[Chrysler300] FW: Air cleaner/valve cover paint color code

[Ray Melton <rfmelton@xxxxxxx>]

Yes, the message I sent two weeks ago (below)  indeed showed that the Daewoo
67U color was the closest match to my custom-made formula.   And it is
considerably more subtle (lighter, more silvery and less reddish) than the
Mercedes Byzantine Gold suggested elsewhere - my parents had a 1977 280SEL
in that color - same time my Dad was working on/showing his 300C - and I
always thought it was yucky disco-style gold, perhaps because seeing it on
the whole car (glossy, of course) was just toooo much! 

 

Note:  I have subsequently talked with the paint specialty shop, and they
said this color formula could also be put up in 15-ounce aerosol cans for
~$14/can,  with the recommendation to follow up with a satin-gloss urethane
clear coat.  My personal experience says that if you have any special
formula put up into rattle-cans, make absolutely sure that they use a good
quality spray nozzle that puts out a fan-shaped pattern, NOT the gloppy
circular pattern of the cheap-o hardware store paints!  This is especially
critical with metallic paints.   See also a subsequent note in the original
text below.

 

Ray Melton

 

From: Ray Melton [mailto:rfmelton@xxxxxxx] 
Sent: Thursday, April 18, 2013 2:14 PM
To: chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Air cleaner/valve cover paint color codes

 

Hello All -

 

I recently had the air cleaners and valve covers for my 1957 Chrysler 300C
repainted in what I believe to be the correct shade and gloss level as
originally supplied.  On the back side of the oval ends of the air cleaner
housings, I found what I am certain was the original Chrysler color,
untouched by previous owners who had repainted the exterior only.  I had a
local paint and body shop match the old paint color by trial and error until
I was completely satisfied with the color - when the custom mix was sprayed
right on top of a masked portion of the original paint, I could hardly see
the transition.   The parts were painted with an epoxy sealer/primer,
sanded, then two coats of the color base coat, followed by a hardened
urethane clear coat with approximately 50% flattening agent to give only a
satin gloss level.  The final outcome was a tint slightly more silvery and
less reddish-gold than the Plasti-kote #452 that had previously been
applied, and with a more subtle satin gloss, rather than a too-bright
high-gloss. 

 

However, since the color matching was a multi-step trial-and-error process
(add a little green and silver here, take out some red there, add more
black, etc.) there was not an easy way for the painter to replicate the
color for future applications, either by myself or someone else.  So, I took
the finished pieces to my local paint specialty shop and had them analyze
the color using a special hand-held electronic color matching device.  In
less than five minutes, they were able to come up with the formula for
tinting, and I thought I would share that with other interested members.

 

The starting point for the color base coat was one pint DuPont Chromabase
clear.  I don't know what all the numbers and letters mean, but your own
paint specialty person will!  Also note that a good primer must be applied
before the color coat, sanded and followed by a urethane clear coat for best
durability.

 

259663 K   CC: M  CHROMABASE BC      Alt:  (EUR)

                        Daewoo - 67U

            Mix size:  16.0 oz. (pint)

 

Tinting Guide:                                            Formula #259663

 

882J               LS yelo oxide                      27.1  (I was told this
means YELLOW)

811J               Med aluminum                  45.4

891J               Transox Red                        62.1

819J               Fine bright aluminum      69.8

806J               HS Black                               75.5

833J               Green Gold                          79.0

1005S            Gold Pearl                            89.6

1009S            Super Green PL                  95.2  (I was told the "PL"
means PEARL)

150K              B/C Balancer                       317.1

175K              Binder                                   444.5 

 

The top coat was DuPont urethane Chromacolor clear, with ~50% flattening
agent to yield a satin gloss level.  Not being an automotive painter myself,
I was shocked at the price for this base coat/clear coat paint:  the base
coat alone was $112 for one pint, plus a few bucks more for the activator!
On the other hand, the guy who painted my parts mixed up only 8 ounces of
color base coat, and there was still some left over after applying two coats
of color,  so that would be only ~$56.00 for a half-pint of the color coat.
I didn't ask about the cost for the clear top coat, but it will be
considerably less.  I had the parts stripped and bead-blasted by another
place ($55.00 - and I had them be extra careful NOT to strip the inner
surfaces of the oval air cleaner end pieces to preserve for subsequent
color-matching!) before taking them to the automotive body/paint shop -- the
final charge for priming, sanding and painting the two air cleaner housings
and both valve covers was $280.00.  (Later note - yes, although the parts
were supplied very clean and straight, the shop took pains to apply a
high-fill primer and sand to remove any scratches and minor dents, while
being careful not to obliterate the spot-weld depressions and other valid
manufacturing details.  I told them what I wanted was what might come out on
the BEST DAY at the factory when everything was going right,  but NOT too
polished and over-restored.  That's why the cost was so seemingly high - I
knew it was better than I could have done it with a rattle-can!)  

 

Note:  I've had no need to try out this formula myself, since my parts are
already painted, but if you decide to go with the formula above, you might
want to do a bit of custom color-matching yourself:  do a test shot on a few
square inches of a smooth metal surface (tin can lid?) and see how you like
it, then add/subtract tint components to fine-tune to your personal
preference.

 

Hope this helps some of you out there, so you won't have to go through  the
somewhat tedious trial-and-error approach that I did.

 

Ray Melton

Las Cruces, NM

1957 Chrysler 300C convertible   white/Gauguin

3N572517

 

 



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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