Happiness is having a motor stand.

[tallhair]

Question for the resto savvy people here what color should I paint the engine in my 68 Charger. Since we are talking colors, how far to go and "experts" 68 seems to be a transition year turquoise, then blue late in the year I don't think the red showed up on the magnums till 69, I do like the turquoise with chrome valve covers, car is not a "resto" but I'm not painting the engine purple or some other stupid @#$.

The HP B and RB engines were Orange from 69-71 ...then Blue

 

[70bigblockdodge]

All big blocks were painted turquoise in '68 except for the one that doesn't look like the others...

This is true the blue ones I've seen where "restorations" and may not be correct. I'm leaning toward turquoise always have just thought I would ask.

 

[MrMoparCHP]

I watched that Mark Worman guy on Graveyard Carz the other night. He spray-painted (hemi orange) a completely assembled 440-6 Pak engine (carb and distrubtor were not installed yet) hanging from a chain. Painted valve covers, all the nuts and bolts - everything. Even the HP exhaust manifolds were painted hemi orange. As he did it, he said that was the way the factory painted their motors. I was very surprised the exhaust manifolds were on the engine and they were painted too. . .

To this date I stand on the idea that the intent was to paint the engine, ie block heads intake etc, things like exhaust manifolds may have got overspray as they were installed at the time. Likewise with the fuel pump and the distributor.

I have seen where people painted the entire ground cable right up to the lug, maybe the first few inches might get paint as the painted the heads. On small blocks the bypass hose as well, overspray as needed to cover the areas of the timing cover that it crosses.

I have even seen alternator brackets and power steering brackets painted engine color? Only the bolts used to hold on the water pump have engine color as they are removed to put the brackets on and reused.

I sometimes thing the engineers didn't want paint getting in the openings so they chose to have the components installed

I follow what say the designers wanted and no engine color or overspray on the fuel pump, distributor, exhaust, hoses and cables.


The 273 prior to being installed in my Barracuda...

The interesting thing was for some reason the dipstick tube was put in after the fact and the dipstick was dipped in paint and hung upside-down so there should be a little paint nipple on the top of the loop.

Alan

 

[commando1]

The interesting thing was for some reason the dipstick tube was put in after the fact and the dipstick was dipped in paint and hung upside-down so there should be a little paint nipple on the top of the loop.

Incredible. Now how would you know something like that? LOL

 

[MrMoparCHP]

Incredible. Now how would you know something like that? LOL

I think it comes from years of observations from others, I have been watching this hobby for the better part of 25 years and find it interesting how the standard evolves. I think what has happened is that some big name hot shot or TV show does something and says it is correct therefore it must be. This is why very low mile survivors or interesting to look at.

Alan