Saving it from the trash heap, I rescued from my father a Volkswagon Combustion Heater, manufactured by Stewart-Warner Corp., for Sears Roebuk & Co., stamped Nov. 5, 1971. If there is such a thing as an antique road show for parts, I think this qualifies. Is there a forum out there/website where I could find a value and an owner who would appreciate it more than my rescue from being turned into a steel can? Everything is original, sticker and all, it was just never installed.
Try www.thesamba.com
eBay man, eBay!
E-bay is a very good idea, but if you list it on e-bay, bear in mind that people search for cars and car-related products on that site by using the car’s brand name. If you list it as a Volkswagon (sic) part, people may not find it, because the brand is spelled Volkswagen.
South Wind
FYI from the trash heap of my memory.
I remember 2 different gasoline heaters available for Volkswagens. One was a “factory” German, Eberspacher unit. The other was the Stewart-Warner “South Wind” brand heater available as an after-market unit. This Sears unit must have been similar to the South Wind. People were brave when these were used, having a controlled gasoline fire just above their gas tanks.
Gasoline heaters were rather common back in the 1930’s and 1940’s, especially the Stewart-Warner “South Wind” brand. Yet, I don’t recall any fires caused by these units, although there must have been.
Maybe these heaters operated on the same principle as the hand warmers that we used to use. The wick would glow from the fuel, but there wasn’t an actual flame once the hand warmer was started.
The risk with them was usually not fires but carbon monoxide poisoning, especially folks who would leave them running while sleeping in a bus. Of course the stock heating system could rust through and pump exhaust into the cabin, so the gas heater probably looked like an improvement from a safety standpoint.