You Can't Make This Stuff Up!

[Lee Stewart]

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by R68GTO

Was it available in '68? I know it was in '69 but I don't think any vehicle manufacturer had an orange in the lineup in '68? Could you get a special paint in a random non-manufacturer color?

Special Paint process, per Eric White:

The procedure for getting a special-paint car ordered went like this:

• The customer (or dealership) determines what color is desired.

• An All Series Special Equipment order form is filled out.

The information required for a special-paint-request on this form is:
• Lower Color Paint No.
• Upper Color Paint No.
• Make of Car & Year Paint Used.
I am guessing that obtaining the correct paint no. would be left up to the ordering salesman/dealership paint department.

In the '60s and early '70s, before colored plastic/fiberglass trim parts became common, any color paint could be ordered, as long as the dealer could supply the paint formula no. on the S.O. form. After the mid-'70s when the crash-bumper fillers became common place, special order colors were phased out except for large fleet orders.

Several codes were used on the Fisher Body trim tag to indicate a special-order paint. Codes varied between the years and between Fisher Body plants. Some of the codes used were:
1= Standard GM paint, not a Pontiac color
2= Special Pontiac color. Sometimes offered a half-year color.
3= Cadillac FireFrost color. This paint was not normally allowed on a Pontiac build because of the special processes required to apply this type of paint.
4= Body in primer
SPEC or ** would indicate a paint color from a source outside GM (Ford, Chryco, AMC, John Deere, International Harvester, etc.) Colors could also be ordered to match school or business colors. As long as a formula no. could be identified by the dealership just about any color hue could be specified.

• The order was then routed through the Pontiac Zone office, which then routed it on to the Central Office.

• Central Office then entered a request to the paint supplier, usually PPG/Ditzler, for the appropriate paint.

• The paint supplier shipped a quantity of paint to the appropriate assembly plant.

• The special-order build was scheduled and coordinated between the Fisher plant and GMAD or Pontiac assembly.

• Build was delivered to dealership with a quart of touch up paint in trunk.

[Keith Seymore]

I would add that at Flint Assembly we had smaller "paint pots" we could load with special paint, or for repair use.

That way we could run specials with less waste and cleanup (due to purging the lines and cleaning the container between colors) than if we tried it with the larger regular production tanks.

K

[R68GTO]

Good info Keith. Maybe they painted that firebird "Allis Chalmers" orange

[muscle_collector]

i owned this car for a few decades. so here is the trim tag on the 71 gto 455HO that was ordered right after the judge option was dropped and it had stripes and rear spoiler on the phs. it was a special paint orbit orange (which was a 70 color). the cowl tag has - - for the paint code and i never knew what it was but if you look close you will see numbers stamped at the bottom of it. i posted it on a forum and a guy informed me that those numbers were the paint formula for orbit orange. wow learned something new that day. phil mitchell now owns this super rare car.

[Lee Stewart]

Adapted to a fully aquatic life and unable to move on land, sea snakes are highly venomous. The most poisonous species is the beaked sea snake, whose venom is eight times as toxic as a cobra's.

[Lee Stewart]

There are at least 51 species of box jellyfish. Some produce extremely potent toxins and have earned the dubious honor of being among the most venomous creatures in the world.

[Lee Stewart]

All members of the stonefish family are toxic, dangerous, and even fatal to humans. In fact, they are the most venomous fish out there.

[Lee Stewart]

The piranha has a fearsome reputation as having one of the strongest bites found in bony fishes. Rows of razor-sharp teeth in both jaws can shred prey to pieces in minutes.

[Lee Stewart]

Lionfish are known for their venomous fin rays, an uncommon feature among reef-dwelling fish along the American East Coast and Caribbean. Get stung by one of these guys and expect extreme pain, nausea, vomiting, fever, breathing difficulties, convulsions, and dizziness.