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I spoke to Bill Hirsch today and he assured me that was the right color. He said it is a med-dark gray. Bill was a very nice gentleman and said that if I was not happy with it he would take care of me.

Also I shook the can of paint, but he advised that I stir the can with a stick and scrape the bottom of the can really well. He said since they are not allowed to use lead in the paint anymore, that the pigment will not stay suspended. So it sinks and sticks to the bottom of the can and a shaker will not break it loose.

I have noticed that as the paint has started to cure (which takes 7 days according to the can) that the color is mellowing a bit and the brownish tones are gone.

I wondering if as the paint ages and oxidizes if it takes on a lighter tone. He cautioned me on going by pictures off the internet as the lighting conditions and camera flash, plus the differences in computer monitors can make things look differnt. He said this is pretty common when people are looking at colors on his website, and then when they get something it looks a bit different.

So my applogizes to Bill Hirsch as perhaps I jumped the gun on this as most of the pictures (off of the internet) I have seen are lighter. But based on PAC's description of it being a "Med-Dark Gray similar to Sears Gray Deck paint", that seems to jive with what I have.

So I am going to let the current draft coat that I painted on the head finish curing till the weekend, then I will finish painting the entire engine. Then I will let it cure for another week and report back.

The paint itself does brush on nicely and appears to be very good quality and all of Hirsch's other paint products I have used so far have worked and looked great. I also bought a can of his frame paint. So I will report back on how that turns out after I get done painting the front clip.

Kev, That is great news. Bill Hirsch has been selling his products longer than I can remember and I was disappointed to hear your tale of problems with his products. I am very satisfied with the quality of the engine paint he sent me. After 4 years the paint still shines and has not peeled or discoloured.

BigKev -

I completely agree about stirring rather than shaking the paint. I've been doing the former for years - even when its not an automotive application. Regardless of the lead issue, there are some components that tend to settle out and cling to the bottom of the can - especially with metallic and reduced gloss formulas. The rattle "ball" serves a similar purpose in an aersol can; I once (carefully) popped an empty aerosol can open just to get one of those little buggers to use in the can of my spray gun.

I'd also have to agree that paint does change color as it cures, but it's hard to say just how much of a change that will be. You may also notice a further change in color after you've fired up the engine and let it come up to operating temperature; don't be surprised to smell and see a lot of fumes coming off the engine during that event.

Yet, it is impossible for any of us to judge, at a distance, whether the color will change enough to suit your needs. Terms like "dark", "medium" and "light" are highly subjective. The best hope is to find one or more unrestored originals, perhaps through local shows in your area, and judge with your own two eyes. I know that's a pretty tall order, however.

Well, I'm glad to here that the correct paint for the exhaust manifold has been shipped and that you got some satisfaction from talking with Mr. Hirsch himself. Yet, I am still concerned about the initial treatment you got from the company's customer service people. It echoes a similar encounter that a friend had a few years ago with fulfillment of his order for paint for a Pontiac straight eight. While that matter was ultimately resolved to his satisfaction, it left a bad first impression with him, and it seems like there's still an underlying problem with their customer service function.

Let us know how it goes with the second coat of gray engine paint.

Kevin, I have a new original power steering pulley that is factory painted gray by Packard. If you have no luck, let me know and i'll loan it to you to get matched at the paint store. It is on eBay right now, so let me know and I'll end the auction to loan it to you.

Thanks for the offer. The engine is painted at this point, and the color has mellowed a bit. So I think I am going to roll with it. I find that when I take a picture of it with the flash on, the color looks like just like the pictures I have found online. So I think the color maybe be ok, its all in the lighting conditions I guess.

But I do appreciate the offer.

When I was at the Warren Show I took a picture of an engine that was in (I belive) a 23rd series car, and the gray on that engine is an exact match for the gray that I got from Hirsch.

Here is that picture:

packardinfo.com/xoops/html/uploads/photos/416.JPG

So I am starting to feel better about the color now.

BigKev -

I'm glad to hear the paint seasoned out to your liking. Sounds like the advice from Bill Hirsch (the man himself) helped. It's just too bad the people on the front line in customer service people weren't able to handle it, first.

Again, a big reason shoppers look to companies like this is to get the right product (in this case, one that matches color), but it sounds like you have it.

I look forward to seeing how painting of the frame and firewall progress, but - most of all - your report of firing that engine off for the first time.

That looks more like Cummins Beige to me. How does anyone get grey out of that???

BigKev reported that Bill Hirsch:

Quote:
The man makes a good and valid point, but let me go one step further and say that color-matching can also vary from one camera to the next, even when lighting conditions are the same.

As such, I'm gonna let BigKev's eyes be the judge since he knows what his engine looks like and saw the subject car in person at Warren (while I did not).

Keith,

You may need to adjust the color on your monitor. I know that before you had problems seeing the blue on blue links, while other people could see them just fine.

Here is a website that I use to calibrate all my monitors/lcds/etc. Basically you read throught the instructions and adjust you monitor at the same time to make all the grids and patterns appear like the verbage describes how they should look. Pretty easy, takes 5 mins, and makes a world of difference.

epaperpress.com/monitorcal/

The trick is to being able to see all the different steps in the gradients they display. You may find that your brightness, color, or contrast has a bias one was of the other and is causing a slight color shift.