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For restorers and car owners
who are diehard originalists finding a set of
paint chips for the year and model of car that
is being restored is equivalent to finding a gold
mine. These sets not only show the exact colors
that were being offered for a particular year,
but they also include mixing information, color
combinations that were available, code numbers
and other identifying information.
While researching this article I found a fabulous
resource for those of you who are restoring a
car on the DuPont web site. They have a Historical
Color Chip Library which can be accessed by clicking
here.
If this link does not work go to www.performancecoatings.dupont.com
(and click on) >>> Visitor >>>
Color >>> Color Chip Library - Historical.
You will arrive at the 'DuPont Refinish' page.
Now you're probably wondering why I'm giving you
this information when our parent company, McLellan's
Automotive History, has the actual paint chips
for sale. That is the exact reason I'm doing so.
To quote the DuPont website, "Have you ever
had difficulty hunting down the original color
information for a restoration job or a clean,
older model in need of repair? Like most painters,
we would bet you have. Out-of-print color chips
are extremely difficult to obtain, and getting
harder to find every day." I couldn't have
said it better myself!
And they go on to say that "These scanned
color chips [which they show on the website] are
only a representation of the actual color. Colors
may vary due to differences in monitors as well
as chip production methods over the years."
For this reason it is always better to have an
original paint chip chart if you're lucky enough
to find one for your car.
With those chips the company can use their color
matching tools (i.e. ChromaVision, AcquireX, X-Pert,
VINdicator and DuPont Top Mix) to match and mix
the exact color you need for authenticity.
A question that I asked my personal expert was,
"But how about fading and/or discoloration?"
As long as the paint chip charts were not exposed
to direct sunlight the colors should be true.
And the chips we have were in books and haven't
seen the light of day in years. If we have the
one you need you can be confident that it is the
color that was used on your car in the 1930s,
40s or 50s.
Here is a list of the years and makes that we
have at the present time for DuPont and Ditzler
Automotive Finishes:
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