What Colour for Restoration?

[markjonesx 1]

OK, I have been doing some more research on my car;

http://www.lotusespritforum.com/forums/ind...showtopic=18767

On the bulkhead it has the number 238 and looks like an original Orange gell coat car.

[Tony K 127]

My vote:

I'd even go as far as to carefully block sand away all of the other paint and primer and see what kind of shape the original orange is in underneath. The "gel coat" finishes are very thick compared to traditional paint, and living with a few stress cracks might be worth the advantages of a finish that is otherwise extremely durable, almost immune to stone chips, and that can't be repeated.

My white S1 has its original gel coat finish, and as dull and tired as it looked from 28 years of California sun, it cleaned right up and polished to a smooth gloss.

And for what it's worth, close to 80% of S1s were either yellow, red, or white to start out. On top of that, many of the less common color S1s -- blue, bronze, orange, black, gray, regency, and of course green* -- have been repainted . . . . ermm . . . white, red, yellow, and ermm. . . white.

* sorry Matt, I had to!

EDIT: Just my opinion, so you know where I'm coming from: I'm a stickler for original color on S1s when it is something other than yellow/red/white. There were about a dozen cool colors on S1s, but you never see them any more. If someone were to take a red one and paint it white or a yellow one and paint it red, it wouldn't make much difference as they are all "plentiful".

Edited August 28, 2008 by Tony K

[talon 0]

Tony - don't know if I missed it in another thread, but have you decided to keep that gorgeous orange car?

[Matt-watts 113]

Having had my car re-painted in the colour it was first painted in the factory (before some Prat ordered a bright green one and lotus painted over the lovely white)* I would paint it it's original colour ... Orange

TonyK's Idear of seeing what the original gel coat finish is like is a very good one, I would do that in a few small patches on different panels and see what you have got to work with.

Edited August 28, 2008 by Matt-watts

[Loose Cannon 582]

Plenty of white ones about, be different and original at the same time. Would look amazing in gel coat too if possible.

Edited August 28, 2008 by LooseCannon

[talon 0]

Another thing to remember about the gel coat. It can be repaired. It's a common occurrence in the marine industry. Your local body shop may not be able to do the job, but a good marine shop should be able to drill out any stress cracks, re-glass the area, and then color match and re-apply the gel coat. I've had a couple spots done on my boat and they are invisible.

[Tony K 127]

Another thing to remember about the gel coat. It can be repaired. It's a common occurrence in the marine industry. Your local body shop may not be able to do the job, but a good marine shop should be able to drill out any stress cracks, re-glass the area, and then color match and re-apply the gel coat. I've had a couple spots done on my boat and they are invisible.

Russ,

I suggested this a couple of years ago, and was quickly chastized by a few people. I was told that the "gel coat" is not the same as on a surf board or boat. I am under the impression that it is something more like Imron (2-pack polyurethane) but with the consistency and thickness of gel coat. But I am really not sure. But I was told it is not typical "gel coat", and hence I alway put it in quotation marks. I would love some clarification from the factory here! (Gooner? Mike Kimberley?)

A few S1 old-timers I have talked to (original owners and such) have referred to the gel coat finishes as "Concorde" finish, their meaning that the cars were finished in the same stuff as the supersonic transport. If we're talking airplane paint, again, I think that's more like Imron . . .

The service manual discusses the paint material and specifies a different repaint/repair material.

I would really like to know what the deal actually is on the gel coat cars -- if it is indeed gel coat like on a boat or something else. If I were to paint a gel coat car, my current thinking is that I would pay homage to it by using Imron or equivalent. But I'm really open to suggestions and better information!

- T

[talon 0]

I don't believe there is much difference. It is applied to the inside of the mold prior to the fiberglass layup. On a boat it is usually only several mills thick, but there is really no limit to how thick it can be. The trick is in curing it. Gelcoat is fairly brittle, especially as it gets thicker. The trick to repairing gelcoat is how you cure it; at the factory it is encased between the mold and the fiberglass, so there is no air to interfere. For a repair, the trick is to use something to stop air from getting to the gelcoat while it hardens. There are several schools of though about it, the guy that works on my boat (and used to do my vette) uses a specially prepared wax to seal the area while it is setting up.

[markjonesx 1]

Having had my car re-painted in the colour it was first painted in the factory (before some Prat ordered a bright green one and lotus painted over the lovely white)* I would paint it it's original colour ... Orange

TonyK's Idear of seeing what the original gel coat finish is like is a very good one, I would do that in a few small patches on different panels and see what you have got to work with.

Matt, read your PM's.

[markt 70]

Original Orange gets my vote

Really nice project you have there Mark, and I'm more than a bit jealous. No silly thinking about getting rid of it to finish the MG alright... You'll get an enormous amount of support and encouragement here, and a fair amount of bullying into keeping the car too.

Cheers - Mark