Been putzing around with various paints this past year. The Wurth satin trim paint always seemed to be the closest to the original tin color that I found. Recently picked up a can of their semi-gloss black laquer paint. Well it's even closer to the original color! Be great for touch up if you dust it in, or decide to do a repaint. The satin trim was just a tad too brown/grey from original. This semi gloss black picks up the shine abit, and lessens some of that brown/grey tint (although it still has some which is a good thing). They have a laquer primer that goes with it. Definetly a satisfactory match, although not perfect. It's just slightly blacker than the orginal tin. Hardly noticable.

Great Tod - this will help in refinishing my tins!

Just to clarify - did you also try the blacks at that NLA (356 resto) & VW resto online stores which I'd posted for you before & this was closer than those?

... or do you still need to try & compare those?

Tom
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When I disassembled my 72 for a respray in late 1978, the purpose was to make it a winner at he 1980 Parade, which was to be in California (Loma Prieta, as my weak memory recalls). A major undertaking that I started too late as it turned out.

While the stripped body was in the shop for leadwork and paint, the motor, ductwork, trans and misc parts were awaiting refurbishing in my garage.

Earlier in the year I had had my steelies walnut blasted & restored by a friend who owned a shop in Cincinnati, so I took all these other parts (including the tin) to him for blasting. Didn't have him resray the parts because I wanted to do it myself.

Back to the tin......

At the time, I had no compressor or spray guns. Used a Rustoleum gray primer as soon as the parts were prepped & let the sit for 2 weeks. In between, I'd found another Rustolem semi-gloss product that was mixed 4 parts black/1 part dark brown. Seemed to be the proper mixture to me. I applied three light coats, with 2 days drying time in between. Then let it cure for about 10 days. Took 800 grit paper to it, with plenty of water, but it came out too shiny. So I used rubbing compound on them - came out too dull! The shades were right on - hint of dark brown in the direct sun/ black in the shade, but it was too dull!

Labored over this for some months & though we missed that year's Parade, we won six regional, zone & multi-marque events. Yet I knew the finish in the tin was not quite correct. Tried Malms, but it just made it too shiny. Just couldn't get that "perfect" sheen.

At a zone meet that year, as I was prepping all the suspension parts with Pledge, my wife told me to try it on the tin and valve covers. VOILA! The perfect sheen! Spray it on a clean diaper, wipe it on, wipeit off - a perfect match to Mother Germany!

Next year we went to the Asheville Parage (81) & cleaned clock!

The topside engine judge(unnamed here because he's a pro) asked me if the tin was original. I explained that it was refurbished & that the "610" markings had to go bye-bye to do this. To his credit, he gigged me a point for it, though I wouldn't have been that anal.

Sorry for one of my diatribes, but sometimes old people do these things.

Guess my point is - if you prep the tin properly, and prime it properly, and use good products and have patience - you can make the tin look Factory. Hell, you can ake it match your exterior paint (not recommended on this forum) if you spend some time & practice.

Tod, Thanx for allowing the opportunity for an old fart to remember the old times.

Now, as a post-script.... through the years I have wrongfully polished the tin pieces with waxes. They are now to glossy, though I like them.
Pat

Great story Pat! I wonder if that Rustoleum formula is still out there. Man I thought I was anal about this stuff... no wonder you have so many awards! I'm still waiting on my runners to come back before I ship out to you. Just want to make sure I'm happy with the results first. Hopefully in a week or so I'll get it out to you.
Tom regarding the paint links, the 356 shop doesn't stock that paint anymore. Someone suggested Stoddards which I have not tried. I was under the impression that the Stoddards is using Wurth high temp aluminum paint. I couldn't get a hold of Morrice when I inquired, but the other gentleman that I spoke with, led me to that impression. Might be worth a follow up call to confirm or try. The paints from Wolfsburg West are good choices. I tried their grey-black and the dove grey. The grey-black seems like an excellent choice for the early gas tank. Will be shipping it down to Pat to get his impression. It's too grey for tin though. Their dove grey is a gloss paint. The color seems good for runners that have not matted in appearance (that flat battleship gey look), but the sheen would still need to be taken down abit. I did a brief test using a 3M red scuff pad. Very satisfactory, but would have to be very carefull using that method as not to remove too much paint. Seems like Pat's solution of dulling would be much better. I found a PC shop in PA that has dove grey. The runners been there 3 weeks now and I'm getting abit impatient. They guy there is going to show me different samples of it with varing levels of a flattener added. I'll post the results once I get them back. Hopefully soon! Car shows are starting to pop up.

