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Can someone tell me the correct paint color for the dash and window sills. Is it the body color or is it black if it had black interior. In 1966 a bought a new SS 396 car. The color was danube blue with black interior and the dash and sills were black. Then I totaled that car and bought a new 1967 SS 396 the color of it was granada gold and it had black interior and it too had a black dash and sills. I am currently restoring a 1966 and the dash and sills on it were painted the car color and it too has black interior. I have seen it both ways on cars so I was just wondering if there is some sort of way to tell what is correct for the car. If it was optional to have it black there was nothing on the sticker of the cars I bought showing any additional cost, since I detinctly remember the 67 because it only had 3 options on it (rear antenna, deluxe seat belts, am radio) yes it was a 3 speed manual. I personally like it black but want to make sure I paint it the correct way.
Thanks, foof
 

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I know that is incorrect because the car I am restoring now is a 1966 with black interior and the dash and sills are red the color of the exterior. It is definitly a red car with black interior according to the trim tag. That's why I am so confused what determined what color the dash and sills were going to be. I have seen them both ways.
 

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I know that is incorrect because the car I am restoring now is a 1966 with black interior and the dash and sills are red the color of the exterior. It is definitly a red car with black interior according to the trim tag. That's why I am so confused what determined what color the dash and sills were going to be. I have seen them both ways.
Then it is most definatly not original paint in there, ALL 66 and 67 chevelles had the dash painted interior color and the tops of the doors interior color, the door jamb and lower sill(where the body by fisher plate is) should be body color
 

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Then it is most definatly not original paint in there, ALL 66 and 67 chevelles had the dash painted interior color and the tops of the doors interior color
That is correct, and same goes for the inside of the A-pillars and the strip inside the bottom of the back glass (the piece that holds down the package tray).

The only exception is white interior cars in 66, which had black painted dash, door-tops, A-pillars and rear window strip.
 

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The interior color was complimentary but not the same color as the body for many components. Some components were done in a 0% gloss and some in a 30% or 60% gloss. It's odd the PPG/Ditzler paint chip charts show component colors for all the years except 66 & 67 but I'd guess the same components as other years would be painted the same percentage of gloss such as 0% gloss for the upper dash and window frames ranged from 60% (1964-1965) to 30% (1968 and later).

That and 1966 and 1967, while using similar shades, used different mixing formula colors. See http://chevellestuff.net/1966/interiors/int_paint.htm and http://chevellestuff.net/1967/interiors/int_paint.htm for 66 & 67.
 

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Many of the cars ended up with the interior paint on top of the doors and various other metal pieces paint with the exterior color after their first paint job. It's not correct as mentioned above. The trick is to get the correct gloss on your interior paint as Dale mentioned.
 

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66 Chevelle SS396 & 66 Chevelle 327 Convertible.
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Many of the cars ended up with the interior paint on top of the doors and various other metal pieces paint with the exterior color after their first paint job. It's not correct as mentioned above. The trick is to get the correct gloss on your interior paint as Dale mentioned.
So If I am reading correctly, in 66 the the top of the dash got 0 % gloss; but the bottom of the dash got 60% gloss?

And the top of the doors, A pillars, etc. got 60 % gloss?
 

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So If I am reading correctly, in 66 the the top of the dash got 0 % gloss; but the bottom of the dash got 60% gloss?

And the top of the doors, A pillars, etc. got 60 % gloss?
That I cannot verify as the paint chip sheets I got my data from (PPG) do not list the various components for 1966 or 1967 like they do for other years but they do list the paint color numbers for Ditzler, RM, and DuPont.

See http://chevellestuff.net/1966/interiors/int_paint.htm for 1966.
 

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I've posted many pics of low-mile original paint/original interior 65-67 Chevelles on other threads here before. The gloss varies from plant to plant, time to time, and car to car, based on the guy wielding the paint gun. With that said, the top of the dash is always flat (and on 65's is a sort of hammered finish, and on 67's is an almost textured finish). But the rest of the painted interior parts are (at least in my experience with numerous original paint 65-67 cars from various different plants) a whole lot glossier than the 60% figure that people often state is the correct gloss level.

