Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Dear Fred:

I don't think you will find any products that match the luster of those old lead based lacquer paints.

As for color matching your best bet is to borrow a piece from a car with the color you want and have them camera match it. What that does is match the color to a modern car and then tint it to match the Packard color. The formula will then be put on the can for future use.

I know the water based situation is a bummer, but at the rate the country is falling apart, enforcement will go out the window.

Also, you can put the water based stuff over just about anything.

I agree with Tim, nothing matches the depth of luster of nitrocellulose lacquer, though acrylic lacquer comes close. That said, I've seen some lovely paint jobs in non-metallic colors, some done for winners at Pebble Beach, done with single stage urethanes. But nothing compares to nitrocellulose lacquer with thankfully you can still purchase is almost any Packard color.

Agreed. I heard the difference described by an old restorer, in an apt way. He said: "Modern 2-pak has a lot going for it, but it lacks the 'patina' that acrylic has". Some nitrocellulose finishes can have even more of that patina than acrylic. In days past it was not unusual for a very enthusiastic painter to spray five double-header coats of acrylic colour followed by eight or ten of acrylic clear. There was great depth to the finish that you don't easily/usually attain with 2-pak.

Larry51, the traditional nitrocellulose lacquer paint jobs on the high-end cars from the classic era often used as many as a dozen coats of laquer with hand rubbing or wet sanding between coats. And they weren't clear-coated. I don't know that "patina" is the word to describe the resultant depth of finish which is something that really can only be achieved today by using lacquer. I know of several recent Pebble Beach winners that were done with lacquer and no clear coat. You've really got to see one of these finishes in person to fully appreciate them. And though today's paints are so very much durable (resistant to chipping for example) and resistant to surface oxidation, those old lacquer paints, especially the non-metallics, can have remarkable longevity. There are plenty of examples of cars from the early 30s with original paint that are still quite outstanding. The body tub of my 34 Eight is still original factory paint. The painting that I did redo, fenders, sidemount covers, hood, were done about 30 years ago in nitrocellulose and still look like new. Were I to consider having a high-value Full Classic repainted today, I'd probably go againw with lacquer. For a car to be driven more regularly and of lesser intrinsic value, I'd think single stage urethane (for a non-metallic).

Problem with the good finishes is they are not available everywhere. For example, I don't know if nitrocellulose is legally available out here and if it is, can a professional shop use it. I doubt it on both counts. Unless you are a good painter and can use good stuff yourself, Kev has mentioned a couple of times that because of VOC restrictions a professional shop cannot use some of the good things from years past.

I expect it's only going to get worse as other states start regulating more or face fines. I just saw in the paper a few days ago Calif's version of the EPA was forced to pass over industry's strenuous protest another bunch of restrictions for next year. Not sure what products we won't be able to get next. You can be sure if it's something that stinks but is known to work well, the alternative will be twice as expensive and work half as well.

The biggest problem with matching colors is that the old lacquers used lead based pigments. Those pigments were also better binders which is why the old lacquers were more durable than today's stuff. For DIY's of course, lacquer was always an option because all you needed was a gun and a shed.

Once a well known restorer and myself were looking at an old lead based lacquer job that still looked fresh after 40 years. Of course the car didn't see a lot of weather.