Tailgate Color?
 

:banghead: I was wondering what color to paint the GMC emblem and surround on my tailgate. If I remember right it was a faded silver color before the restoration. Am I thinking right? Its been awhile. ( truck is terrace blue) Thanks, Dave

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

The color is basically an aluminum silver PPG number 8568, also called Non Smudge aluminum, GM called it argent silver. This color was used for many years by multiple GM divisions, wheels were also painted this color. GMC tailgate letters and back grounds were painted this color up to 1969.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Dave, I taped and painted my 1960 GMC Fleetside with this exact paint number. I had it mixed at the local auto paint shop. They put it in an aerosol can for me. 25bucks. I sprayed several light coats until it was evenly covered. No sealer,no nothing else. I touch it today and it does not smudge. It looks totally original. BTW,it reflects at night like a lazer. Very good safety idea. Later, GM

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Here are a before and after. I wish I could get a good picture at night. It just looks light it is glowing when your headlights hit it. Almost like a special effect in the paint.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Here is a during picture. It demonstrates the taping job. It took a while to get the tape down. And I took my time spraying too. I let it dry completely between coats. Started first coat one evening, next coat next day. I think I got good coverage after three or four coats. Get the tape off as soon as the paint feels dry to the touch. If left on until the paint is fully cured, it can make a nightmare come true. Good luck with your project, GM

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

The color has a very fine metallic in it so that's what gives it the effect at night.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

You are right. The first time I pulled the car in at night and the headlights hit the tailgate, I was shocked at just how reflective this paint really is. It almost looks white in the daylight, but at night it looks like it is backlit with LEDs.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Definitely better than painting them white, I see some paint them white because Chevrolet did theirs that way. By 1980 GMC no longer painted the letters or background in aluminum, they just used black, white or one of the two tone body colors like Chevrolet did, obviously it was an assembly line procedure, a sign that GMC trucks were assembled together with Chevrolet Trucks.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Sorry , I meant 1970 not 1980.:lolsmack2::ahhhh:

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

I had no idea it should be Argent Silver, but that sounds like it could look great.

Obviously, my own truck's tailgate has seen better days...and was at least once the victim of some dumb kid with a rattle-can professing his love for his [probably now-ex-] girlfriend :D

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-s...o/IMG_8065.JPG

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

From 1955 -69 argent silver or aluminum as it may also be called was used on tailgates letters or backgrounds(67-69) on GMC Trucks..:my2cents:

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

If I remember right, the plain-jane non-custom cab trucks did get White paint instead of the Silver on Customs - I just bought a NOS / pull off tailgate that has 100% of its original paint and the raised lettering and surround is white instead of Silver from the factory.....

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

That must of been an oddity. My fathers 62 K1000 did not have the custom cab nor two tone or chrome, just white hubcaps and grille painted solid in Delta Green, Tailgate letters were silver. The vast majority of trucks regardless of color combination had the silver letters, that didn't start to change till 1968 when white painted GMC pickups came with black backgrounds a few were still silver though.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Hey GMCNut, Is there anything in the paint regs addressing the color for the GMC and surround? I think I have seen a few original stepsides with White lettering, but I can not say if I ever saw white on a Wideside tailgate. Maybe they sprayed what they had on hand. Or they ran out of silver. Might even have been sprayed where wheels were also getting White paint. For safety's sake, I would opt for the Silver. I have seen the difference it makes on my truck. It is like adding LEDs to the back of your truck at night. A huge safety upgrade for any truck, and it looks great to boot. GM

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Id like to know what color the fenderside tailgate letters were painted on a plain Jane truck. Did they change colors between the script and block lettering, which I think was in '62?

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

They were painted argent silver PPG # 8568 period. For the skeptics out there I will post a pic of my father 62 K1000 fenderside that he bought brand new in one solid color Delta Green with white hub caps, wheels and grille. From 1955-69 the argent silver was used. In 1970 silver was replaced with white. Trucks are old and even repainted but after many years of weathering it can be hard to distinguish if it's original paint or not. If the letters are white then 99.9% chance it was repainted the wrong color. What I see is a lot of little details in paint background behind the grille and upper hood grille completely lost. Years ago on Jolly's site all these details were brought up to attention and now it's all forgotten.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

