when did metallic paint start?

what year did cars roll out of the plant with stock metallic paint? Was it the early 60`s, was it an option when buying a car from the dealer, metallic or non metallic and did custom flake paint jobs come first? thanks for the help.

 

Seems like I read somewhere that the metallic paint was used as early as 1927 on Duesenburgs. HRP

 

I think that a couple of high end cars used metalic paint by the '30s as well.

It became pretty common in the later 40s or earlier '50s I believe.

 

I think Cadillac was the first or one of the first in 1933. By the late 40s most car maker had metallics in their color selections.

 

My 37 Chevy was a factory metallic.
The metallic flake used back then was very fine and gray, no where near as brilliant to what was being used in the 60's and 70's.

 

1934 Hupmobiles had a 'jewelescent' option - that's metallic....

 

My 55 special came from the factory with Belfast Green Metallic on the roof.
IIRC many cars commonly came from the factory with metallics in the 40s on.

 

there's already a thread asking the same question. Metallic has been around a lot longer than you think. Chevy was using it in the 30s and they usually referred to it as "Poly"
As a example, a 1941 Chevy metallic color is "Ridge Green Poly".

 

I owned a 1936 Nash that had original brown metallic paint.

 

Yes, Metallic started in the mid to late '20s. I don't know the exact year. The metallic was very fine. Because the metallic particles were so fine it didn't look sparkly like modern metallic. It was iridescent looking, which is one of the names it was called.

 

really from the 20-30`s wow, im doing a metallic paint job on my 55 Plymouth and im not sure if they came metallic, i need to look up original colors chart for that year.

 

I know that '54 Plymouths were available with metallic paint, so '55s probably were too.

 

they show a few poly colors

 

It seems like this is a question for the guy that wrote this test.

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=739436

 

thank you Squirrel, this is very helpfull.

 

hahaha he did say he knows everything about the car world!

 

Yea not much about the people that make up its population though.

I wish I could give a better answer than I did.

 

Believe it or not GM offered pearl paint in the early 30's. Some models of the 32 Chevy were offered with Sky Glow Pearl,Moon Glow Pearl or Bronze Glow Pearl.They were mixed using "Pearl Essence Clear" (clear base with ground pearl shells or mother of pearl) and a small amount of a tinting color.

 

A long time ago...