RE: [Chrysler300] Conflicted viewpoint: body paint gloss level for 1957 300C

[christopher beilby <thelastbestgenius@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Re the unusual red the '57 300Cs were Factory, I see two points to consider before repainting.
 
1) And this should mauybe be something the 300 Club truies to encourage/support ?! - how many factory original paint 300s/300Cs ARE LEFT IN THE WORLD !!!!?
 
That before factory red 300C in a convertible - this might possibly be the only one left in existance that could either be left totally original paint, or with maybe just a percentage of non factory later respray, touch up??
I do not car sale results/figures 100%, but my guess is a factory original paint red 300C convert may/could bring up to a 200% premium/price, above a show one - and here is an example that stunned/stuns me - on ebay last week by chance I saw  while checking ebay 'Lincoln coupe' - '39 Lincoln Zephyr 3 window coupe - claimed/accepted as best survivor orig paint low mile car - it was already of mid $50s, maybe near 40 bids!! Not a full Lincoln, but the cheaper 'non classic' one. Next morning it has ended near 60-80 bids, not sold as did not meet reserve, top non winning bid $91,000.
Now 3 window coupe are hot rodders darlings in near all Fords, but $91k - and car was faded/dull grey, not a real big dollar color usually.
 
So if a '39 Zephyr is seen as worth more than  $90k, and attracts such bid numbers, what is '57 300C in maybe most visual 50s/fins color worth if a resto one brings up to $200k - my guess a lot more the way huge dollars nowadays are chasing the so few real survivor cars?
 
2) now totally against that - the '57 300C red fades real early/young bad - of the two I have, the factory red original color is way brighter/deeper in the odd few places where it still original - it has to be under parts bolted over it, as even in trunk/ other non sun areas, it has on my cars faded, gone more pale. There is an original advert of '57 300C coupe with sailboat - that shows a real nice red they were - near alll ones I seen photos of nowadays look fair bit paler, not as stunning.
 
Buty please leave it original paint - like how many factory red 300Cs of both types does the Club have on record - all are so rare, be they orig or restod?
 
aussie Chris - autumn weather here now, 1st real rain for winter grain crop region season last few days here, but not much 
 



To: rfmelton@xxxxxxx; chrysler300@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
From: LabLoverDC@xxxxxxx
Date: Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:05:27 -0400
Subject: Re: [Chrysler300] Conflicted viewpoint: body paint gloss level for 1957 300C

  



I just asked our painter, who has been in the business for 40+ years, and 
he strongly advises against it, aesthetics aside. He thought there would 
be a good chance 3-4 years down the road that the clear would start to either 
peel or craze, because paints from that era were not designed to take 
clear coats like modern paint. So, he thinks it would be a big mistake, and 
said if the paint is good, leave it alone, and if you absolutely must have 
more shine, take it down and put on a two-stage paint designed for that 
purpose.

Shannon

300 F Convertible


In a message dated 4/22/2013 2:27:05 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, 
rfmelton@xxxxxxx writes:

Hello Group -

I am pretty deep into restoring my late father's 1957 Chrysler 300C
convertible, and am encountering an emotional conflict regarding gloss 
level
to attain on the Gauguin Red exterior paint. All the exterior trim is still
off and now is the time to decide what to do with the underlying body color
paint. The body is almost perfectly straight and the old alkyd enamel was
apparently applied very thick; it has easily withstood color-sanding to
remove any original orange-peel and attain a smoothness and gloss level
never achieved by the factory on even its best day. It buffed out
brilliantly and looks great; however, I know that a few layers of a modern
color-sanded clear overcoat could bring it up to an extra-deep 2013
high-gloss level even better than it is now. I am totally happy with the
way it looks right now, but I wonder how important it might be in the 
future
to pursue that extra "WOW!" factor with a modern super-smooth high-gloss
clear coat. 

I have observed that most of the early 300's (and other cars from the '50's
and '60's) that have brought the best prices at high-end auctions are those
with modern high-gloss finishes, and although my general impression is that
they have been "over-restored", it is clear that the market loves them that
way. Although I am not at all interested in obtaining a maximum sales
price some time in the distant future (probably at least ten years from 
now,
by which time I will be over 80 years old and probably not likely able to
enjoy "Big Red" as much as before, and won't need the money by then 
anyway),
I would want to maximize the value to the next caretaker of this really 
nice
piece of automotive history.

The cost of the new clear overcoat and color sanding/buffing would likely 
be
less than $3,000, and would probably add that much to the eventual sales
price a decade from now; however, since I know that's not how it could ever
have come out of the factory, I am somewhat torn between "best possible
old-school original finish" or "best modern 2013 finish". 

Your perspectives on this issue would be appreciated.

Ray Melton

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