Just a simple question, is the engine bay and front end, cross member satin black or gloss black in the original form? (FB Special Wagon)
I am about to start rebuilding after a full strip, sandblast and prime.
Thanks
Dan
Hi Dan,
relax! - you're all not in for a great waffle from me - this time!
I don't know if the engine bay/firewall paint varied in colour as it did with engines from state to state or even day to day, but from what I can remember they were fairly consistent and the hue was in the black~dark grey range. There may have been a matting agent added altereing light reflection and thus appearance of the hue (a bit like when you spray acrylic and notice how much deeper and darker the finish becomes when compounded).
I used to envy the HD/HR people because of their glossy paintwork under the hood - now I'm not so sure.
The satin-like finish is certainly easier to maintain with respect of wear and tear (bump and scratch.....) and doesn't show the imperfections the General so selflessly afforded us.
I am in the final throes of completing my engine bay paintwork after stripping the lot back to bare steel, grinding out un-needed wiring clips etc (modified vehicle) and filling voids/spot welds to get an uncomplicated finish. I can assure you that if this quest is persued, you will certainly find that our engine bays were very coarsely finished and I'm sure justified seeking a paint which concealed these imperfections.
I am applying acrylic paint which is sold by Eastern Auto paints in Bayswater, Vic. as Clinker Grey - they have the GMH mix code for it and it is supposed to be the paint used on our dash - it isn't - maybe the colour is correct but the finish isnt' - it's sold as a gloss acrylic. I would like to see it with a matting agent, this may bring the hue closer to what some of us still have left on the dash .
It does (to me) however come up a treat in the engine bay and having a dark nuetral hue, when blocked back, buffed and polished affords advantage to be taken of shiny alloy/chrome/stainless fittings without the dust sensitivity of black.
I am of the opinion, in answer to your original question, that some shade of black/grey satin type finish was used - as to whether it is acrylic or nitro-cellulose I am unsure, suffice it to say that it is most likely one or the other as it does not react when oversprayed using acrylic paint containing tolulene and keytone thinners.
I also believe that somewhere in the FB series the General made the switch from nitro-cellulose to acrylic - if you check the paint codes of vehicles within that range you will find that the latter acrylic numbers are prefixed by a 585 (Dulon).
Somewhere on this site is a list of paint/trim codes - alas it does not identify engine bay paint.
I'm fairly confident that if you wished to maintain conformity to original, you could drop into a reputable auto paint supplier (one which the tradies use) and they will most likely not only identify the type of paint but also the colour - or at the very least match it.