year when colored wheels became available?

[johnbuckley]

Early As had black wheels. What year were colored wheels made available?

[Steve Plucker]

Originally Posted by johnbuckley

Early As had black wheels. What year were colored wheels made available?

June 1930

[eagle]

Long before they were available from the factory, dealers were painting them before delivery of the car.

[johnbuckley]

Thank you

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Originally Posted by eagle

Long before they were available from the factory, dealers were painting them before delivery of the car.

Do you know how were they doing this? What paint and what type process?

[redmodelt]

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1926, dealer painted wire wheels Ford approved colors if customer wanted other then black. you could also get the wood spoke wheels in natural, unpainted about the same time.

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Originally Posted by redmodelt

1926, dealer painted wire wheels Ford approved colors if customer wanted other then black. you could also get the wood spoke wheels in natural, unpainted about the same time.

Are you sure about that? To begin with, even Ford did not spray wheels at their Branches (factories) during that time. They were dipped into Alkyd Enamel. Also during that time, the only 'approved' Ford enamel would have been Black. It was June of 1930 before Ford began using colored enamel on wheels, so even if the agency wanted to order a color, Ford (-who manufactured their own paint) did not have a colored enamel to sell to them.


Also, automotive-type spray guns themselves were in their infancy in 1926 because they were invented the year prior. Sprayable paints like pyroxylin and lacquer were new then too, and enamels had to be painted with a brush, dipped or flowed on. Also remember that you can paint enamel over lacquer, -but not the other way around. Ford dipped his wheels in Alkyd Enamel, so spraying them was not possible either. Therefore, the only way that a dealer could have repainted a wheel would have been to use enamel, ...and that means they would have been painted with a brush. You & I both know what that would have looked like, so I am betting that it is only a myth that Ford agencies (dealers) painted wheels for their customers.
.
.

[Bob Bidonde]

It is reasonable to conclude that Ford dealers had the equipment to spray lacquer during the Model "A" era of 1928 - 1931.



From the website of the Body Shop Business:


The DuPont Company introduced nitrocellulose lacquer finishes in the 1920s. Because the solvent (lacquer thinner) evaporated so quickly from the paint film, it couldn’t be brushed smooth. The new air spray application was the only option. The 1924 Oakland automobile was painted using DeVilbiss spray guns and DuPont Duco paint, and the cycle time went from a week to two or three days – 10 times faster than the brushed shellac method.



During the 1930s, both DeVilbiss and Binks offered hand spray guns that made changing colors easy.



The KR Wilson catalog (pre 1931) had air compressors dealers could purchase. On Page 92 of the 1931-1932 KR Wilson Catalog, there is an illustration of a mechanic painting a Model "A" Ford with a spray gun.

[redmodelt]

There is more then one way to paint a wheel. The August 1926 Ford Service Bulletin covers Pyroxylin finishing using spray equipment. The three colors listed in that bulletin are Straw, Casino Red and Emerald Green.

March of 1927, In the event customers desire to replace the standard black wire wheel with colored wire wheels the dealer is justified in making and additional charge of $10.00 to cover labor freight, etc..incidental to the change.

[eagle]

Brent. I wasn't there... I used to own a 26 T and I bought several books on the Model T. I read it in there about the colors painted by dealers. I have the books all packed away, if I get time I'll look up my source. However, I am no expert and I also don't take everything I read as gospel so "consider the source". I've also read that some of the darker colors reverted to black over time, others have said it is bunk. Again, just what I've read, I have no expertise in this field.

[Bob-A]

Years ago on greedBay an original photo of the first 1928 Model-A roadster.
Sold in the city of Chicago was auctioned off. The pic looked authentic for
the time period. The roadster was covered in aftermarket accessories: greyhound hood ornament, cowl lights w/cowl trim strip, windwings, step
plates, trunk w/rack, side mounts and "lighter" colored wheels then the body
and fenders. I believe an original invoice listing all the extra goodies also
was included in the auction. It was one neat pic, I wish I would have won it.


Bob-A

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Originally Posted by redmodelt

There is more then one way to paint a wheel. The August 1926 Ford Service Bulletin covers Pyroxylin finishing using spray equipment. The three colors listed in that bulletin are Straw, Casino Red and Emerald Green.

March of 1927, In the event customers desire to replace the standard black wire wheel with colored wire wheels the dealer is justified in making and additional charge of $10.00 to cover labor freight, etc..incidental to the change.

This has been some confusion for years, ...even after Trent Boggess did all of the research on paint. When I was on the International club's JSC, this came up again. There is much speculation in some of that including what was printed in those bulletins. I would need to go back and research this again as this has been a few moons ago but as I recall it, there were M-spec numbers in the bulletins that were not correct, and the names were actually striping enamels however the Bulletins stated these were Pyroxylin paints. As mentioned above, we know that Pyroxylin over Enamel is not going to work.




Bob, I agree that some (-likely very few by percentages) Agencies had the equipment to repaint a vehicle in the mid 1920s, but most of what literature I have seen tends to suggest this was more in the Model-A era. In some of the later 1926 Service Bulletins, there was a huge 'how to' article printed showing the Agencies how to do repaints. When you study it, it is full of all kinds of "fluff" that Ford was trying to get his dealers to do. I have always viewed some of the content of the Bulletins, --even during the Model-A era ones, as not always accurate as they applied to real world back in those days. Just like artist illustrations of advertisements of Fords, body lines were exaggerated, colors were sometimes skewed or altered from the norm, and other slight differences or liberties were takes to push an agenda.

[ursus]

Aside from the issue of wheels, I am curious about the process Ford used to paint the bodies - were they actually painted with a brush as Brent seems to suggest? I have seen some brushed repaint jobs that were surprisingly well done, but it was a laborious process.

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Originally Posted by ursus

Aside from the issue of wheels, I am curious about the process Ford used to paint the bodies - were they actually painted with a brush as Brent seems to suggest? I have seen some brushed repaint jobs that were surprisingly well done, but it was a laborious process.

Not sure Brent ever suggested that!


When you have a moment, re-read the thread again but an ironic bit of trivia in this is Yes, some used a brush of sorts on re-paints. Back in that era, manufacturers had spray guns but the smaller shops actually used what was termed an "Air Brush", ...so Yes, one can make a valid argument that a Brush was used. Just not the type of brush we typically think of using today.