1962 Exhaust System Finish

[John T.]

The JG specifically says the mufflers and pipes were painted black but is silent as to the clamps and hangers. What finish is generally accepted for them ?

Thanks for you thoughts

John

[Mike M.]

Re: 1962 Exhaust System Finish

the assembly line workers were provided with a cotton glove which they dipped in the blackout paint then they did a hand job on the exh system so there wasn't full coverage on the clamps. rather sloppy job is what you want to duplicate. good luck, mike

[John H.]

Re: 1962 Exhaust System Finish

Not to be a contrarian, but the "mitting" application of paint to the exhaust system is an "urban legend"; no such application technique would ever be tolerated in an assembly plant, especially with a solvent-based material as permanently-staining as the "chassis blackout" paint. As George Barlos (RIP) has described before, the chassis blackout operation was performed in a canvas-walled booth station at the end of the Chassis Line just prior to Body Drop, and the P/N 3686683 paint was sprayed using airless spray guns fed by Johnstone pumps from 55-gallon drums adjacent to the line. The "runs" observed on original cars (which are assumed to be a result of "mitting") are a result of the heavy application of the blackout paint mixing with the mill oils on the pipes from the supplier's pipe-bending operation and dribbling off the bottom of the pipes/mufflers. There are numerous GM archival photos of the C1 Chassis Line and Body Drop that confirm George's description of this operation.

[Mike M.]

Re: 1962 Exhaust System Finish

learn something new every day. thanks john. mike

[Michael H.]

Re: 1962 Exhaust System Finish

John,

I agree 100%. I've heard the hand applied theory or story a lot over the years also and I know it wasn't something that was done at least as far back as 62. I wouldn't have made any sense to do a final blackout on the chassis and then coat the exhaust using a dipped glove when the spray operation would have done both. Spraying would have been much faster than hand application.

In the 70's, I was able to get good closeup photos of the exhaust system that was removed from a car just after it was delivered to the original owner. The car was drag raced in California since new and the system sat in a dry storage until the car was put back together in the mid/late 70's for show. The complete system was obviously factory sprayed black and it was still a bit sticky after all the years. It was a smooth evenly applied coating. (was a red/red 63 FI coupe with only 7000 miles)

What I DO seem to remember is a coating of something that may have been put on the system to prevent rust during storage/shippment of a new car but it wasn't black. If anything, it would have been almost clear and that would have been in the 70's.