Chassis Paint

Discussion in 'Chassis restoration' started by BRUCE GROTH, Jan 10, 2023.

  1. BRUCE GROTH

    BRUCE GROTH Member

    Looking to clean up my chassis on 65 Electra and was wondering what is the correct color for the chassis paint? Most of my reading says satin black for frame and inner fender wells. My firewall is gloss black which I thought should match the inner fenders, fender wells are satin. Any prefered brands out there? Any feedback? Thanks
     
  2. wkillgs

    wkillgs Gold Level Contributor

    The frame was likely not painted, but coated with a asphalt-based coating
    https://www.gastanks.com/Q-Coat-Asphalt-Based-Frame-Chassis-Paint-1-Quart/productinfo/06-14/

    You're better off just painting it with a conventional flat or satin black.

    Paint for engine compartment sheetmetal can range from Rustoleum or Eastwood spray cans to spray-gun applied urethanes from your local auto-body supply store. What preparation are you doing (wire wheel, sandblast, etc), what application method are you planning (spray gun?), and what level of results do you want?
     
  3. BRUCE GROTH

    BRUCE GROTH Member

    Looking to clean it up best as possible without a frame off restoration. Going to wire brush/wheel the frame and treat rust with rust converter or similar then paint with rust encapsulator (mostly by brush) for frame, then use spray gun or cans to do inner wheel wells, firewall and radiator support, where able to with a satin black paint. Was a little confused because wheel wells and radiator support are satin black and firewall is gloss black. I would have thought that it would be all the same.
     
  4. Smartin

    Smartin antiqueautomotiveservice.com Staff Member

    Firewall should not be gloss
     
  5. Max Damage

    Max Damage I'm working on it!

    I like the Chassis saver in satin, it's not that easy to handle/use. but you can skip the "rust converter" stage, and it seems to hold up well. Similar to the POR product.
     
  6. 12lives

    12lives Control the controllable, let the rest go

    Note that rust encapsulate paints like POR 15 need to be top coated before they cure. Directions are on the can. You can come back later and top coat but it must be scuffed which is a pain in the neck. Depending on the weather, I usually wait 45 minutes and top coat. For a satin finish I will spray a satin clear with UV block.
     
    sean Buick 76 likes this.
  7. BRUCE GROTH

    BRUCE GROTH Member

    ok thanks to all
     
  8. wkillgs

    wkillgs Gold Level Contributor

    PPG black epoxy was popular for frame and undercarriage but it got expensive.
    I've used epoxies from Viking Paints after a recommendation from Jim Weise years ago, it's good stuff. You can mix the gloss and flat to produce different gloss levels.
    https://vikingpaints.com/products/tenaco-epoxy/
    I'm presently using a Barret Jackson paint I bought at closeout from Pep Boys. It's a urethane made by Sherwin Williams, I really like it.
    Sikkens has a Rally black I would consider. Southernpolyurethanes (SPI) has good budget friendly products and offers a matte black.
    https://www.southernpolyurethanes.com/matte-black-ss

    For low buck, Rustoleum and John Deere matte black are options buy won't withstand chemicals as well.
     
  9. Max Damage

    Max Damage I'm working on it!

    Just FYI, the POR 15 doesn't necessarily need to be top coated, but it will grey out in UV light.
     
  10. 12lives

    12lives Control the controllable, let the rest go

    As an experiment I painted my old mailbox 13 years ago with POR 15. It is in direct sunlight - no shade. It took 5 years to start to turn. It took another 2 years to go from gloss to flat. It's not really grey, just flat. And it has not failed - no rust! Of course it got very wet from rain/snow which cures the compounds and hardens the coating.
     
    wkillgs likes this.

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