I originally posted this a few days ago,in the General section. Probably should have started here,since it is the Restoration Forum! I'm looking for someone with experience to do some body work...and paint my '69' GTX. After kicking around some colors in my head...I think the factory color,which is F-5...with some gold metal flake added,would suit me just fine! I have a SET price that I have to adhere to,so a $15-$20,000 show quality job is out of reach! If anyone knows of a shop...or individual, who works out of his garage/pole barn,and within an hours drive of the Detroit area,please let me know! I already have a few good leads,but feel I REALLY have to do my research on this! Thanks in advance! Randy Borawski

Great car there Randy. Super color when done properly. Here is a F5 '69 R/T Charger that I did a few years ago. It was a complete strip and make necessary body repairs and repaint. JC.

Thanks Joey! Nice lookin' Charger! My F-5 Green is darker on the left quarter,compared to the rest of the car! Not sure if it's F-5..or the rest of the car is!??? How far are you from Memphis?

I think that particular shade of green is fairly hard to get right. I see alot of repaints that all appear to be differnt than the other. This Charger was really low mile car and I spent a great deal of time working on getting the paint mix to where I liked what matched the original green on the car. I'm probably 1.5 hrs. away.

Randy; I didn't post on the other thread, but good choice. I would avoid tampering with the formula too much so it doesn't look completely "off" with the jambs, underhood and trunk.

Good luck and nice car; you'll be happy with the fresh paint.


Dave

Thanks,Dave! I think adding a bit of metal flake to the clear coat will definately improve the "Look" of the fresh paint! I just have to decide whether GOLD..or SILVER flake,will look the best! The jambs..and under the hood have to be done as well. The trunk,I'm thinking of doing myself. Unless the painter I choose gives me a deal I can't refuse! I was just looking at some new trim pieces yesterday,at MCB Metal Finishing,who advertise on this site. Real nice set-up...and they're 15 minutes from my house. Matt said it would be cheaper to buy the Finish Panel for the trunk,instead of trying to refurbish it. Cost of the new one...ONLY $700.00! Replacing and repairing the trim alone will be over $1500.00. Time to break into the Piggy Bank! No one ever said this was going to be "budget-friendly"!

ONLY 3 RESPONSES?????....WTH! VERRRY DISAPOINTING!!!

Ok, you want responses, (and remember, you are in the RESTORATION forum). I'd keep it the same color (which looks beautiful if you ask me) and I'd leave the paint original without any extra metal flake or anything else.

Simple reasons:

It will look great stock and fresh.

Leaving the original paint color won't negatively affect the cars value.

Modifying a factory color is not much different than changing it to an entirely different color, just as expensive to correct down the road should someone buy it and want to go back to original.

Thanks,Scott! You make some VERY GOOD points! When I see pics of other cars that are painted F-5 green..they appear to be a lighter shade of green than what mine is! My paint is actually 2 different shades...with the driver's quarter panel a darker shade..which I REALLY like! I don't think it's quite as dark as F-8,but it might be! Since the car is pretty much modified..maybe the paint correctness is a mute issue! I have a LOT of research to do...and there are MANY shades of green out there! I would really like to stick with a Chrysler green,though! BTW...ALWAYS liked a JADE green...like the darker green on the ole' Jade Grenade Top Fueler of the 60's and 70's!

So far it appears that most of the modifications on your car are bolt ons and fairly easy to reverse, paint however is an entirely different scenario.

My take is this, once you do custom on any expensive to reverse area of the car you narrow the future desirability factor down to those that have your specific tastes (could end up being a lot of people, could end up being VERY few people, it's a pig in a poke!).

I understand that the cars value is not the most important thing to many people, but IMO it should at least be considered when any item that is potentially worth 10's of thousands of dollars is part of your personal belongings portfolio.

So if you do decide to change the color (in any way) be prepared to live with the consequences whichever direction they may take the cars value.

IMO, if you want a custim paint race car, sell off the GTX and buy a base model Satellite or similar and go nuts, it won't do anything but help the value of one of those and you won't be messing up a perfectly good GTX in the process

If the car looks as nice in person as it does in the photos, I wouldn't paint it at all except MAYBE the hood. I'm guessing the car has a few nicks & scratches, and the lt quarter darkness tells me there's been a repair there, but trust me on this, the nicer the paint, the more you need to worry about the car instead of just enjoying it. I've made monuments out of enough cars already, so my favorites nowadays are original-paint cars even with some flaws (aka "character" or "patina").
There are usually variances within the same color code, but if you're going to repaint the car, Scott's point about future value is very valid. Been there, done that.

There's a lot of cars that I can take or leave but your car definetly has "the right look". I would repaint it stock, you'll love how it looks when it's fresh I'm sure.

Sheldon

Don't know the name of the place, but it has been in Muscle car review. It's in Imlay City.

Scott,thanks again for your HONEST opinions! After thinking a great deal on this...it will be painted the factory color of F-5....with NO additional metal flake! Everything you brought up makes a lot of sense! Steve..YES on the scratches,and chips...but NO noticeable dents to speak of! The X looks MUCH BETTER in pics than in person! Sheldon,thanks for the compliment! The car will look SO MUCH BETTER after some body work,and FRESH paint!...with an emphisis on the SAME SHADE of green!

Another thing to be aware of is that all the plating that looked fine before will now look not so fine against the new paint, or maybe I should say that I've always had that problem. My first Roadrunner went from "just fixing the seats" to completely blown apart for restoration in about 2 weeks of that Snowball Effect. My buddies howl nowadays whenever I refer to a new purchase as "having nice patina"...and don't even ask about my plow truck...

Steve,that's my BIG concern as well! I'm in the process of purchasing..or refurbishing the trim pieces..including the window moldings...and the rubber weatherstripping,as well! Back bumper was replaced 3 yrs. ago,and I have a re-chromed front bumper to install after getting it painted.