Standard Steel Wheel Color

[SS375HP]

We have a 68 SS that has original factory full hubcaps. I know that standard steel wheels with "dog dish" hubcaps had the wheels painted body color. Were the steel wheels also painted body color with the full hubcaps?

[1968RSZ28]

We have a 68 SS that has original factory full hubcaps. I know that standard steel wheels with "dog dish" hubcaps had the wheels painted body color. Were the steel wheels also painted body color with the full hubcaps?

From CRG...

"Wheels were painted black if full disc style hubcaps were ordered on the car.  If the smaller 'dogdish' style hubcaps were installed, the wheels were painted body color."

Paul

[trainz11]

Were the wheels that were painted the color of the car painted with lacquer or enamel? Were the black wheels painted at the assembly plant, or were they shipped in already painted black?

[JohnZ]

All wheels were received in oiled raw steel, by the thousands, in rail cars. They were cleaned, phosphated, dip-primed black, baked, then the outer face of the wheel was sprayed with either black or body-color wheel enamel and baked again.

[My68SS]

Ah-ha, so it is a baked enamel and I guess the Argent on the rally rims is the same?
I'm cleaning up some rims and finding the paint very tough to shift chemically, paint stripper doesn't do anything!

Was the Argent a satin/semi-gloss finish?

[firstgenaddict]

All wheels were received in oiled raw steel, by the thousands, in rail cars. They were cleaned, phosphated, dip-primed black, baked, then the outer face of the wheel was sprayed with either black or body-color wheel enamel and baked again.

The N66's did they go through the process again for the second color?

[JohnZ]

All wheels were received in oiled raw steel, by the thousands, in rail cars. They were cleaned, phosphated, dip-primed black, baked, then the outer face of the wheel was sprayed with either black or body-color wheel enamel and baked again.

The N66's did they go through the process again for the second color?

I believe the short-lived N66 wheels were an exception; there was no way to paint the second color in the plant, so they were received painted. The wheel paint conveyor was a single, long continuous loop of overhead conveyor that went from the wheel receiving area downstairs adjacent to the rail dock to the Bonderite/phosphate system and bake oven upstairs to the flow-coat black primer system and bake oven to the topcoat spray booth to the bake oven and back downstairs to the wheel & tire mounting area for drop-off, and then to the wheel receiving/loading area to pick up more wheels for another cycle.

[firstgenaddict]

All wheels were received in oiled raw steel, by the thousands, in rail cars. They were cleaned, phosphated, dip-primed black, baked, then the outer face of the wheel was sprayed with either black or body-color wheel enamel and baked again.

The N66's did they go through the process again for the second color?

I believe the short-lived N66 wheels were an exception; there was no way to paint the second color in the plant, so they were received painted. The wheel paint conveyor was a single, long continuous loop of overhead conveyor that went from the wheel receiving area downstairs adjacent to the rail dock to the Bonderite/phosphate system and bake oven upstairs to the flow-coat black primer system and bake oven to the topcoat spray booth to the bake oven and back downstairs to the wheel & tire mounting area for drop-off, and then to the wheel receiving/loading area to pick up more wheels for another cycle.

John,
THANK YOU  for the confirmation, that is what I had believed since beginning to research the N66's. I thought the possibility did exist that they may have come in primed with one color and the masks installed, however that would negate the whole prep part.
It also explains why the original N66's observed have gray on the backs.

[My68SS]

There's a thread here at ncrs that has links to pics of wheels with green hue [first post] - original and respray.
http://www.ncrs.org/forums/showthread.php?62090-My-Formula-for-Greenish-Silver-Wheel-Paint

Would be good if someone with ncrs membership could get permission to re-post those pics here, I would really appreciate being able to see them.

[My68SS]

After much trolling of the net, I finally found this image.
The rim on the left has a slight yellow cast to it which is verified in photoshop with red and green [yellow] measuring near identical densities and blue a consistent 10 points lower [ 0 - 255 rgb scale ]
The rim on the right has near identical red, green and blue densities = gray.

Are these rims fair examples of the different hues?

[69Z28-RS]

IMO....   

your left one pictured appears to be an aged original paint example.  The one on the right appears to be a 'typical' silver repainted rallye wheel; I'm not saying that I think 'typical silver' is correct, but finding the correct hued original argent is so difficult, that is what most people resort to.

[My68SS]

Yes, the one on the right is definitely a respray as there's no hubcap or trim ring marks and it looks a tad too glossy.
I think whoever took the picture was demonstrating how their original 'argent with green tinge' rims looked as compared to one they had just resprayed.
The respray is also a fair bit darker/blacker and in fact does have a very subtle yellow cast as well. Photoshop does show the blue content as being consistently a few points lower than red and green.

It's debatable as to whether a neutral gray/silver can ever 'age' to a yellow cast, even that area under the hubcap has the same yellow cast.

My question was a bit sloppy, I should have asked 'is the rim on the left a typical example of what others refer to as 'argent with green tinge/hue'

[My68SS]

Just for the record, an original wheel from my 68 dated k1 7 11 30 xg showing the pooling black paint from the dipping/flood spray, inside the back and on the outside directly under. No gray.