Thank you for your post Kurt as bare rear leaf springs is what I have generally observed too. I'm now turning a corner which does not suggest black paint was used only on LA Built Camaro's but also on many other GM Product lines. General Spring was the main manufacture, supplier to GM starting in the mid-sixties. I've traversed through a few websites relating to first gen. Camaro's and Firebird's and also second gen Camaro's. There have been posts on each of the sites discussing the black paint on rear leaf springs and how to duplicate it when restoring them.
So here's my theory. Black paint was used to prevent rust during transportation and storage at GM Plants and it's longevity was probably limited. I'm guessing that they weren't even cleaned (prepped) prior to paint. With that in mind, I'm guessing the paint had a very short life span. Unfortunately without having a process spec. from either General Spring or GM the black paint found on some springs may be relegated to myth.
My car is an LA built 1969 Z/28 with an assembly date of 03 B and spent most of its life in Southern CA. When I acquired the car in the early eighties there was virtually no rust anywhere on the car. As mentioned in my initial post, my springs are coated in a black paint (utility type) on both sides from end to end. As best I can tell there's no black between spring leafs which suggests they were painted assembled.
The journey continues and I look forward to hearing more input from members.
