From our original R-Type body we have cut back the paint layers to the original colour of the car.
I am looking for someone who is an expert on automotive paint and painting from 1935 through to about 1965 who can help me with identifying the paints involved.
I would say all of the paint used in the 1930's-1940's contained lead, which has now been banned from use. The original top coat would have been cellulose and also the primer, the problem with cellulose products is they absorb water which will speed up any corrosion as it has no etching properties. When the racing cars where manufactured/painted they was only intended to be used for a few races and at most a season so the cars had nothing fancy done to the paint work as the more filler and paint applied the heavier the car got and we all know that they aim of the game was to reduce weight!
Best bet is to use a good brand etch I use Du Pont 840R. Not to sure about what type of cellulose products to use as it was with drawn from sale by most of the leading paint companies a few years ago in the UK. You you will need to apply 4-6 coats of primer and 6-8 coats of top coat. If you break through to the etching primer you will need to re-coat it with primer as the cellulose top coat will cause a reaction with the etch as it has such a high solvent content.
A lot of people go on about using cellulose paint as it was used in the old days and it is suppose to look like it was sprayed in a dust storm in the middle of the desert but what a load of rubbish ( I think I might have started some thing now) I can paint to identical cars/panels one with modern two pack paints and the other with cellouse paints and you would not be able to tell the difference between them. No one in there right mind would buy and pay for a new car (now or in the 1930's) and it look like it has been painted in matt emolsion, this process only happens when the car is never polished so the matt effect using cellouse paints only happens with neglect! (it also happens with modern paint but takes a lot longer)
So the answer is if you want it to look like it belongs on Pebble Beach concours it will take a lot of time and money, if you want it to look like a racing car from the 1930's put a few coats of primer on it and a lot of cellouse top coat and leave it as it comes out of the booth/shed, no filler any where. The finish of the bodys was very good, not like the Italians and there Alfa's so not much filler was used in the production cars.
My daughter had a head-on collision which completely wrote off the front of her MGB GT (after I had restored it, she bought it for 400 pounds in the UK whilst living there--it was very original but unbelievably rusty!). I had to go into hospital for an operation and the "seccnd hand" front (from a roadster) and my new mudguards were painted in two-pack professionally and the match (both colour and gloss) was absolutely perfect!
Forum Locked
Topic Locked
Posted - 08/01/2011 : 06:44:31
