Paint replacement

[Guest Atari1977]

Hi, my grandfather owns a 1936 Dodge coupe which runs great but has a cosmetic problem that I wanted to see if we could fix. There are spots on the headlights where the paint has been scraped off, from my great grandfather who wasn't all that careful when closing the hood. Is there a recommended way to repaint these spots without just repainting the whole car?

Edited July 4, 2012 by Atari1977 (see edit history)

[1936 D2]

Some of the "body and paint" guys may chime in here, but I would think that you should be able to fairly easily remove the headlamp from the car and take it to a quality automotive paint shop where they would be able to computer match the paint color and possibly be able to put it into shaker spray cans for you. Then you would be able to properly prep the old surface (sanding and primer if required) and shoot on the newly matched paint. What color is your car? Is it original paint? Someone here may have had your original paint color already mixed with a modern paint formula. If so they may be able to let you know what that mix formula is. If not, just have it color matched. It should be very close and would look much better than now. It is also good that the part is "separate" from the other panels a bit, so any slight mis-match would not be seen easily.

This is also a good time to replace any needed mounting gaskets to help the finished look and to also clean all connections and grounding points so the lights have the best chance to work properly. You can also find new hood corner rubber covers (part #488547) which will help minimize the damage in the future.

Come back on the Forum whenever you have any other questions. There are a few '36 owners out here that are happy to help!

[Guest Atari1977]

Thanks for the info. The car is navy, and I'm pretty sure it's the original paint though I might have to check on that. Here's a picture in case anyone was interested.

[Guest 1930]

Never having owned a 36 I cant tell you if you can paint the headlights on the vehicle without removing them and not end up with dry spots somewhere around the perimiter. I doubt its possibly to do a nice job on the car though so I would also remove them.

Once you remove them and have found a paint match its just a matter of feathering out the damage or possibly stripping the buckets if they have been painted too many times and going thru the proper steps for prep and paint.

Too many variables here to get into unless you were to give more specific info and pictures on what you see.

I would not reccomend rattle can paint if you would like it to last as these types of paint offer very little build and so little UV protection just as a starting argument against this.

Great looking car and a not often seen bodystyle, more pictures would be enjoyed by all

[jpage]

Does the car have black fenders! I can't really tell if the car is one color or differences in lighting make the fenders look dark. If it does have black fenders ,it was probably repainted at one time(unless you live in Canada) and a color match may be hard. Most good paint shops or distributors have computerated color matching so they should be able to match the color very closely! I also recommend removing the lamps, a very simple job(one nut) before painting! Nice car,take time to enjoy it with your grandfather!

[Guest Atari1977]

Does the car have black fenders! I can't really tell if the car is one color or differences in lighting make the fenders look dark. If it does have black fenders ,it was probably repainted at one time(unless you live in Canada) and a color match may be hard.

It's all one color, and it was bought in Minnesota. Thanks for the advice everyone! I'll try to get up to my grandfather's place soon and repaint the headlights.

[1936 D2]

The paint that is on there is pretty old. It has a nice patina and seems to have aged well! If it is NOT a repaint at some point from the past, it is VERY well preserved! If it IS a repaint, it has held up very well! The color, the closest I can guess from the photo, would be "Dodge Blue" (or what was sometimes called "Limo Blue"). The damage to the headlights is typical of bringing down the hood on the outside of the headlamps. There are also some paint rubs on the edge of the cowl (rear edge of the hood area) from the same action. It is important to get the hood side panels coming down vertically BETWEEN the headlamp and the hood opening. There may also be a possibility that the hood center hinge ends come loose on the car especially when opening the driver's side. If that is the case, there are reproductions of the hood hinge end clips available that may help fix a loose center hinge problem.

If this car turns out to be original the way it is, do all you can to preserve it in the condition it is in now! Many clubs and car organizations seem to be making a move to supporting ORIGINAL cars by having special voting/award categories for them. That shows you how important it is to preserve original cars. Even if your car has been repainted sometime in the past the idea of originality can still be important.

I have attached a copy of color charts for the '36 cars. It may give you some point of reference about the color. DO NOT try to match color off these charts. The chips have shifted in color over time. This is just a reference!

Have fun with your Grandpa's car! There is a lot of information on this forum for 1936 cars. Take time to read as much as you can. This Forum is a great resource!

Edited July 4, 2012 by 1936 D2 (see edit history)

[1936 D2]

I also wanted to mention, though I cant see for sure, the rubber triangular caps that go over the hood corners may also be missing. Not having those "bumpers" on there can cause the scratches you have experienced with the headlamps and cowl. Those bumpers are fairly affordable. Get some if needed!

[tenugent]

as good as your car looks-i would think you should take to a pro paint shop.id hate to see you put all the time and $ only to be disatisfied and start from scratch again-i think the car deserves that much.just a thought.t.nugent roa 12969.

[Guest Atari1977]

I also wanted to mention, though I cant see for sure, the rubber triangular caps that go over the hood corners may also be missing. Not having those "bumpers" on there can cause the scratches you have experienced with the headlamps and cowl. Those bumpers are fairly affordable. Get some if needed!

[ATTACH=CONFIG]164464[/ATTACH]

You are correct, it is missing those. So I'll just pick up a set of four here

Metro Moulded Parts, Inc. - Selection Detail

[1936 D2]

If you look closely at the package in the photo you can see the part number is 488547. They are vulcanized over a metal core piece and have a narrow angle of 70 deg I believe.

Here is a copy of the Steele Catalog that has a bit more explanation of the part. You would want the bottom one of the two:

That is sort of the "problem" I have with Metro Moulded Parts. They specify parts that are "close" to the year of the vehicle's parts you need but may actually be for a different year or model and then the part is ill fitting for your application. This item is one of the prime examples. It also does not look like it has the required metal core so the bumper can be fastened tightly to the hood. It seems from their photo that the part is an 80 deg angle, has no metal insert and may be made as a "pop over" covering (which can tend to come off and get lost).

I know Steele is more expensive but for good reason - as shown here in these catalog page comparisons. You may come across the parts elsewhere, and at a better price than Steele, but I am guessing that they may be NOS (like in my first photo) and would be even more costly - and possibly of marginal quality because of age.

[36 D2 Coupe]

Good information! I need to get some hood corners for my '36 and this will make sure I get the right ones. Thanks for your continuing supply of pictures and spec.

Jim