It is my personal belief from looking at these original cars (but without any way to prove it) that in 65-67 they shot the interior parts (other than the dash tops) with the same paint as the outer bodies were painted (meaning full gloss paint), but simply laid the interior paint down faster and dryer to achieve less gloss. It is amazing how many different finishes you can get with one paint gun with one batch of lacquer paint in it, just by adjusting the distance between the gun and the part, the fan of the spray, and the speed with which you move the gun. We duplicated the original 67 dash top paint on the first car we restored in 1986 with regular gloss black lacquer paint with a little extra thinner, a very wide fan, a little extra distance and a very fast spray. And it was dead on (and is still on that car today).

The fact that the aftermarket re-paint mix formulas call for lower gloss levels does not neccesarily mean that is precisely what was used on the assembly line. Perhaps GM gave the paint co's lower gloss specs for "replacement" paint in order to insure a better duplication of what their painters were doing in the plant via a faster dryer spray? Or maybe those mix formulae are being pulled from later editions of the paint books printed some time after 1967, after it had become general automotive industry practice to really dull out everything inside the car to reduce glare for the driver??

Another possibility is that, even if it was 60% gloss paint in the vat when it was sprayed on the interior components by Fisher Body, once the body went through the oven baking process (where they cooked the body to flow out and smooth the paint surfaces so as to avoid having to sand and buff every car), it was going to have the same effect on the interior paint as on the exterior paint -- to smooth the surface and increase the gloss level versus how it looked right after it was sprayed on the car. A 60% gloss lacquer paint is not going to be 60% gloss after it is baked in an oven! So unless you have an oven to bake your car in after you paint it, then you would have to use a glossier paint to get the same end result that the factory got.

I'll see later if I can find the prior posts with all the pics and link them here.
 

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Pictures of my original 42K mile Sedan, as purchased.
The inner door frames and dash were "DD" coded Artisian Turq...same as the exterior.
The dash pad, kick panels, and carpet are a contrasting, darker, almost navy blue.
 

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Pictures of my original 42K mile Sedan, as purchased.
The inner door frames and dash were "DD" coded Artisian Turq...same as the exterior.
The dash pad, kick panels, and carpet are a contrasting, darker, almost navy blue.
Nice sedan, Bill! The DD exterior paint code on the trim tag indicates Nantucket Blue paint, not medium Turquoise (which was called Emerald Turquoise in 67, I think, rather than Artesian Turquoise). Medium Turq. was paint code K.

All Blue interiors in 135, 136, 137 and 138 vins in 67 had Nantucket blue as the primary interior paint color -- even if the exterior of the car was Marina Blue or Deepwater Blue. The dash-top section is closer to Marina Blue, and again is flat (or sprayed to appear flat) and rougher textured (or sprayed extremely dry).

Also notice how the interior door top paint is every bit as glossy as the door jamb paint is ... It's all dull from age, but I don't think anyone could say those door tops only have 60% as much gloss as those door jambs. ;)
 

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You are correct Jeff!! :clonk: Sorry.
Had a brain fart yesterday when posting that. Some how my fingers listed the color of my '66 Mailbu wagon.
The '67 is Nantucket Blue. I believe you've seen it at the NC show the past few years. My wife is the photog during that show.
 

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Here are links to pics of 65's I posted in the other threads:

65 without dash pad: http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2808467&postcount=9

65 with dash pad: http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2808472&postcount=10

I cannot find the prior posts I made with 66-67 pics. Will look again later. But here are a few I found saved on my computer. This is an original paint, original interior, ultra low mileage 67 SS. Baltimore plant, 11E cowl tag. I used a towel with writing on it in some pics to show the amount of reflection and gloss.

Note the difference between the dash top and the sides of the dash. You can also see a slight Turquoise hue at the bottom edge of the dash top on both sides (more on the driver's side). This is consistent with other 67's I've stripped down in the past. It appears that the interior metal was painted first, excluding the dash top; then all that was masked off; then the exterior paint was applied; then the dash top was masked off and painted last. That makes perfect sense if they baked the body in between the exterior paint and the dash top paint. By doing the dash top paint after the baking that would avoid the heat messing up the textured finish on the dash top.
 

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My low mile, garage kept 66 showed a gloss black on the lower dash but it was full of the peel that a low pressure lacquer would yield when the gun is pullled away a few inches. The top of the dash was not 0 percent gloss but more of flat/semi-flat sheen. This might be due to how the paint was cared for over the years, don't know. While restoring, I used a semi-flat for the upper dash and maybe 90% gloss on the upper doors and lower dash, suits me just fine but it is SS urethane and doesn't match original as far as texture.

Jerry
 
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