About to lay some paint on my engine block...but which color??

So Im painting my moapr flathead 6. It will be dressed will an aluminum head, aluminum intake and split original manifold. The car will be paint Honduras Maroon with a black roof. What color should I paint my block? Black? Grey like when the engine was new?

Any ideas?? Im at a loss and I want the engine to stand out in the engine bay of my 53 plymouth, but I dont want it to blend in with the car.
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Factory Dude

 

Screw the factory colors! It's a custom, not a resto!
I'd go bright red. Goes with maroon, highlights your aluminum, and a few chrome pieces on there would be nice, too. Red plug wires, black exhaust manifold (porceline would be real cl***y!)
If it's going to look good, make it stand out with a bright color.

 

Here is a link to an earlier thread with a couple of options.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=213331&highlight=plymouth+flathead

I was looking for a link to a beautiful red one, but haven't found it yet.

 

This is not the one I was looking for, but may give an idea.

http://img520.imageshack.us/my.php?image=0625071953anj2.jpg

 

You're thinking of painting the engine black to make it stand out? Sorry, I sometimes find rephrasing questions provides their own answers......

Are you using another color for the interior or wheels or pinstriping?

 

Stay Mopar- HEMI Orange

 

How about Packard Ivory or Bronze...good contrast to maroon. Or if you want a mopar color, you could go with chrysler turquoise...a bit sharper contrast.
Olds turquoise or Pontiac light blue are also possibilies.

Check out this link for most stock colors on production vehicles. Paint is heat rated for engines.

http://www.holmesautorestorations.com/engineenamel.html

 

Yep red would look really cool under the hood!

 

Please no!!! Anything but Hemi Orange, plus we all know that Silver was the color of the real Hemi's/Double Rockers.

 

I like the grey.....

 

Take a peek at Alpine Green , a GMC/Allison color . Green wouldn't sound like a great color for maroon but this paint leans to the gray side and goes well with a rich color like you are using . If the auto parts store doesn't have it they can order it . DON'T go to a Jimmy diesel dealer as they charge two to three times as much .

 

Since mine is close to stock, I just used POR 15 high heat aluminum, applied with a brush, to similate original color. Black accessories and inner fenders. Firewall matches the car.



Check out this fine looking engine in a 49 Plym coupe, just completed.



In fact, here's a link to his album.....this whole car is nice.

http://picasaweb.google.com/CrusinDuck/Magoo

 

While bright silver is correct for a lot of mopars, including my own......it just triggers too much of an unconscious 99-cent spray can response in my brainstem and totally ruins it.

A lot of what you can get away with is how buried the engine is. If it's out there and exposed you can get away with a darker color (like body color). But cover it with a bunch of hoses, wires, and cannisters and it needs to be bright to pull thru all the foreground clutter. Does that make any sense?

 

A great looking black and chrome flathead done by "Blueskies" in his
brown 1950 Plymouth.

 

A high gloss battleship gray would look good with the aluminum bits and not clash with the maroon/black. The black brackets and pullys would look good with it too.

It would also have a nice industrial "machiney" look about it.

 

A lot of guys think you HAVE to use engine paint.
Nope!
If you do a search on how to paint engines here, you'll see!
I've painted engines in acrylic enamel (w/hardener), Imron, Single Stage uro, Base/Clear, Even with House of Kolor Candy and Pearl urethane systems. The only one to stay away from is lacquer, including primer.
Here's my 46 Chevy engine....a 292 six, smoothed block, and painted HOK Candy Apple Red.
Looks good with the polished alum. and chrome!

 

Here's a couple of underhood shots of my engine... The paint is just auto parts store rattle can high temp semi gloss black.





Pete

 

looks great ,,but the hose

 

hemi orange? really though a glossy red would look great, maybe even a high gloss black....

 

id do the engine bay black, and the engine the same color as the car.

 

I'll get right on that for ya... amazing what the flash on the camera turns up that isn't noticed by the naked eye...

Pete

 

Engine looks great!!!!! Firewall..... not so great!


46 truck or car?

 

Black. Looks great with the whole engine compartment black as well.

 

Throwing in a wrench...what about a copper color..more the "orange" than the 'pink" kind? I think that looks pretty sharp with bright metal, and it would look cool against maroon.

 

I'm still out on a limb here. Any other ideas?