Conventional wisdom says 61-64 F100-F250 292 engines were painted black with red valve covers. F 350 and up are a different story. Two low mileage examples show silver valve covers. A coincedence? or correct?http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-...item4602b63343

 

And another '64 F 350. Engines in both of these trucks look original.Chevrolet : Corvette Chevrolet : Corvette | eBay and this one.http://www.gatewayclassiccars.com/sa...uck-S3918.html

 

I realize this is an older thread (only one of the photo references to silver valve covers still works). So if the valve covers on an F-350 with the (160HP) 2BBL 292 were originally silver, would the color have been Argent, or possibly some other shade of silver?

I'm getting my ducks in a row for an engine rebuild and a return to the engine's original paint scheme: my '61 F-350's motor, however, was replaced with a used engine from a '58-'59 (EDB 6015 E) about 30-ish years ago. Curiously, this older engine -- of specific origin unknown to me -- shows remnants of silver paint on the valve covers. So...could these valve covers be original to my truck, and not to the engine?

Just when I was getting in the groove for Vermillion Red valve covers, I came across your thread!

Thanks,

Steve

 

All 1960/65 FoMoCo engines were painted black. The valve covers were painted specific colors, as this is how FoMoCo identified engine sizes for garages/body shops.

The problem is, truck valve covers could be painted the same colors as car valve covers, but for different sized engines.

Black engine, gold valve covers: 1965 F100/350 352 / Black engine, gold valve covers: 1965 Ford Passenger Cars 289 2V

 

Bill,

I'm set on black for the block, heads, oil pan, air filter, etc. I'm just wrestling between Vermillion Red and silver for the valve covers of a '61 F-350's 292 Y block!

Thanks,

Steve

 

Hard to say the exact shade without a color photo from the assembly line. Original paint will deteriorates over time. You often see the discolored, bleached or stained paint, if any is still left. Here is some data on '64 cars and shows many different colors for different engines. Pre '66 engine colors are difficult at best to figure out.

 

Thanks. So rather than introduce yet another shade of silver, in the absence of evidence that another shade of silver is justified (i.e., more authentic), I suppose I would use the same silver, Argent, that I'm using on other details: interior rearview mirror, sunvisor arm, etc.

Much appreciated,

Steve

 

On the '57-'60 forum I came across a "pre-production" photo of a '61 truck's engine compartment with a Y Block motor installed. I know nothing more of the source or date of the photo, although I have enquired of the forum member posting the photo. I, predictably, cannot figure out how to extract solely this photo, but it's the 5th photo in post#6 of the following thread:

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...questions.html

So...the intake manifold is clearly not black. The color of the block and heads is unclear, but might not be black. Should we dismiss this photo because it is "pre-production" or is it meaningful?

Steve

 

Black and white photos leave a lot to be desired. Problem is most early 60's photos are black and white. I recommend researching old '61-'63 fire trucks with super low original mileage, then start taking notes. It appears at the F 350 level and up, colors are different than F 100 and F 250 (Ford red-black block). There is another F350 (super low mileage) with the argent-silver valve covers. https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gal...?albumid=36070 and http://www.gatewayclassiccars.com/sa...uck-S3918.html

 

Agreed on all accounts. I suppose I was hoping my link to the pre-production photo of a '61 292 would elicit comments such as (a.) "a pre-production color scheme is meaningless, and more likely to reflect the color scheme of the prior year"; or (b.) "you've got to be kidding: those pre-production versions were hand-built by a special team and bear no relation to production versions." Either way, I would have been happy painting my '61's block, heads, oil pan, intake manifold, etc. black. Now, however, I'll have some nagging doubt and will feel shame when some smart aleck 5 years from today says, "everyone knows '61 truck intake manifolds were painted to match the valve colors, the neighbor's house, or whatever"!

The engine painting and careful restoration threads on the FTE suggest to me that a definitive answer is no longer possible. And black with vermillion or silver valve covers -- depending on the truck model -- seems to be the most accurate answer we have for '61 trucks.

Any final thoughts on exhaust manifold colors? I'd like to have mine ceramic coated so whatever color I make them is going to be sticking around a long time. I have seen lots of '50s shots -- elsewhere on the FTE -- showing black exhaust manifolds on truck engines, and color opinions ranging from white to black to unpainted. Or is natural rust the way to go?

Thanks and regards,

Steve

 

Black and white shot of a new 292 (this one in a F 100) and link to an original 292 in a '61 F 600 http://www.purplewave.com/cgi-bin/mn...110511/8662/31

 

Thank you! Lots of good info in each photo! Block, waterpump, heads, gooseneck could certainly be black but intake appears to be somewhere between black and the valve cover color.

Much appreciated,

Steve

 

Hey Conserv, more evidence of the silver valve covers on F 350's.http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ford-F-350-/331620510328?forcerrptr=true&hash=item4d361f6a78&item=331620510328

 

Thank you! I saw this and actually thought about posting it here but by the time I went back to eBay, the first "run" of this listing had disappeared.

I'm quite convinced this silver was fairly (entirely?) consistently used, but I have to wonder "Why change it from F-350s up?"

Regards,

Steve

 

Good question. The color change on valve covers identifies the engine is different than lighter duty versions. The main difference on F 350's is the use of heavier duty rod bearings. While the standard F 100-F250 use copper-lead bearings, F 350's use babbit-plated copper-lead bearings.