Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

Hello!

My 1955 Packard 400 is going to be painted soon. The color code is GE so it will be Ultramarine Blue and Moonstone White.

Some months ago I was surfing around the site and I remember finding paint formulas for 1955 Packard colors. Now I can't find them anymore. I was able to find the paint chips, but not mix formulas. Was I imagining things when I thought I found the formulas earlier or do they exist? Can someone give me a link to them? I thought I bookmarked them but apparently I didn't.

Vesiapina

The DuPont mix formulas are on the PAC website (www.packardclub.org) under "Reference" and probably on here as well. But they are of doubtful value as most (all?) of the various tinting pigments are no longer available and have been superceded by newer tints.

The Paint Code reference is hidden in plain sight in the far left-hand column titled "Packard Paint X-Ref" or you can click here:packardinfo.com/xoops/html/modules/PaintXRef/

Scrolling down someone has posted the Moonstone's modern paint is Standox 54623 and Ultramarine Poly is Standox 867456. But I don't know if that will be much help to you as I googled both terms and neither showed up. I also went to the Standox Paint website and the color numbers resulted in "No Match."

So unless whoever posted those paint codes steps up to explain what they used, then the numbers are of little use.

Good luck. IMHO, your best bet is to use modern paints - the problem is to get a good color reference to work from.

I was under the impression that if had a good color sample, you could take it to a paint supplier and he could scan it into his computer and come up with a formula.

Color matching is as much art as science. paint formulations can vary slightly and be visibly different; your paint can weather or age, changing color. Doing it by the numbers will not give an exact match, unless you are very lucky or have failing eyesight.

Lets say that I could print an exact match visually for my blue...if you then measured the two, chances are the paint would not match perfectly. Why? Because the chemistry of the colors is different.

Same problem trying to read a paint chip. Colors that appear to match are formed of different amounts of different colors. They might match in sunshine and be different under streetlights, or cloudy skies.

I used to do work for Sears (when they were on Homan) who discovered that bathroom items (towels, shower curtains, mats, soap dishes, toilet seats) would match in the store but mismatch under incandescent or fluorescent light. Housewife would return them and be mightily irritated. They spent a lot of ytime and money working with vendors to fix things.

99 times out of 100 it just isn't simple or easy!

Larger paint suppliers already have mix formulas to duplicate many older colors but generally you have to give them the paint numbers, not the names. For example, Ultramarine metallic is Duco 202-58677. If not, cleaning and compounding a section of original paint and then having it scanned for a match is the way to go.

My 39 120 is painted Packard Blue, which is a dark blue with a slight metallic. I recently went to the Napa paint store and had them make some touch up paint in a spray can for me to paint the headlight buckets and taillights. The guy took about an hour to get it just right after his helper had tried using the computer which messed it up completely. I painted the items and they were a dead-on match. The spray can comes with the formula printed on the label, so when I needed some more, I went back to the same store and gave a different paint guy the can and had him make me another can, using the correct formula. Touched up the fender where I had scratched it working on the running board. It looked good going on, but by the time it dryer, it was not correct - just a touch too much red in it, so it had a purple tinge.

Moral of the story, even using the exact same formula, the paint can and will vary in color. I've also found that with some colors, a change in air pressure on the gun can change the final appearance. It is always best to paint all of the components at the same time. And best to have an expert mixing your colors!

Colors do not fade evenly. I remember someone touching up their original 37 Plymouth with some color match paint from a supplier we all know.

Some of it was perfect and some not so perfect.

would the ultramarine blue metal flake that is being discussed :

Ultramarine metallic is Duco 202-58677.

any thing like the Yosemite blue that my 52 200 dlx should be?

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Yosemite blue, Duco 202-55824H, is quite different.