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Now that the chassis assembly stage is at hand I have two questions on the black "mitting" which is seen on sway bars, halfshafts and so forth. Nolan Adams book has pictures of chassis at assembly and at body drop and also a few photos taken by Chevrolet of the bottom of new C2 Corvettes. I only see mitting on photos of finished cars and it almost looks like it was poured on. When and how was it applied and what type of "paint" would be the best to use? Any opinions, thoughts or otherwise are appreciated. Thanks
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Re: C2 Black Mitting on Chassis
Mark,
Where did you get the idea that the Chassis of a Mid-Year was Mitted with black paint or blackout?
It just ain't so Lucille?
Mike Hanson interviewed the "Blackout" guy at St. Louis just before the plant closed and can enlighten this group on "Blackout".
A request has been placed with Mike to get in on this thread.
Stay tuned for news at 12Noon.
Regards,
JR -
Mysterious "glove" at the Plant
Mark,
There's a discussion on this exact topic that was posted Friday at 7:23 AM. It should answer a few questions regarding the mysterious "glove' that was seen lurking around the St. Louis plant a few years ago.
In the 50's and 60's, all of the blackout was done with spray equipment and it happened two stations before body drop.
In the 50's and early 60's, it seemed everything was covered in the blackout process, including the entire exhaust system, sway bars and rear drive and prop shafts. It was sprayed fron above with the chassis in it's normal upright position. The material was, in areas, applied a little heavier than was intended and that explains the runs and drips. A front sway bar, for example, can have runs running around to the bottom where in driped off. The entire exhaust system was coated.
Starting with the 65 model year, the amount of blackout on the chassis was reduced quite a bit. One of the most important reasons was the fact that the new disc brakes made their appearance and the last place engineering wanted that gooey black stuff was on their brake rotors. Also, by 65, the prop and drive shafts seemed to only receive a coat on one side compared to the full 360 deg coating that 63-64 got. As the years went by. less and less blackout was used and it finally disappeared completely some time in the late 60's or early 70's.
I vaguely remember something about coating the exhaust system in the 70's but it wasn't blackout. It was a rust preventative that protected raw unpainted items from rusting while the new car was in transit to the dealer. It may have been applied with that glove but I don't remember for sure. I know it wasn't in the 90's because O.J. was using it at that time.
MichaelComment
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C2 Black Mitting on Chassis
Mike, thanks for the info, very extensive I might add, and the humor. I also need to thank John H for his contribution in the other thread. This is the most comprehensive information on this subject that I and probably many other NCRS members have been exposed to. It also, I think, helps explain why some chassis parts mentioned in the Judging Manuals can be either natural or black...it was a function of how much coverage that particular UAW worker put on the car. Now all I have to do is figure out how to recreate the process!!Comment
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Figure out the process..
Great! When you do please post your findings. The '65 project we have underway will be ready for blackout in the spring.Comment
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