:pullinghairout: Here is a pic of my father's 62 K-1000 taken sometime in late summer to early fall of 1964. The truck had no chrome, the grille, front bumper, hubcaps & wheels were all white, standard cab and one solid color. As you can see the tailgate letters are the correct silver, this should clarify what color was used back then on the tailgate letters.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Great picture BigBlock. Thanks for sharing it. You have a great early era color picture of a Fenderside Tailgate that is certainly factory Argent Silver. Great evidence to support the fact that this color was indeed used on at least some trucks. However, this great picture alone does not prove that Argent Silver was the ONLY color prescribed or used on the letters. It only proves that it was on this truck. I believe it was prescribed and indeed used on almost all the trucks from this era. I believe you gave me the factory paint code for this color when I did my tailgate. Do you know of any sources that specifically prescribe this color for certain year models? I have read the 1960 GMC Paint Regulations over and over. I can not find where the factory prescribed ANY paint for the lettering and surround, in writing. The picture on the regs of the Fenderside truck, shows no Argent Silver or White. The tailgate is a solid color. In fact, The 1960 GMC Master Parts Book lists every color used for all models, and there is no Argent Silver listed. I checked my Owners Guides, paint charts, etc., looking for Argent Silver ,and did not find it. Can you or someone else please show me, in writing, where in 1960 GMC ordered the tailgate letters painted? The dealer approved Accessories Catalog lists all colors, even engine colors, but no Argent Silver is listed. I went with Argent Silver because in the vast majority of trucks of this era that I have seen, it was on them. Subjectively, it just looks right on there. Also, it is just more reflective than any other color, for safety sake. But I am yet to be shown any reference material from GMC in 1960 that says it is the prescribed color or the only color for the tailgate letters and surround. Perhaps such information exists, but I have not seen it. I have the 1965 GMC Paint Regs. They clearly call for "Aluminum" as the color for the letters, but no mention of the surround. The picture on the 1965 Paint Regs shows the Two-Tone Custom Packaged Wideside, with the Letters and the surround in this "Aluminum" color. I think the "Argent Silver" name is what "Aluminum" came to be know as, but it was called "Aluminum" in 1965, and probably as early as they started painting the letters and surround. Does anyone have the paint regulations for 1961,62,63 and 64? They will probably help shed a clarifying light on this fascinating discussion. Factory correct or not, I could not see the back of my truck at night until I added the Argent Silver. Most important paint on the whole truck. GM

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

The silver was also used on tailgate letters from 1955-59 including the newer 58-59 widesides that shared the tailgate with 60-66 widesides. I grew up with two brand new 60's GMC's with V6's and never saw white lettering used on tailgate until 1970!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

As far as color sources go, I have seen Dupont and PPG both have listings for the Argent Silver in some of their color chip pages, may have been listed as a trim color, I'll look into it.

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I especially like the fender flares. Big Block what is the story on those?

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It's a Fenderside dually! Back then wide off road tires were not around so my father got adapters to convert to dual rear wheels for his off road and hunting trips. After he would come back home the dually's would be taken off after a few days. By late 1965 wider tires started coming around and he switched to those and never ran the duals again. Here's a pic from 1966 with wider tires spare and all, he even had the right side rear fender cut out and mounted a second spare tire.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Why the white paint on the leading edge of the hood, Pete? Do you remember what size those tires were?

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

The white paint was my fathers idea, he thought that would look good together with the white grille because there was too much green every where else. I was 6 years old then and the tires really looked big to me. I would say they were roughly a 30x10 size tire.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Or possibly a 31x10.50 size.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

With respect to your considerable knowledge and experience of 60-66 GMC's being greater than mine, I am going to have to disagree with you bigblockv6. I spoke to Barry Charon about this (another well-respected GMC historian and former member of this group) and I believe we can produce proof that some two-tone non-custom GMC's did come with White tailgate lettering instead of Silver. (this would explain why your Father's solid color truck had Argent lettering instead of White too) After some pondering on the subject, I thought it could be that difference is limited to say 1960-61 only when the upper body on all two-tone trucks was White (our smoking gun) or it could just as easily be a 1966 only variation, when other changes were made such as the addition of backup lights and seatbelts, which is also the year glare-reduction measures were first taken. Some degree of study will be required to discover the truth here. So, in my opinion, if a pull off tailgate is discovered in a barn loft with 100% of its factory paint on it, and it has White lettering on it from the factory, and other original non-repainted examples have been observed or can be discovered, then there is certainly enough reason to at least consider this could be true. There are a million variations to old trucks and many times we are too quick to consider something to be a fact - lets explore this further and I will share photos as I dig them up. Barry is digging in his many tailgates and pics and I will share what he finds as well. More on this subject soon....

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

YEEEEEHAAAAAA!!!!!!

Another Pissin' Contest!!!!!!!


