Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

I haven't been able to find much on this on the site, so perhaps someone just knows? My '34 chassis came with wire wheels and they seem to have been painted a very dark blue. It looks to be an original colour - if this is the case can someone tell me what the colour was called or point me towards a formula or colour chip? I would like to use this colour for the wheels and chassis of the new special.

Cheers

Snapey

The darkest of the blues in 1934 was Packard Blue, a standard factory color for several decades though it may have varied a bit over the many years it was used.

The other 1934 blues were Bruce Blue Pearlite, a metallic blue, and (in some references) Gainsborough Blue, a very much lighter blue.

Based on information on TCP Global's web site (http://www.tcpglobal.com/autocolorlibrary/aclchip.aspx?image=1934-packard-pg01.jpg), Packard Blue in 1934 is IM-1441. They have color chips for many IM numbered colors.

They should be able to blend you a quart in an acrylic enamel that you could use to see if it matches what you have. I would suggest talking to Jimmy "Chips" (ext. 135) or John (ext. 150) at TCP (858-909-2110) about the matter.

Good Luck.

Thanks guys - will check it out and see what I can find here in Oz.

There are 2 modern colors that are a pretty spot on match for Packard Blue. One of them is called Midnight Blue and it was offered on 77-79 T-Bird, Cougar, and some Lincoln models through those years. It's very close. The other is from Chrysler Corp from the early-mid 80s called Nightwatch Blue. Spray it over a black base or black sealer and it's just about perfect. Packard Blue is "Prussian Blue" tint and binder (the clear portion of the mix), nothing else. And yes, the Prussian Blue tint is just like the bluing used for valve jobs. Very transparent. Have fun...

I just browsed the DuPont color mix formulas for Packard Blue over the years - and the formulas do differ a bit over time as I had suggested earlier. Some were based on Prussian Blue, others on Milori Blue, and always with very small amounts of other tinting agents which also varied from year to year. No doubt the end results were all quite similar.

It sounds like Nightwatch Blue will be an easy equivalent to access so will give that a try. Thanks again to you all.