Ford engine paint

[gt350shelb]

Ok are there any available paints that are preferred these days that are remotely close  to ford corporate blue?

[FL SAAC]

Yup !

Best if you spayed it with a gun

Next best one of these spray bombs

Best of luck

[shelbydoug]

There is a variation in the tone of the paints and depending on which era you want and sometimes which engine, it depends.

I presume that you are searching for your '68 302?

I would say that the Ford blue by VHT is what you want.

Some recommend the "Dark Blue" which is sometimes called "Dark Mustang Blue" but from what I have seen, that is the color more correctly associated with the 351's, both the Windsors and the Clevelands.

There is a lighter color of "Corporate blue" but that more closely resembles some of the '66 era FE's and some of the Mercury engines which seem to be lighter in color?

The answer is that you likely will need to experiment with some of the brands like the Duplicolor to see which you think is closest to your liking.

I used the Duplicolor on my 67 428 and it is about right. I used the VHT Mustang blue on my Pantera Cleveland and is about what I expected and noticibly darker then the 428.

Simply put, I don't think that there is an exact answer.

[gt350shelb]

https://www.hirschauto.com/     just remembered these guys    / no spray cans on this one .

[J_Speegle]

Ok are there any available paints that are preferred these days that are remotely close  to ford corporate blue?

Are you only looking towards rattle cans? If so your going to be limited on how close to original they will look and how well they will hold up. For stuff that you have to use a gun for you can find those by using the search feature and I believe you will be very happy with those or should I say that suggestion. Thousands of car owner and builder have.

Just one thread that suggest the product and a possible alternative

PPG Delstar # DAR13358 Blue

[CharlesTurner]

Asking a paint store to mix the equivalent of DAR13358 will likely not yield accurate results... had this problem about a year ago with a local sherwin williams auto paint store.  They cross-referenced the paint number and the mix came out nearly purple, very disappointing.

We have an NCS store locally that's been around a long time.  I took an original paint oil pan to them and were able to find an OEM number for another car make that looks really nice. 

Also worth mentioning that even originally there was variance in corporate blue, light/dark shades and such.

Some pics and more info on the OEM paint mentioned here:

https://www.concoursmustang.com/forum/index.php?topic=30544.0

[JWH]

I also used Dupli-Color #1606 Ford Dark Blue on our '67 GT500. I will echo what others have said, you will need to test each can for color. I would buy three cans of the same color off the same shelf in the same store and found some sprayed a lighter blue and others the dark blue I was looking for.
    I believe you can get very good results with the spray cans but it is all about the prep. After cleaning every nook and cranny down to shiny bare metal, I went over the engine several times getting it as clean as possible. I applied SEM Metal Prep, which I feel is a really important step. I then wiped the engine down one last time and painted with the Dupli-Color. It's been 7 or 8 years now and I think the engine paint still looks presentable with no chipping or flaking.

[gt350shelb]

to clarify  i am looking for something better than spray bombs .   paint gun is not an issue here ...  lost in the archives was the previous paint code i used but the formula has changed / system no longer available / 

[J_Speegle]

Asking a paint store to mix the equivalent of DAR13358 will likely not yield accurate results... had this problem about a year ago with a local sherwin williams auto paint store.  They cross-referenced the paint number and the mix came out nearly purple, very disappointing.

Hmmm....... Makes me want to take an afternoon to go over the hill and have a quart made up to see what another shop will make up and how it looks.

[SGT.SNAKE]

Used rustoelum navy blue

[Brant]

I agree with Charles...there were variations of the Corporate Blue engine color over the years.

As someone else mentioned, the Dupli-Color DE1606 is the best color that I have found if you want to just use a spray can.

[NC TRACKRAT]

When it was available, PlastiKote 224 Ford Blue was an excellent match.  If you can find any new old stock, grab it!

[Matt- Fred 07 Shelby]

Like most everyone else, I bought a can of each of the most reviewed here. I went with Seymour. I'm glad I did.

[J_Speegle]

When it was available, PlastiKote 224 Ford Blue was an excellent match.  If you can find any new old stock, grab it!

For a rattle can I agree it was the closest I could find that matched what had been used at the Cleveland plant. For some of the other engine plants there were slightly better choices. Going to have to shake that can, if you find any, a lot after all this time and settling

[TLea]

Phil, DAR 13558 was what I always used but no one carries it anymore so i switched to ppg concept same number. That now is hard to find so i took my last bit of it and had it matched in UTECH line urethane. Best stuff I've ever used even better than DAR