LOL

Rusty

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Another great picture BigBlock, Your dads truck appears to have every external option know to man, and then some. This truck would make "The Fall Guy" proud. Do you remember what interior options it had? AM Radio, etc. Also, Do you know if it is a J or G Series truck? I have read that the orange lenses in the hood started in 1963. He could have swapped them in along the way. I love the twin spotlights. It looks like he was no stranger to the GMC Accessories Counter. Any prayer that this old truck is still among the rolling? GM

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

The truck went away in Dec 1967 as part of agreement with the dealer that he would buy a new truck they would sell the 62 and it sold immediately. The new owner would be running back and forth from California to Mexico. 3 months later we took delivery of the new K-2500 and a couple of weeks later my father took it back in because the transfer case seals were leaking, the 62 was back at the dealer too with four flat tires and a mismatched spare. Looked like the truck was being run hard that was the last that was seen and heard about it, I suspect it probably became a piece of road debris somewhere in Mexico. The 62 was a K-1000 series with standard Cab and was called the deluxe seat. Came equipped from the factory with AM radio and clock, a Bat-O-Meter and Warn Hubs were added upon delivery. Over the next two years some dealer accessories were added like an inside rear view mirror, grille guard and a switch to amber signal lamp lenses. About two years later the spot lights were added along with roof clearance marker lamps but those were not done correctly because there were only 4 rather than 5. My father's needs for a truck were exceeding the capabilities of a 1/2 ton and he was breaking it often. It was time for a new bigger truck so the 68 was ordered and with the same accessories the 62 had but this time all in one package.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Here is the 68 which is mine now and as you can see it has the same accessories as the 62 but the roof clearance marker lights were factory installed, it also came with two spare tire mounts inside the bed from the factory specially ordered.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Looks like your 68 has a lift kit, Pete. It sits higher than my 67 K2500.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Ed, Due to the weight of the V6 it tended to sit lower in front over the years so I put some add a leafs only in the front, it does look like it sits higher in the front in the pics but now with the added weight of the 478M it should be just right.

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

So, while this comment by Rusty was certainly said in fun, I still feel like I should at least say that no one deserves more respect on this board than Pete, Ed Snyder and many other senior members who have all forgotten more factual data on 6066 GMC's than I will ever know, so with that said, if I disagree with any one of them on points like the subject at hand, it should never be considered by any member (especially those being disagreed with) that I am in any way being dis-respectful of their knowledge nor in any way starting any sort of argument - this likely could have went without saying, but since we have several newer members, this should clarify my intent as being to simply secure the most accurate knowledge and correct historical data for the overall benefit of the group and its future learners. Fair enough?

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

You hit the nail right on the head when you said my comment was made IN FUN.........

Over the past 10+ years I have been a member of this group I have had the pleasur of meeting several members face to face. Ed & Pete are two of these guys that I have hung out with on a few occasions.

I am 99.9% percent sure that they both know me well enough to know I was showing my warped/ cynical sense of humor.

Hopefully the "newer" members can expect and/or accept my "humorous" comments.

Rusty

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

The only thing more memorable than Rustys humor is his ability to grille the best brats and sauerkraut in all of Kansas and Missouri!!

Foley

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Thanks for the kind words Foley!!!!!!!

The Wichita Mini-Meet last year was a good time. It always nice to put a face to a name. I am always one to encourage folks trying to put together a get-together.

I was trying to put together a Southeast Mini-Meet but that didn't seem to come together.

I know Jolly is having his 15 year get-together this year. I went to his 5 & 10 year, and am 99% sure I will be at the 15. I highly encourage everyone try and find a way to make it.

Maybe I am not in the loop, but so far the only others to commit are Ed & Rick. Is this correct?

Rusty

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Got it done! Thanks BigBlock for the good info!!:yourock:

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Good to see you did it in the right aluminum color and didn't listen to the skeptics and painted it white:thumbsup::yourock:

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Wow, That looks nice. Have you seen it at night yet? That Aluminum lights up like a laser. What color is the tailgate painted? That is a cool color. Here is a picture of my tailgate, on a 1960 GMC Cape Blue/Olympic White truck. I also chose the same Aluminum paint for the letters. BigBlockV6 hooked me up with the paint code number for the Aluminum color. Did you mix and spray or get the aerosol version? You done a fine job with the tailgate lettering.GM

Re: Tailgate Color?
 

Pete, I know you will never believe its true, but I am about to have in my possession a NOS / pull off wideside tailgate that does indeed have factory applied White tailgate lettering - I have a tracking number finally so should be here this week. I will post clear pictures so you can see they do exist - this one was with the original owner in a California barn loft until a few months back.