OST-050 - a VERY special build

[oldeskewltoy]

from another forum Wrote:I've always thought of the valve covers being a sort of champagne silver. A slight gold tone to the silver. At least based on the few OEM painted VCs I have.

I'm not rolling my eyes at you... but the journey to get these right/correct.... that I FINALLY can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

It begins over a month ago... I've spent more time on researching, and chatting with powder-coaters in this time then I did ACTUALLY working the head! It began while searching for the factory color... I found NOTHING, I spoke to a few knowledgeable people - including those who advised me about the block, and no one could offer me help... so I began the journey... if I knew more about coatings - paint /powder/epoxies this would have been less dramatic, but I know flow, and engines, not so much coatings.

Having nothing to go on, I did a Google search, and found many pretty renditions of the 4AG cam covers, but very few ACCURATE color matches. With the poor search results, I turned to looking at powder coat swatches online (color is tough to get right... the internet doesn't help here ) I looked through Prismatic swatches and found "Satin Titanium"





But... as good as it looks online... it didn't look good comparing it to the cam cover




I figured I needed them painted, and so began looking at spray paints. I began looking for silver titanium paints, and I found.....




That was a bit darker and a bit too silver, and a bit too shiny - I wish actual colors were required on the can - that would make matching a color easier then guessing if the cap was a good representation of the color.


Next I found "Satin Nickel".....




THAT color is pretty close.....




and "shifted" to a bit more silver...






BUT........... commercially available spray paints are NOT durable They scratch easily and if they were sprayed with Brake Clean or similar chemical.... the paint lifts immediately


about 4 weeks have now passed, and frustration is building, I go back to Prismatic and with your thoughts, "A slight gold tone to the silver", I begin to look at gold/silver mixes......




Things are looking up so I contact another powder coater and go to his shop... and although he says he has every swatch (he doesn't)... so of course all 3 of these colors are not in his wad of swatches I could order the swatches.... but then I ask him a question... (if you look real close at the covers, they have a texture to them) and I ask him if the powder would remove the texture, and he says, "yes" - NOT good.....


another big BUT... the powder coater knows a painter, and he uses automotive grade paints (not removed with Brake, or Carb cleaners), and not only that he works with a paint supplier who has color matching capability...

I left it with them... they should be done in a week-10 days.....


I HOPE!!!!





more to come......