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An attempt at a paint match for original green

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WellFedHobo View Drop Down
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    Posted: 27 Nov. 2018 at 3:28am
While we decided to go a slightly different direction on the color of our trailer, we did have some very well preserved original green lead-based paint on the hubs and on the inside of the wheels, among other places hidden under layers of rust. Time was of the essence on this. Not only was all of this is about to be sand blasted away, but I also noticed that the paint had begun to degrade and flake off one of the hubs after being out in the garage instead of nicely sealed together between the axle hub and the wheel, so we wanted to be able to offer a color match for anyone who might want to try to use something very close to the original green. Others have offered their take on the original green so I thought I'd offer my color match attempt to the community here. This place has been a wealth of knowledge over the years so I wanted to add something back.

Special thanks to Deb at The Home Depot in Little Rock for really trying hard to get as exact a match as possible, even though I brought the hardest part to fit under the color scanner thing (the axle hub) and the machine didn't want to let her easily tweak the color formula.

Disclaimer: The color match came from the axle hub/wheel paint on our '45 trailer, an area subjected to heat from the bearings. (Our bearings were well greased and were in nearly perfect shape after disassembly and cleaning.) The paint appeared very well preserved. Who knows what effect heat has on 73 year old lead-based paint? For that matter, who knows what kind of effects time has on 73 year old lead-based paint? Might not have any effect, might darken it, might lighten it, might just maintain its color perfectly if sealed away from the elements. Who knows? The pictures below have original paint next to Behr Ultra exterior paint. Your mileage may vary. Actual color match may differ from the original Bantam green, whatever that was. Color match may vary based on brand of paint used. Ask your doctor if color matching 73 year old paint is right for you, especially when matching lead-based paint. Smile

The color match was done at The Home Depot using Behr Ultra satin paint using UL223 as a base.

CLRNT: 384 (unit of measure, typically 384?) 
DL: 237
EL: 20
TL: 51

For those unfamiliar with Behr pigment codes: (such as me, until earlier today)
DL= Phthalo Green
EL= Phthalo Blue
TL=Medium Yellow

Worst case, if you show them the below picture, they can probably figure it out. 



As a test at the store, we dabbed the paint right onto the hub. It was dried with a hair dryer at the counter. In the image below, the left side shows the preserved original green. The first match attempt is on the right, towards the inside. It was noticeably too blue. The second attempt was dabbed right on top of it, towards the outside. It might be just a touch too yellow compared to the original, but it looks 99%+ correct when viewed in person. Cell phone pictures really just can't capture it no matter how you light the area or use the flash.



As an additional reference, I painted some of the color matched paint sample right on top of the rust of a damaged combat rim with preserved original paint (slightly dirty in places) on the inside of the hub just for comparison. As with all things paint related, prep work is key. The unprepared surface looks like painted sandpaper but the color match is very, very close to the preserved original paint. The surfaces reflect light differently due to their different compositions so it's damned near impossible to get a proper picture of them for you guys.




Side Note: 

After scraping off some of the baked on grease from the underside of the hub, there was some original green paint that appeared slightly lighter than the paint that was protected by the wheel. There wasn't enough there to do a color match. Its lighter color could have been due to it being even better preserved by a coating of grease that got baked on, or it could have been due to a chemical reaction with the grease, and thus is not significant. Who knows? Science and chemistry, man... 



I would have really preferred to have an RGB color code instead of the proprietary Behr code, but if this helps anyone with their project, it was worth the effort.


Edited by WellFedHobo - 27 Nov. 2018 at 3:34am
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 48cj2a Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Nov. 2018 at 11:55am
nice work! Thumbs Up
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ndnchf Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Nov. 2018 at 12:26pm
I thought Behr just made house paint Confused So is that paint something like Rustoleum?  Can it be thinned and sprayed?  If so, what is it thinned with and the ratio? At my next visit to Home Depot I need to ask if they have one of those fancy scanners.  Great info - Thanks.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote WellFedHobo Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Nov. 2018 at 3:50pm
Originally posted by ndnchf ndnchf wrote:

I thought Behr just made house paint Confused So is that paint something like Rustoleum?  Can it be thinned and sprayed?  If so, what is it thinned with and the ratio? At my next visit to Home Depot I need to ask if they have one of those fancy scanners.  Great info - Thanks.

Looks like Behr primarily does interior/exterior house paint. I was more worried about getting the color versus something I could use. Armed with that paint info, someone could buy a small sample bottle, paint it on something, and then get a color match at a shop that makes paint meant for more automotive or industrial finishes. My local Sherwin Williams wouldn't color match it for me unless I was spending $40+ for a gallon. Home Depot actually accepted the challenge to get the match as close as possible. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ndnchf Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Nov. 2018 at 4:15pm
Originally posted by WellFedHobo WellFedHobo wrote:

Originally posted by ndnchf ndnchf wrote:

I thought Behr just made house paint Confused So is that paint something like Rustoleum?  Can it be thinned and sprayed?  If so, what is it thinned with and the ratio? At my next visit to Home Depot I need to ask if they have one of those fancy scanners.  Great info - Thanks.

Looks like Behr primarily does interior/exterior house paint. I was more worried about getting the color versus something I could use. Armed with that paint info, someone could buy a small sample bottle, paint it on something, and then get a color match at a shop that makes paint meant for more automotive or industrial finishes. My local Sherwin Williams wouldn't color match it for me unless I was spending $40+ for a gallon. Home Depot actually accepted the challenge to get the match as close as possible. 

Well Darn! I was hoping that it would be ready to use.  I'd like to get a quart mixed for touch up work.  But thanks for the info.
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