The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop 52 transport blue

Does anyone have the formulation for 1952 Transport Blue? Also, am I correct in thinking this is the blue between Windsor and Marine?

Thanks,
Mitch

This paint job looks pretty close. It's like Superman Blue but just a tad darker. I had a 54 that color and love it.

Joe

[URL=http://s1035.photobucket.com/user/mendonjo/media/image_zps31e5d37a.jpg.html]Transport blue[/url]


I have a splash apron with a small area that is transport blue. When it comes paint time my thought is to bring it in to the paint store to be matched.

Joe

Hi Mitch -

I'm no paint expert. Only know what I read in the old manuals.

I don't believe that Transport Blue was offered on 1952 Chevrolet trucks.
> 1952 Exterior Appearance and Colors
> 1952 Chevrolet Truck Colors - modern mix codes

Transport Blue was offered in 1953, 1954, and 1955.
> Transport Blue - modern mix codes

- Lonnie

I had the 54 transport blue color scanned and formulated in a modern paint. If you decide that is the color you want, I can find the pigment formulation for you. A search of this site may provide it also as I did type it out and post it at one time.

Windsor Blue through 1952; and, Transport Blue from 1953-55.
PPG can mostly likely mix that color.

Here's my problem. I'm trying to get to the color my 52 suburban would have been from the factory. No big deal, except that it was ordered by the US Air Force. The truck has been painted at least three times in its life, all of them blue. It appears from the firewall sanding that I've done the original color was a light to medium blue. Not the darker Marine blue and it doesn't look like Windsor blue. Transport blue is listed as a fleet color for that year, was thinking it might be a possibility. I'm almost ready to have a color mixed that I imagine a USAF vehicle would look like! Any help or suggestions are appreciated.

Mitch

Last week I had PPG mix a sample of transport blue , put a dab on truck ,not even close , went back today was told that's what the formula called for ....then she mixed Windsor blue , thinking that's what I was looking for , looked more like sky blue .... NOT WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR .....now I'll start looking for the color I want on cars and trucks....get model and year , go from there.... Good luck getting PPG mixing it ....not that it was her fault she went by their formula....

Mitch, you're right that Transport Blue was a 1952 fleet color.

1952 GM fleet colors:
http://paintref.com/cgi-bin/colorcodedisplay.cgi?comm=1952%20GM&page=2&rows=50

I was hoping that you could take PPG code #10983 to the PPG store and your search would be over. Sounds like it may not be true to the original color. (??)

- Lonnie

I went to my local ppg store and they were unable to pull up the color codes. I guess I don't buy enough from them to really make it worth their while. Was hoping to get the formulation and maybe have them use that.

Mitch

My experience has been that the original paint codes mean squat to the paint mixers. Pigments and paint types have changed greatly over the years. I found an original paint chip, compared it to a protected area of paint (between fender and cab) and had the chip scanned and formulated for a modern paint.

You mentioned having a spot of original paint. I would have your paint mixer scan that color and start there.

I had my old cab corner with me today ,"to show how for off the color was " , she seen it and never said anything about scanning it , I just figured that was just for house paint . I'll call tomorrow and ask .... And I though the paint was the easy thing ,

coffeeman,

The PPG phone number near the bottom of the link that I posted above will get you to their Color Library.

Local PPG sellers often do not seem to know how to make that call to PPG.

1-800-647-6050

I just now called them and they had a formula/code for the Omni Urethane line (2-part, single-stage urethane).

And Tim, did they give you a number for that Omni Urethane
and was that the code for the Transport Blue offset????

Been a couple of years since I bought paint and at the time
there was talk about them phasing out the line I was using.
Which means that I'll have to go thru the whole process all
over again to get my Mariner Blue paint codes again.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

And Tim, did they give you a number for that Omni Urethane
and was that the code for the Transport Blue offset????
Inquiring Minds Just Want To Know.

Been a couple of years since I bought paint and at the time
there was talk about them phasing out the line I was using.
Which means that I'll have to go thru the whole process all
over again to get my Mariner Blue paint codes again.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Tim and others -

Tryin' to learn about paint and paint colors ...

I understand that the mixing base paint changed over the years and that tints probably did too. And I doubt if some paint guy at the factory custom mixed a new formula to match every known paint color when new paints and tints were produced. And I'm also sure that the best way to match the original color on our old trucks is to scan an unmolested sample and then tweek the mix until it matches.

