The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Blue color on '54 hub caps and hood emblem

The paint on the hood emblem and chrome hub caps on my '54 needs refreshing. The blue bowties on each are faded and the chrome is showing through.

Any suggestions for masking and painting the hub caps?

I bought a decal for the hood emblem from Chevs of the 40s. The blue is much darker that the faded blue on my emblem and hub caps.
> CLICK - Chevs of the 40s decal (maybe not quite as dark as the picture)
> CLICK - Blue on my hub caps The same blue is on hood emblem.

If the blue on the decal is way off of the "correct" blue, what color / paint supplier do you recommend?

'54 3104
Standard Cab
Painted Grill

Thanks for your help,

1-Shot 155-L Reflex Blue is what I have used.
www.1shot.com

Don -

Thanks for the telling me about 1-Shot Lettering Enamel Reflex Blue #155-L

I've been experimenting with 1Shot paint. High gloss. Levels out smooth in one coat when brushed straight from the can or when air brushed thinned 50/50. But the slow drying time invites dust buggers in my shop.

Do you have any suggestions for speeding up the dry time for air brushing? I thinned with Nason reducer. Don't know if lacquer thinner, acetone, or paint thinner would be better.

I also tested a piece with pactra (Testors) Blue Streak #RC252 Lacquer 3-oz spray can. Dried fast, very smooth, and no dust buggers. Slightly flatter than semi-gloss. A little more "electric blue" than 1-shot, maybe too much. Doesn't adhere as well to unscuffed chrome as 1Shot.

Finally I tried Testors Dark Blue #1211 Enamel 3-oz spray can. Semigloss. Dries fast so dust buggers are minimized. Has a touch of gray. Similar blue tones as on my faded hubcaps, only darker.

I would like to see an original unfaded / unmolested '54 chrome hubcap to confirm the color.

Here's the wrap-up of this thread ...

I painted the blue bowties on my hub caps with the color defined by the GM Heritage Center. I used a decal from one of the suppliers for the bowtie on my hood emblem because I didn't want to remove it. You can't see the emblem and the hub caps at the same time to compare.
> I'm happy with the results (hub caps - poor picture)

Here is a recap of my Blue Bowtie Journey. Thanks to Brad Allen, Tim Lederman, and Denny Graham for helping me understand paint chemistry and the codes used by the manufacturers.

The 1954 Truck Specifications didn't give detailed info on the colors used on the emblems.
> Hood and Grille Appearance

I contacted GM Heritage Center to ask for the color to paint the bowties on my '54 chrome hub caps.
> GM Heritage Center Contact Info

The Center told me that the color of the bowties on my hubcaps was 1954 Mariner Blue and sent a link to PaintRef.com that shows modern paint codes for the color. PaintRef.com shows that DuPont used one code for Mariner Blue for all model years of Chevrolet AD Trucks '47-'55. But it also shows that PPG has two codes for Mariner Blue during the same period. PPG #10419 is for model years 1947-1952. PPG #10984 is for model years 1953-1955. Brad, Tim, Denny, and I didn't arrive at a definitive reason for PPG having two codes and DuPont only having one code.
> Chevy Trucks with Mariner Blue

Here are the PPG paint mix formulas for '47-'52 Mariner Blue (PPG #10419 on the top), and for '53-'55 Mariner Blue (PPG #10984 on the bottom). The local PPG store printed them for me to confirm that they are two different colors. Although the "Manufacturer" does not say CHEVY TRUCK, I was assured that each PPG mixture number produces only one color. I did not have them mix the older color PPG #10419.
> PPG Mariner Blue formulas

NOTE: I don't know if Mariner Blue is the correct bowtie color for other model years. Contact The GM Heritage for more info.

I purchased a pint of PPG #10984 1953-1955 Mariner Blue from the local PPG store and painted my hub caps with an airbrush.
> Can of '54 Mariner Blue purchased from PPG
> PPG Product Info

3M Vinyl Tape 471+, 1/4 inch, 06405 does a good job of masking the compound curves around the bowties.
> 3M 471+

Here is a pic of 1953-55 Mariner Blue vs 1Shot Reflex Blue. '53-'55 Mariner Blue on the left. 1Shot Reflex Blue on the right. The colors probably do not show true on the screen. The pic is for relative comparison.
> Photo comparison

Based on the photo of '53-'55 Mariner Blue and 1Shot Reflex Blue, I estimate that PMS #282 is the closest PMS color to '53-'55 Mariner Blue in my Pantone color set.
R: 0
G: 38
B: 84
hex 002654
FYI - I estimate that Reflex 1Shot Reflex blue PMS color lies between Pantone Reflex Blue and PMS #280. 1Shot Reflex Blue is slightly lighter than PMS #280.
> PMS color chart

If you want to use model airplane paint to approximate '53-'55 Mariner Blue
Enter hex #002654, or enter Red=0, Green=38, Blue=84 in the boxes on this web page, then click "Show matching paint"
> Model Airplane Paint

- Lonnie