Color chips

    Those individuals wanting to know what colors to paint their Chevy truck or car can go to the www.AutoColorLibrary.com web site for information and view online color chips.

Chassis Paint

   I wanted a chassis paint that was tough and had some protection from any rust that was still present after sand blasting. After checking around  it was a toss up as to Restomotive Labs POR-15 or a similar product from Hirsch Auto. POR-15 was UV sensitive and Hirsch advertised that their product was very UV resistant. Both POR-15 and Hirsch rust preventive paint must also be top coated. I decided to go with Hirsch, a base coat (Miracle Paint) which would cover and bond to any rust then a  top coat (Super chassis black) was applied over this to protect the base coat. After receiving the paint I found the instructions listed (Miracle paint) as being sensitive to UV's contrary to their ads. The paint is expensive with Hirsch coming in at a lower price. As advertised this is a urethane based paint that cures in the presence of moisture. I found that indeed this was true when it started raining an hour after painting some parts one day. I had parts laid out on a table outdoors, the freshly painted parts were moved indoors with out a finger mark dripping wet.

     Both products come with warnings, one being not to get any paint on your hands as it dries nothing in the world will take it off. Believe me I found this to be true and had black paint on my hands till my skin shed five days or so later. Buy the in house thinner they recommend which is not available at your local hardware store, I did find that extra strength Acetone comes in a close second in a pinch. Regular paint thinners available in stores won't touch this paint and just runs off like water. As this paint dries fast you must wash spills quickly before it has a chance to set up.  After several days of painting a can of  Brake Clean was nearby so I gave it a try cleaning my hands and sprayer with very good results. The best way to protect yourself is the use of gloves, household kitchen gloves work great and are very flexible to wear. The base coat paint is very thin and sprays very well through ordinary off the shelf paint sprayers. The top coat paint is thick and requires some thinning for best results ( you must use Hirsch thinner). Clean the sprayer immediately after using with caution not to do any extended painting sessions. Even with care my sprayer has taken on a black look instead of the shinny chrome finish it once had. In high humidity climates the paint will dry very quickly, in two or three hours may be handled. In dry low humidity areas it may take 24-48 hours to set up. The base coat is very glossy but after top coating this product changes the finish to a dull semi gloss.