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What ever you do don't try and match real wood to what the manufacturers called it. Its just marketing, yeah they did that back then LOL
They chopped the tops in some ads also....

Give me a shout Jdee@rwebsite.com

Yes the photo was about the center part, outside part was dark walnut.
Sorry.
Jdee

1940 WOODGRAIN Not to beat a dead horse, but I thought I should clarify what mottled aspen looks like, or rather what the grain on the plate looks like, because the mottled aspen plate emulating what Packard used, is not your simple, wavy woodgrain, but more of a hand-hewn pattern where the tree responded dramatically to every external force as it grew season on season. It may have been one reason why the dealers didn't like it.

But according to Ray Anselmo, in an article in Number 121, Winter 2005, issue of The Packard Cormorant entitled Reflections on Being a Packard Dealer, besides the fleur-de-lis trunk emblem and the Packard script hubcaps, ". . . The light woodgrain stain on the dash and window trim was also objectionable. The dark woodgrain used on the 1939s was preferred. In early spring, the dark woodgrain was used along with improved upholstery,. . ."added trim, and medallion color change on the 110 and 120 from red, which washed off, to green and blue respectively.

So now I think the color of my kit is dead wrong, because it is dark, at least at this stage, like the later 1940s and the 1939s, instead of light grain like the early 1940s. Grain-It Technologies recommended what would be the normal color for 1940. Yet, and bear with me bouncing off the wall so many times, the black and white promotional photo of the woman in the hat, shows a strong grain. So perhaps it is only the basecoat that needs to be much lighter.

edit: They also changed from the mottled plastic to solid beige or caramel. In that great photo of the woman, the plastic is mottled, so I'd say that's early 1803 dash.

If anyone has done any research on the distinction of early 1940 grain and color versus later 1940, please chime in. If you have a paint formula, I'd like to know.

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I've got nothing useful to add to the open questions, but just had to say again how much I am impressed by your research and diligence and desire to "get it right". Oregon is a long way from New Jersey, but I sure hope to get to see the finished product some day!

That is neat to know about the plastic.
I thought it was all mottled plastic.
I made a few solid sets a few weeks ago.
Maybe Evan has some new info on the colors.
I sent him this link
Jdee

OD,
Be careful what you wish for. My only sibling lives in Maryland.

As far as getting it right, I ordered my wool carpet from SMS Fabrics. It is an amazing place. 40 years of accumulating fabrics from upholstery shops and distributors all over the country and Europe. They duplicate fabrics exactly, any pattern, and stamp out those 50s door panels that mix brocade fabric with silver thread, mylar and vinyl. Plus a huge library of original fabrics and interior combinations. Questions I have about the woodgrain are answered by people who have been supplying the hobby like this for decades. The nuances are fascinating. To find a supplier who knows this stuff and can put their finger on it or reproduce it like the plastic from Yesterday's Radio or Door Sills,well, I hope someone is handing this info down.

I'm really not a stickler for authenticity. It's just that I have limited funds and if I do it, and someone points out how incorrect it is because I didn't check it out or find a resource like SMS for fabrics, for instance, I can't afford to do it over. And knowing the right resources sometimes saves money and time. Like my trunk. The place that repaired it didn't know you could buy a new pan for a lot less than fixing my rusted out one.

Plus I really, really like the script hubcaps and was thrilled when Kanter decided to reproduce them. You see them in all the announcement pictures of 40s and the publicity photos, Rory Calhoun or whoever standing by his new 40 Packard with script hubcaps. As a creator and protector of brands, I can appreciate why the dealers didn't like that script on top of the hexagon. But I've always liked it and designed those boards in the 70s for us to display our cars that have the radiator shape and the script through the hexagon at the top. Several regions picked up on it.
Joe

JDee, That's cool, but it's the plastic for the 180s, not the 160s. The 160s have a few pieces of fluted plastic and of course the knobs and handles. I guess the mottled version didn't hold up well. Mine certainly didn't so I switched to plain on my 160. The dash in the photo of the woman with the hat is a 160 dash.
Now I've got to get back to work.

Joe

Oh I see. I did not look close at the photo I got the 180 on my mind
Jdee

The carmel plastic on my car is also mottled, not solid. Unfortunately this photo seems to show it as solid. But it's not.

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I'm posting these photos for Evan.
He should be on today with some info.
Thanks Jdee