1981 Bigfoot Exterior Paint

[jimmied]

Now that I have most of the interior refinished including painting all of the walls and replacing the cupboard fronts (pics to follow), I will be doing some exterior body work and would like to match the existing colour without painting all of the exterior. The ownership says it is yellow, but it looks more like a recreational white. Any idea where I can obtain a match. Thanks, Jim

[Donna D.]

Jim, there are whites.. and then there are whites. I purchased a baggage door in "original" white and it's almost like a light beige. Definitely not a bright white, but certainly not yellow either.

You have a couple of options. Is there any piece that you can take off and take to a paint store to color match? OR, how about putting a decal over the repair....

Hopefully someone with the same vintage Bigfoot will pop in with the actual answer you seek.

[mszabo]

Jim, shine up a spot on your trailer. Take it to a auto paint supply store, Napa, etc.
They have a machine they use that will color match your finish.
That is what I did and it looked great and matched perfect.
If you have a tire or tank cover use that.

[Reid Larsen]

Another option is to go to a home store or paint store and get an assortment of color chips that are close if you can't get a piece of the original paint color and hold them next to the trailer getting the best match then getting some paint made that color. I did that with a house paint color swatch and took it to my auto paint supplier to match it. Most paint stores-both auto and home- use a computer for custom matches and it doesn't matter what they use for the "match" sample. Pay no mind to the name of the color on the sample-who knows where they come up w/ those names.

[Tom Trostel]

On my 1980 I replaced the front panel of the refrigerator with formica that was closer to the color of the interior wood. I was suprised to find the the original panel was a piece of exterior fiberglass and it matched the color of the trailer. If yours is the same, remove two screws from the upper trim on the fridge and take it with you to the paint store. You can see the original panel in this photo though the flash makes it look whiter than it is.
http://s293.beta.photobucket.com/use...78133191577798

[jimmied]

Thanks for the suggestions. Tom, the fridge panel seems to be a different colour than the exterior which is probably due to fading. I like your photos. Reid, the idea of paint chips seem to be the best solution. Thanks

[jimmied]

I just had an idea as Donna came to the rescue, again. I realized that when removing the windows, I also had to remove the stone guard which is currently off the rig. I will take the stone guard into the paint store and have them match....now that settles that. Thanks again.

[Donna D.]

!! Love it when a plan comes together.

Just make certain that the color match happens under a full-spectrum hood. Remember, florescent or LED or anything other than sunlight affects color.

Jim, when you finally color match to your gel coat... please let us know what brand, tint, etc. you come up with... others will find that information of value. And here at FiberglassRV the archives are very important!