1953 engine color

[CartRich]

Hi there. I am new to this forum so my apologies if this has been answered by a past post. A quick search did not yield any answers on this end.

I have recently acquired a 1953 Patrician in pretty much basket case condition. The engine was in a state of rebuild that never got much further than a prep stage after disassembly and now I will start to attempt to put it back together as time permits. My first step is painting the block and oil pan. My question is, what color was the engine on this year and model? My father's 1937 is a Packard green, but I don't know if they maintained the color into the 50's or if it was changed.

Thanks for any help or guidance you send my way.

[Owen_Dyneto]

The correct color is gray. Most of the larger Packard vendors sell an engine enamel in the correct shade.

[CartRich]

Thanks so much for the rapid reply.

[Guest BigKev]

Here is a pic of my '54 engine, everything should be bascially the same in color on your '53 engine. I used the Packard Gray paint from Bill Hirsch.

[CartRich]

Thanks for the picture! I can only hope that I can get mine to that state of repair some day.

[Guest BigKev]

Thanks! It's been a long process. But I did everything in my two car garage with a low budget. Just for comparison here is what it looked like when I started. All the parts were reused, and refinished. Only part I changed out was rubber pieces, and rusted bolts. I added the oil-bath air cleaner in place of the non-oil bath one. Anything is possible with enough labor.

[Guest 51Patty400]

Hirsch Automotive Products

EE-QUARTPACGREYENGINE ENAMEL $33.00

- Mark

[Guest 51Patty400]

Hey Kev,

Does that large air filter on the restored motor have a part number on it. Its the only piece I need to complete my restore.

- Mark

[Guest BigKev]

I would will look to see if I can find the part number. That air cleaner came from a '53 Clipper in a junkyard in Portland, OR. PortlandDon (one of the Gents on my website) was nice enough to send it to me. They were available as an option on the Clippers (and 200's) but I thought they came standard on many 300s-400s (Packard Line).

Just make sure you get the right snout size for the carb you have as they made 2bl and 4bl versions. The 2bl versions are the hardest to locate. This is what it looked like when I received it:

[Guest imported_Speedster]

Lookin' Good!

After Pic:

[Clipper47]

Kev, What paint did you use on the air cleaner? The oil bath one on my 47 appears to be galvanized and the paint didn't adhere very well. I have since removed al the paint again and want to do it right this time. Did you use a primer?

[Guest BigKev]

I used Eastwood "Glossy Chassis Black" paint (rattle can). It really does a good job.

I took the air cleaner down to bare metal with a wire-wheel mounted on a die grinder. Then I degreased every square inch of it in my part washer. I had to 'bump' a few dings out, and use a little bit of bondo to smooth it all out. Then two wet coats of rattle can krylon automotive primer. Then I sanded it lightly with a green pad to level the primer, and then shot it with two coats of the Eastwood paint.

The eastwood paint is pretty good, but dont touch it for a couple days until it cures, or you will have nice smudges and finger prints in the gloss.

Also you can find more pictures and a complete running history on my project blog:

http://packardinfo.com/xoops/html/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=57&forum=10

[Guest imported_Speedster]

I can vouch for the Krylon automotive primer being surprizingly great stuff, but be sure to get the primer that says 'Automotive Primer' on the can, not one of the many other gray primers they make.