The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop 1948 GMC Original Color

Hello,

I am starting to work on my 1948 GMC and I am looking for the color code as it relates to today's colors.

Model 9434
Ser. # 8943404993
Engine X256774
Body 361
Trim 394
Paint 831

What would the corresponding paint color be today?

Thanks for your help,

JoergK.

831 is Red sometimes called Commercial Red in rare to find Canadian colour books for GMC products from 1947-53 documents.

The 8 means it’s the 1948 version or mix of paint code 31 which is “red”
The same red for 1949 is 931
For 1950 it is just 31
Then 1951 the code is 131
You get the pattern


Clean off the firewall in the engine bay and try to match that red the best you can.

Might be the same Commercial Red that Chevy used. Info on that is in the Tech Tips. I haven't checked on GMC trucks in paintref.com, but that's a good resource for modern paint color codes.

The paint code imformation on Canadian trucks seems to be very limited .

GMC had a red called Pimpernel Scarlet from 1938 to 1952 according to a list I have. I don't know if Canadian trucks had the same colors. The sheet I have says PPG library number should be DU 93-2262R. If you have a PPG dealer near you, such as a NAPA store, etc. they may be able to get the information from PPG and mix you a sample and see if it looks like what's on your firewall. Also, the paint dealers often have a color matching gun and can get a good code by scanning an area of good paint on your truck. They need about a credit card size spot to scan.

Paintref.com has Pimpernel Scarlet in 1939 thru 1950, missing the years 1943, 1944, 1945 (of course due to war production) but somehow also missing the years 1947 and 1948. They also have a red called Permanent Red in 1946 and 1950. HERE's the entry for 1950. Like I said, They have the Ditzler/PPG and Dupont codes, but If you give a paint shop those, you'll typically get a "nope can't find that one." response. I see that Permanent Red also has a Chrysler code of DT3278. Maybe that will get you a paint chip from a paint shop.

Found a pdf of the Canadian 1954 truck paints online
Tried attaching it here, hope it worked

There is 4-31 which is in theory the same as 831 would have been in previous years but exact shades could likely change over time.

Edit: by 1954 some Canada paint codes definitely changed because in 1951 code 36 was black and by 1954 it became Rideau Maroon
So don’t take any paint codes as factual truth unless we find it explicitly for that year in a gmc document
-s

FC56 is my paint code on my gmc 9300 and I don’t have a clue what it means.My truck origionally was two tone light blue with dark blue fenders.but here are some chips from the net

I’ve never seen letters in a paint code on the 47-53 trucks before
What year is that truck and what source is the paint code?
Most online data is USA based and even then it’s for cars
The Canada trucks didn’t share much if any paint with cars
-s

My truck is a Canadian GMC9300 ,The paint code is on the plate

Well, I had the wishful thinking that the green was the original color and must have thrown my detective thinking away, cause I don't want this 'workhorse' to be red, but some kind of green.

We will remove the old paint and I would like to hear your recommendations on what to use, dry (walnut shells, glass beads (rust removal), soda (Sodium Bicarbonate), sand, (various grits, this is most likely the last method to use) or dry ice. The option we lean to is wet blasting, since we want a unit anyway.

Maybe a link is here somewhere already.

Any paint removal technique will work. I had my cab dry sandblasted, and he used a fine grit glass media. My sandblaster also did wet blasting, but said that a flash rust prevention additive needed to be used. The water adds a little mass to the blast stream, and may increase chances of warping the sheet metal.

You might be able to sand some of the paint off and see if it's been repainted at some point in it's life.
I know that my Dad's 1951 GMC 3/4 ton shop truck was green. On Chevy trucks that default color was Forester Green, unless you ordered a different color.

It's your truck - Paint it what ever color suits you.

A good place to look for original color is the underside of the center cowl vent. That is where I found my original green paint.

Also under the mirror arm, assuming it's the one that bolts to the cowl forward of the door. The gasket there keeps the paint from fading.

That tag looks much newer than 47-53 years tho
Example of serial tag from 1951 attached

It’s from 1954

Ok so 1954 started using fancier colour codes with letters in them
Good to know
Thanks Kevinski
I’ll add your info to my colour information notes
-s

We are a long way from painting, but I will probably use close to the 4-31 in 2ManyTrucks post. The unilateral response from all my family was that this color matches best the 1/2 ton I have. Often, what makes my family happy makes me happy.

My plan is to paint the parts when the truck is all dismantled and assemble with all the rubber mating strips in place, if that makes sense.

Might not apply because it is for USA trucks but here is Nason paint chips for 48 GMC trucks

https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/1297158/canadian-paint-colors#Post1297158

Am wondering since Canadian built GMC's were built on the same assembly line as Chevrolet's in Oshawa, would the GMC paint colors and codes be the same as the Chevy trucks built in the same factory ??

On Bill's Nason paint chip sheet, the only ones I recognize as the same as Chevrolet colors are Omaha Orange, Apple Green, and Brewster Green.