Great story Pat!

However, it wasn't the Loma Prieta Quake that doomed your California Parade!

That was in Oct. 89 - which I remember well, because my best client at the time - the US subsidiary of a major British real estate development company - got a call the next day from "the Old Man" in London, telling them to sell everything in CA & wind down the business. We had a $50+ mm shopping center redevelopment deal pending then which that day went ....

So I don't forget that it was 1989!

FYI - http://pubs.usgs.gov/dds/dds-29/

Thanx for all of your input & research on the paint Tod!

Whenever I get to my tins & suspension parts, I'll try local sources & some experimentation out here on my too, as you've done on yours.
First I've got to get mine stripped to shell & repaired/painted, but I'm not happy about my first choice body shop's estimate suddenly growing 3-4x from a few months ago!
I guess they got busy now & don't need the work unless it's a !!

Just buffed out and polished some small pieces I refinished with the satin trim paint. Looks real good. I noticed that there seems to be some variance on the factory tin color. Either one, don't think you could go wrong. Once I get the car finished I'll post some shots.

Tod, Pat, Paul, et al CWs .....

Isn't it basically the same color/tone/finish black paint used on the engine tins, airbox/air-cleaner, fuel tank/expansion tank/vapor-cannister, suspention parts etc. which were originally in that semi-gloss black??

... or are we going to be hunting down the "proper black" for each of those?

It seems to make some logical sense that Karmann & VW/Porsche would've used the same black & grey paints on all of their components painted that way respectively.

BTW Tod, the resto guy's (my post above) suggestion on keeping the bare metal engine bar from rusting is to do a satin or flat anodizing, which should still like like the raw metal. He said they've done that on some 914-6's that they've restored.

No, the air cleaner was a a semi-gloss.
Expansion tank shade is a function of your production cycle - some were satin, some were semi gloss.
Late 72 tanks had a gray/brown/black semi gloss finish.
Some pieces of the plumbing for heat were painted a slate/semi gray.
The enigine bar WAS bare metal, which oxidized overnight. It was ill-thought. Replacing the rusty piece with a satin black piece seems to make sense to me, which I did in '89. Nope. not factory original,and I rearely make exceptions, but this just seemed right. If you anodize it, a judge can spot it a mile away. Don't waste your money, because you're going to get gigged anyway. Go for purty!
Pat

Th late style engine support bar is cast iron, the anodizing process is only for aluminum. The only thing that can be done to the engine bar is to leave it the original bare metal and watch it rust, or paint it with a color or clear paint coating. I suppose you could also plate it.

+1 on the cast iron; here is my old bent bar next to the new one I bought from the dealership a year or so ago. And I will paint it before putting it in my '73

Click to view attachment

There is that VHT iron cast high temp paint out. Might be the way to go.

I actually have a can of that and am going to test it on my old bar and compare to the new one. If it works and somewhat retains the factory look, I'd rather do that than just paint it black.

Mine's a light grey now. At some point wanted to address that as well. Love to see your results Mike.

I'll post as soon as they are done. I am just getting ready to swap the 2.2 out and the 3.2 in on my conversion car.

Then, finally, I can finish off the '73. I'll shoot the bar by this weekend and post.

m.

Thanx Pat, Mike & Tod --- learning more every day!

Look forward to seeing your pix - both/all of you!

That engine bar almost looks like what we used to call "black (-ened) steel" !!??
... wonder if they carbon treated it for that OE finish on the new one?