'40 Body Underside Color?

[Fred A]

When weather permits, I want to clean and paint the underside of the body. The 1940 Ford Book: offers three choices, body color, red oxide primer, or acceptable black. I favor the red or black. If body color is the only correct choice, then I'm compelled to go black. What say? Fred A

[JayChicago]

That info comes from the old 1940 Ford book. Not sure why they list three options. I think the authors at that time were just stating what was acceptable for V8 Club judging. But maybe there were different practices used on different assembly lines at different times? Maybe Kube will jump in here. He is the expert on what was actually done on the assembly lines in 1940.

Are you able to tell how your car was painted originally? If possible, I would want to go that way to be historically true to the car.

[1952henry]

I question EV judges. Knew a guy who was a junior Judge, in training, comes up to a 40 pickup at a western meet. Was undercoated, senior judge says I know this guy, don't deduct him. My 52 M-H f3 has red oxide under cab


Whatever...

[Kube]

Originally Posted by Fred A

When weather permits, I want to clean and paint the underside of the body. The 1940 Ford Book: offers three choices, body color, red oxide primer, or acceptable black. I favor the red or black. If body color is the only correct choice, then I'm compelled to go black. What say? Fred A

The underbody was INTENDED to be painted body color along with the rest of the body. There have been a few folks that claim to have witnessed bodies with a color (or primed only) other than body color.
Did that really happen? Probably. However, I would guess very, very seldom.
The judging standard is body color.

[Kube]

Originally Posted by 1952henry

I question EV judges. Knew a guy who was a junior Judge, in training, comes up to a 40 pickup at a western meet. Was undercoated, senior judge says I know this guy, don't deduct him. My 52 M-H f3 has red oxide under cab


Whatever...

There are less scrupulous judges just as there are less scrupulous folks in general. A shame indeed.
How the guy that owned that truck felt good about the judging is beyond my imagination.

I have been a judge as well as a deputy judge numerous times. There are many of my former restorations "out there" and when I come upon one on a show field, I recluse myself and allow the judges to do their job with NO intervention from me.

Your '52 F3 has zero correlation to what was happening on the assembly line in 1940. I'm not certain why that "comparison" was noted.

[Fred A]

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I really latched onto such a convenient variable as the underbody color. For not having a rotisserie, it suits me well to use a popular rust resistant "primer" below and at a later time, after the body drop, paint the rest of the body. I can see that the plot really thickens more of an ask first, think later. Thanks all for the advice. Fred A

[ford38v8]

Originally Posted by Kube

There are less scrupulous judges just as there are less scrupulous folks in general. A shame indeed.
How the guy that owned that truck felt good about the judging is beyond my imagination.

Truer words have never been spoken.

[DavidG]

This just one of a long list of reasons why the previous V8 Club book is history and was replaced with an authoritative reference book for the 1940 models early this year, thanks to Mike.

[Fred A]

Actually, I went to "It's Ford For Forty" first and found no specific answer for this question. No answer was not a wrong answer. We enjoy another great asset here and forgive us if we consider the source. Worlds better than my V8 chapter which does not seem to care about the technical, mechanical, or the historic Early V8. Here we know the stars and enjoy their generous answers. That includes you, David G. Thanks: Fred A

[deuce_roadster]

Since the underside of the floor was subjected to the same water, muck and grime as the exterior I always figured it was painted with the final color coat same as the rest of the body, hence "body color". They certainly did skimp on places like the underside of the top.
If it were only primer under there, our favorite cars wouldn't exist today as the floors would have been long gone by the late 50s in most areas of the country. They certainly didn't want to be using a different color on the bottom of the floor. That would have slowed the production down for sure. Not something Henry would approve of.

[40cpe]

Probably irrelevant to the '40 discussion, but judging from the condition of the body mounting pads and fasteners, my '38 deluxe appears to have never had the body off the frame and the underside is painted with what looks like red oxide.

[Kube]

Originally Posted by deuce_roadster

Since the underside of the floor was subjected to the same water, muck and grime as the exterior I always figured it was painted with the final color coat same as the rest of the body, hence "body color". They certainly did skimp on places like the underside of the top.
If it were only primer under there, our favorite cars wouldn't exist today as the floors would have been long gone by the late 50s in most areas of the country. They certainly didn't want to be using a different color on the bottom of the floor. That would have slowed the production down for sure. Not something Henry would approve of.

THE "THEORY" BROUGHT FORWARD BY A COLLECTOR FROM YEARS PAST, WAS THAT IF A WORKER HAD SOME LEFTOVER (EXAMPLE) GREEN PAINT IN HIS GUN, HE'D USE IT UP ON THE NEXT CAR THAT WAS A DIFFERENT COLOR.
In the real world, that probably did happen on a rare occasion. However, I can't believe the "boss" would be too happy with a worker not doing what he was supposed to be doing.

[Fred A]

As a deck seaman in the sixties, I was aboard an oil tanker chipping rust. The remedy was a paint called red lead. The keel was laid in '39 about the time my car rolled out. This paint was state of the art in protection for nearly a century. Protected areas still showed the original red. The ship went to scrap in '71. Also irrelevant: Fred A

[DavidG]

Mike,


Where they tended to spray out the previous body's paint was in the interior where it would subsequently be covered up with upholstery panels. There are a fair number of survivors out there with original paint and a bit of two-tone in the interior quarter panels, etc. once the coverings are removed. My '37 cabriolet is a notable example.

[Kube]

Originally Posted by DavidG

Mike,


Where they tended to spray out the previous body's paint was in the interior where it would subsequently be covered up with upholstery panels. There are a fair number of survivors out there with original paint and a bit of two-tone in the interior quarter panels, etc. once the coverings are removed. My '37 cabriolet is a notable example.

Dave, I do agree with you. I'd had a '39 convertible with the signs you'd described. With perhaps nearly 100 '40 Fords in my past, I have yet to witness one with anything but body color on the bottom of the floor pans.

As you know, I went to great lengths of research to describe what was INTENDED to happen in 1940.
I have heard so many (too many) theories as to what may have happened back then - may have.