Ok done a few different searches on this both here and in the engine area and could not find the answer.


For a 81 300 - 6 what was the factory color of the engine?
Was the block & head 1 color and valve cover a different color?
I found brackets were painted black or left to rust. Some have painted the valve cover, side cover a different color than the block but cant see the factory doing the side cover.


In cleaning the motor for paint it looks like it is a replacement from a newer car/truck. I say this as it has an O2 sender in the exh. manifold and some other senders that I don't think my 81 truck would of come with or used.
Any way to know what year this may be? Numbers I can find and lookup or post?


Was the bell housing on the engine when it was painted and if so was it just over spray on it or was it fully painted?


T18 trany, I take it was not painted and left to rust. Is this right?


Just looking how the factory would have done it.......not that I will follow it but would like to know so I might do the same maybe with different colors
Dave ----

 

From what I remember, the block valve covers and air cleaner were the sake color and no paint on the bell housing. I can say that I never examined a bell housing close enough to remember if it had over spray on it. Lets see what others remember.

 

Thanks bcamill.
What was that color Ford LT Blue or Black and this was on the 300?
This valve cover is black, no color on block/head and no air filter.


The over spray question on the bell housing came from my AMC car side as they had over spray on them and just wanted to know.
Thanks again
Dave ----

 

Sorry, forgot that part. I have only seen blue from the factory. That is not to say that it changed from year to year.

 

Did a Google hunt and found Diesel Brad listed this

66-80 are ford DARK blue (found till 82)
81-94 are ford gray (found 82 was the switch year so could be blue or gray)
95-current are black

Don't know why it did not show up when I did a search on this site?
1 Post said he had gray with a black valve cover but another picture shows all gray.
Also the blue should match the blue dist. cap adaptor blue if you still have the factory one as they switched to gray

I did see a 300 done in I think light blue with valve, side cover & oil pan in black looked sweet.

What I am working with



So looks like blue it is but do I do valve & lifter covers in black?


Any word on bell housing & T18 trany colors?
Dave ----

 

Is Brad's list of colors for the 300? I ask because Dad's 1981 351M was the dark blue, and DupliColor's Dark Ford Blue (DE 1606) is a good match for that.

Brandon and I were discussing the colors here, and came to the conclusion that it must have been the build date rather than model date as we both have trucks that have blue engines in a model year that some say shouldn't be blue. Don't know if the build vs model thing is true, but I do know that some 1981's had the dark blue paint - and I have one.

 

My 80 and 82 had Ford dark blue. The valve cover and side cover were painted. The blocks were bare.
The 80's air cleaner was blue on top, black on bottom. The 82's was unpainted. Both had unpainted bellhousings and transmissions.

Your engine looks 84 or later by the EFI style valve cover. It could have ended up black many ways. Probably painted when it was put in.

 

I a curious if there is a difference between engines and colors. I know the early 82 W was dark Ford blue in my truck as Gary linked. Gary's M was dark blue, but they were discontinued after 81 so there is no control to compare with. I dont know about other engines though. Did the different power plants play by their own rules? I know there were different plants that manufactured different motors.

I say keep searching Fuzz.

 

Gary, yes it was for a 300 as per the title of the post.


The v8's and six use different color blues. The v8 I am pretty sure used the darker blue 1606 that you used but the six used light blue 1601 that you posted.

Thanks on the year on motor I knew it had to be later than 81. As for black paint on valve cover it does not look like it has ever been painted.

Bruno, as I posted above to Gary, yes v8 & sixes used different colors. I have never seen a dark blue six only the light blue. Now in looking deeper why my motor has a black valve cover it does not look like it was painted when the motor was into this truck.

 

May not be original valve cover.

 

The O2 and tad/tab solenoids make me think TFI IV, the Ford grey makes me think 83 and later. It has been many years since I saw my 84 valve cover, I know it was grey with the Ford oval but I can't remember for sure if it had the drop center. The drop center was in place by 86 for sure though.
My scanned pics are of very poor quality, I'll see if I can find the original ones, I had a very cheap 35mm camera at the time though, so they may not be much better.
This is one of the few pictures I have of the stock engine in my 82:

I did that engine swap in Feb/march of 00... LOL
Just as a note, oil pans matched the covers. The 80 and 82 had the dipstick in the pan, the 84 had the stick in block like the OP's engine.

 

82F100SWB, thanks for the up date.
After doing a wash down of motor I found it was gray top to bottom. Don't know why or how the valve cover got black on it but after the cover went thru the parts cleaner I did see some gray on it.
It also had some JY type writing on the valve cover but could not make it out.


Also as you noted the dip stick is in the block.


As for what color blue the stock 81 motor was and if over spray was on the bell housing or not. The bell I took off (steel not alum) looks to be all painted and it is a dark blue, darker than the picture above. with every thing I have found changed on this truck it could be the bell is from a v8 as I think they had a darker blue on the old FE motors?


I am going to pick a blue I like and paint the motor & bell. The trany will be painted silver/alum. once I clean it.
Thanks
Dave ----

 

FE bell housings will NOT bolt up to your six as the FE's didn't have the small-block pattern, as outlined here: ford bell housing patterns | The H.A.M.B.

 

My trucks all had aluminium bells, however I did put a 78 iron bell in my 81 when I put a 300 back in it, as the aluminium one that was likely factory was cracked. It was Ford dark blue.
I know the 80 was unmolested as it had 35,000 miles on it the first time I had my hands on it in 1999 and it had spent 15 years in a garage prior. It still had 195/75r15's.

 

Would a 81 with a T18 trany have a alum or iron bell?
I know my parts truck also an 81 with an SROD has alum bell.


I picked up 2 cans of Dupli-color Ford blue 1601 for motor & bell and 1 can of cast steel for the T18 trany.
Going to try and do the final wash of motor & trany and get paint on them tomorrow.
Dave ----