The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Interiors '53 interior paint color????

Anybody got any info on the original interior paint color in a '53 Chevy 1/2 ton 3100?? I ordered a can from Brothers, but it doesn't look right to me...too dark and much too much like a dark olive-brown. Brothers says it lightens-up as it dries, but my paint/body man and I don't think it's right. I thought it was more like a metallic medium brown. Appreciate the help. If you know a Dupont or PPG paint number or something I can reference, I'd be much obliged.

I looked way back at an old archived messages about interior paint. Found some good info. But if anyone has any new and different info, I'd still be interested.

I would get it from Jim Carter, not Brothers.
I have found JC has been very good on most
original factory items. I did a lot of searching when I painted mine and came up with
the PPG color DBU 3898, Dk Beige Poly. BUT,
this is for a GMC and it does have the brown
metallic. I don't think Chevy did. Hope this
helps. Cecil.........

Cecil, I just went through you photo album and must say that your GMC is beautiful! A wonderful restoration... You should be proud...

Andrew

I belive 53s had the same interior color as earlier models, if I am wrong ignore the rest of this. I find Chevy Duty's interior paint to be very good, and is very close to original color. It is also enamel, while Carter sells lacquer. Now lacquer was probably original, if you are so inclined, but I think enamel will hold up better.

Don't have my documentation here in front of me, but the 53s did have a different interior color than the earlier models. If I think of it tonight I'll pull some paint codes that I have for it. You might want to contact Bob Adler and get a paint code package for your year. He includes a color photocopy of a chip set for your year as well as modern PPG or Dupont color codes (including interior colors).

Adler\'s Antique Autos - Factory Paint Codes

One thing you should remember if you aren't spot painting, the color will never truely match the Original color, even with laquer, the flakes are of a different breed and depending on your spray technique and thinning you can change the color as well, the beauty of doing a over all is you only need to be close to what it was! Personally unless your trying to go athentic and win in concoars show or any of the other large shows uerthene is the only way to go, you can get a semigloss out of it to and get the durability!

Laquer, unless you use the really high grade thinners, are going to crack all to pieces on you! Any color you want is at this site, remember Chevy had only certain colors but GMC had alot, so besure to look in the GMC color charts when looking up the color! Even if you had a chevy in 49 and it was green most likely you won't find it under the chevrolet colors it will be under GMC colors!

http://www.autocolorlibrary.com/scripts/depot.exe?pgm=aclgate.bbx

There seem to have been two colors of interior paint for 53, used on dash, doors, cab,seat frame, etc,. One is a semi-flat, brown-gray, with a slight metallic tinge. The other interior paint is a semi-flat, Charcoal shade. Both are lacquers as original. The steering wheel, the horn button, column and shift lever are a slightly different color, sort of gray-brown and more glossy than the interior paint. You can get both interior and steering wheel paint from Jim Carter and probably other vendors. It's pricy, because you will also be charged a hazardous material transportation fee. I've used Carter's paint, with good results. The lacquer is subject to chipping when struck with a sharp object, which makes putting the interior window trim back on a hairy job after painting. I'm sure with the correct paint numbers, your local shop could get close, but at the time I painted my truck (a 53)I never could get two people to agree as to what was correct. Like all paint, Carter's will have variations in runs, so buy enough to do the job and buy it all at the same time. I've never seen the Charcoal used, but if you want to see what the brownish paint looks like on my truck, cut and paste this URL http://albums.photo.epson.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=1784934&a=13816194&f=0
and click on the thumbnails.

Nice old truck you have there!

I happened across this PDF of a Chevy service bulletin while looking for something else: http://www.1953chevrolet.com/PDF/Service_Note_25_9.pdf

At the bottom of the last page is a chart giving interior paint specs for 50-53 trucks.

Texaholic,

You can paint me "green" with envy. That looks awesome!!! I'm assuming it's a 53, did you use the 53 green (Juniper?) or the earlier Forrester? Do you have codes for interior & exterior? Again, that looks fantastic!

Thanks!

I read your post again and see that you got the interior color pre-made from a vendor. What is the exterior color you used?

i read in an earlier reply about the ppg number for the interior. I had some mixed today and it wasn't even close. Someone else referred me to Deve's paint codes, and it was yet a different number- it wasn't close either. What gives?

Jake: Sorry to be so long in replying. Yes, I bought the interior paint from Jim Carter. They also carry the exterior paint, but I got mine locally. It's Juniper Green for a 53 and my paint guy, who's older than me, dragged out an old paint catalogue and looked it up. My bill only shows "Code 518". I'm sorry...I don't know what brand he used, but it was one of the better known auto paint manufacturers. I asked for single stage urethane. Didn't want it clearcoated.