Single-Stage 'Patina' 60s C10: Looking for Advice Before I Start

[Mike Phillips]

Thanks Mike, I really appreciate you taking the time to look at the video and give me your honest opinion, even if it wasn't quite what I was hoping to hear!

Yeah, it's never fun being the bearer of bad news. And anytime I type the word bearer - I have to take a second thought about it and remember, that's how the word is spellled. LOL

I'm thinking of still going ahead with a couple of Meguiar's #7 soaks again (after I wash and clay) to see if I can feed some life back into the old single-stage paint. After that, would I be doing any harm by giving it a very light polish? I was originally thinking 3D One with an orange pad, but now I'm wondering if I should back off to something like a yellow pad instead. I'm not expecting miracles or trying to remove the cracking now, I know that's not going away . My only goal is to squeeze out whatever gloss is left without unnecessarily removing paint.

Nothing wrong with trying the above combos and see what you get.

There's a two terms for old single stage paint in one of my how-to books.

Paint Condition Categories


9: Unstable

This category is for older, single stage paints that have been exposed to the sun for a long enough period of time that the pigments have become unstable. That is even if you remove the oxidation and gorge the paint with some type of polishing oils, any original color that is restored is only a temporary fix and when the paint is exposed to the sun or after a few days pass the color fades back to where it was before you started.


11: Past the point of no return

Paint in this condition will be a paint job that falls into one of the above categories but it is so far gone that nothing you pour out of a bottle or scoop out of a can from any company will fix it.


My guess from looking at the pictures is the paint on your truck is at, or close to both of the above paint condition categories. BUT - it never hurts to try. Just be sure to do a TEST SPOT - at least for the buffing step as sometimes, when paint gets old, when you machine polish it - it gets dull, not shiny. So TEST first before running the buffer over the entire truck.

After that, I will seal it with something like Jescar Power Lock Plus (maybe topped with Collinite), or is there a better product you'd recommend for protecting old "cracked" paint like this? I know nothing is going to "fill" the cracks, but is there anything that tends to hide them a little better while providing good protection? I also have Pinnacle Souverän if a hard carnauba would be a better choice.

The Pinnacle Souveran would probably work well as it's very oily.

One other thing I've been wondering about... before I bought the truck, the previous owner had been using a boiled linseed oil/Penetrol mix. Do you think that could have contributed to the paint cracking/drying out in any way, or is that just decades of age catching up with the paint?(particularly red paint?)

Nah... if anything, the linseed oil probably helped to preserve it. By keeping the old single stage paint loaded up with oil - water, moisture in the air, and oxygen cannot cause oxidation.

I guess it's time for me to stop thinking "paint correction" and start thinking "paint preservation?!" As a fighter I don't like throwing in the towel, but I can definitely adjust the game plan. My goal now is just to make the truck look the best she can and protect what's left for as long as possible.

Agree. I never like to give up either. That said, it's common sense to accept what you can fix and what you cannot fix and then move forward.

If it were me? I would try the #7 soaking technique, at least to one section of paint. Then watch this section for a few weeks. If it continues to look good - then repeat to entire truck. If the paint fades or dies back, then the pigments have become unstable. You normally have to expose the #7 treated area to full sun to find out if the pigments have become unstable.

Apologies for the delay in getting back to you - been a tick busy. This old 2-door Barn Find arrived last week. Shooting videos and of course, doing my best to bring the old girl back to life.

The vinyl top will be challenge - but I have a few tricks up my sleeve.

Mike





Mike