSL with additional hole in the front corner, still on the front panel: see the mouse pointer? I don't have that hole, but then again i haven't cleaned that corner of my car yet, there is a bunch of filler there in my car. this would however lead to two more holes (one L, one R, giving not 49 but 51 bolt holes!)
1644933272663.png


Could it be that 4 holes simply have no bolts through them? In designing stuff in our company we do the same sometimes: make sure the holes are in the tooling, later on we'll decide how many are really necessary to use to get a good fitment.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top