hey guys i am in need of a dire decision makin here. My '53 is and has been at the body shop for the past few months and the whole time i have not been able to choose a colour!!!!! I initially started my build wanting to go flat black. Then talked myself out of it. then looked at the other 4 million colours available and nothing. I look back at some flat black f100's and i just cant get over that look.I love it!! My bodyman is agreeing with me whatever color i do but flat black is a real PITA to maintain and keep lookin good. i am puttin a good chunk of change into the bodywork so it will be laser straight and i dont wanna have to blow the whole truck apart in a couple years to re paint it all again .Is there a "good" flat black kit that is recommended or someone has used? For guys that have their truck painted flat black is there a certain routine to keep it lookin good? Opinions??????

thanks
kyle

 

Having been in the painting business from 1979-2002, I can tell you a few things about paint. If you like flat black, that's fine. But for me, I don't see the big attraction and feel it's just another fad/phase that comes and goes over time, and everyone seems to have to have it now. It's not easy to do and you can't cut and polish flaws and imperfections, which you will have no matter how clean your booth is or how awesome the painter is. If you get scratches and scuffs from normal wear and driving, you can't buff those out, either. Be bold, be different, go with color and gloss.

 

IMO if the truck is going to be lazer straight go gloss black, nothing looks better (when its clean, sure gets dirty fast!)
Satin clear would give you a duller black if you really want it but I would save that for the not so pefect trucks like mine.
I love black, here is the last black car I built, 65 olds 442.

 

Flat black is not what it used to be...years ago the only option if you wanted FB was to use PPG DP90 or some other paint/primer that was never meant to be used as a top coat. Today there are many options for catalyzed, durable flat paints. Wayne makes a good point about upkeep and maintenance though so consider all the variables before moving forward. Steve Stillwell is a member of Pickups Limited in Orange County, he works for TCI and has a 56 with a flat black paint job. His truck is featured on the TDI webpage at TCI Engineering ~ 1-800-984-6259 ~ American Made Street Rods, Hot Rods, Classic Trucks, Ford & Chevy Muscle Cars Suspension and Chassis Parts. If you contact him I am sure he would be happy to give you some real world insight on the pros and cons of this paint scheme.

 

Alot of guys go for John Deere Blitz Black that comes in a kit for around $100.00 and if it holds up good on tractors and equipment with no care it must be pretty good, they swear by it and the price is right.

 

I too hate shiny paint. I also dislike Matt black. Been there, done that, as have many, many others. I'm painting mine in micaceous iron oxide 2k epoxy primer. It's a satin finished metallic effect sparkly paint. How's that for an oxymoron? They also paint oil rigs, submersible sea pumps and electricity pylons with it. Should be tough enough and different enough to keep me interested.

 

I would like to see what that looks like, I will be going with a red but still undecided on satin or gloss.

 

Drop me a pm with your email and I'll send you a photo.

 

Picking out a paint color is tough if you're indecisive but the '51 I have now is red and the one that I used to have was gloss black (see pics below). In my opinion the black just looks great on everything. Red's nice but gloss black on a straight body looks downright sexy. As far as matte black is concerned I have a friend with a matte black Harley that he says never looks clean. Always has waterspots, difficult to wash, etc. Of course this is your decision so look at as many colors on trucks as possible so you can avoid any regrets.
Good luck with your decision.

Wally

 

Opinions?
There is a little dataplate on the glove box door......

LOL just kidding, I do wish my 56 was the original color though, U-Meadow Green, not resale red (guess it worked though).

 

If your building the truck as a keeper not just to sell pick what you like, if you pick a color just to please the crowd you'll always be discontent.

 

as of right now my wife and i have three vehicles and then this merc. All of them r black so what would be one more. My body guy a supposibly found a good flat black he is gonna test spray to see for himself. 3golfjack ur truck color is also an option in our color pallet. My wife was peekin over my shoulder one night as i was searching for options and she loved ur colour. She never puts in any input on "boring" truck stuff!! so koodos to you.The truck will definately be a keeper with all the dough and tons of hours i am putting into it.

 

i really dont wanna spend unnecessary hours cleaning a flat black when i could go a shiny route and be driving it instead. The project has been delayed over a year due to an extremely crappy body guy. if i could figure out how to post pics u guys would be amazed!!

 

The only flat black truck I have seen that I like made some subtle changes to break up the design. He painted certain parts gloss black, like the rock guard behind the front bumper and the air inlet in front of the windshield. It makes you stop and check it out to see where the gloss ends and the flat begins. JMHO Jag

 

I reckon, for what my opinion is worth that a light sheen to a semi gloss black always looks better than flat black. Flat is pretty ordinary, where the little bit of shine on semi gloss say, looks much better, clean, a bit of life in it, just more interesting.