However, I have three questions about the codes on the PaintRef site:

Q> Did the PPG Color Library give you the same paint mix code for Transport Blue (10983) that is shown on the PaintRef website?
> Transport Blue

My local PPG store used code #10984 to mix "1954" Mariner Blue for the bowties on my hubcaps. Punched it into their computer and it spit out the mix formula. Don't know how close it is to the original blue. The GM Heritage Center sent me the link to PaintRef.

Q> Does the code apply to all types of paint (Urethane, base/clear, water-based, etc) from the manufacturer?

Q> There are three mix codes for Transport Blue listed for DuPont: 1619G, 246-72003G, 93-72003G. Why?
The first number (1619G) is for Ocean Green and for Transport Blue - not the same color. The other two are Transport Blue. The color page that Tim linked shows the DuPont code as 93-72003H. That code is not available on PaintRef.

Thanks for your help,

- Lonnie

In answer to both your questions, Denny:

No, I did not write-down the information from PPG for Transport Blue. But, I was told they had a code/formula for Omni Urethane (I gave them the original Transport Blue code found at the Tech Tip link, above).

I am not sure if they have an offset code to a newer color-name/code, or if they have a formula.

I prefer that someone personally call for a code/formula - PPG paint is expensive and I do not want to be responsible for a mistake.

Lonnie,

I gave the Color Library the PPG code from a DITZLER/PPG chip sheet: Transport Blue DQE-10983 (DQE - Ditzco Quickset Enamel).

That is the PPG code that I put in the Tech Tip.

Every manufacturer has the original paint codes. They were similar to the codes on new car keys. That code does not actually tell you how the new key is to be cut but in a code book provided to dealers/ key shops, the code gives them the key blank info, the number and depth of each notch, and whether it is two sided cutting or not. The paint codes would cross over to the paint shops to tell them which pigments to use and in what amounts. They were mixed by weight. Problem is that paints have changed greatly. Some pigments deemed dangerous, to whatever. If you find the original formulas, that does not help unless you have access to the same pigments that the formulas were given.

Granted, as Tim mentioned, if you go back to the manufacturer, they have kept up better on crossing over pigments to newer paints. And exactly as he stated, the local paint vendors do not want to mess with calling Dupont, Ditzler, to whoever. Some car clubs such as the VCCA will use their "power in numbers" to get an old color registered as a "National Fleet Color" which gives it priority for being formulated in modern paints.
Outside that, some paint stores have an electro spectrometer which will scan the color and formulate it with modern pigments. It will also even list if a modern color is close. I had the transport blue and both of the interior blues scanned for my truck. I recall one of them came up real close to a BMW color. All that being said, A guy who I trusted as an excellent body and paint guy told me that the scanned colors leaned towards a shade darker or lighter, I don't recall which, that told me as I believe Denny mentioned, they may need to be tinted by eye to satisfy the purist.

I hope this helps. Spectrometer info

Greg, I am the one with the spot of original color. When I get to the paint store (PPG) I will share with the list what the formulation is.

Joe

BTW the transport blue sample that I have (and looks like the original paint truck I used to have) looks nothing like the Ditzler chip that was posted. But the Ocean green does????

I am trying to find a picture that better shows transport blue. In my mind, transport blue is a medium blue that has a "greenish" tint to it. I see a lot of trucks painted transport blue but few look like the original chip and the hidden areas of my truck. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20110428/news/704289942/photos/AR/?interstitial=1

This truck looks as close as any I have seen. Hope it helps you.

We will never know the real appearance of any 50-60 year old color.

Color photographs from the 50s, original paint chips from the 50s, illustrations from the 50s, and copies of any of the above are distorted. The pigments used in formulas are either non-existent and/or they are simply not provable to be the same as whatever was original. Even a well-protected color sample/chip has most likely changed at least a little from its original appearance.

Usually you can find a protected area on a vehicle, such that you can tell if you have a particular color-name: in 1954, for example, you should be able to distinguish between Ocean Green vs Transport Blue vs one of the two Mariner Blue - they seem to be distinctly different colors.

The best we can do is to try to come close to the renditions of the colors we now have facsimiles of. This allows us to make good speculation, and interesting findings from detective work, but we will never know how close to an original color we get with a modern color/paint.

What Tim said...Bottom line is that for every decision that you make, there will always be someone to tell you that you did it wrong. Do your research, make the most informed choice that you can, and then do it the way that makes you happy. I have seen at least 6 different color charts and color wheels such as the one Tim linked to. Even they cannot give a sense of uniformity.

It is what it is...