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RAL code for Bronze Green?

Started by angello, Apr 16, 2024, 11:58 AM

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angello

I've finally dropped my wheels off at the local powder coaters to have them refinished in bronze green, as original and they've asked for a RAL code  ???
I know the LR paint code is LRC001, but does anyone know the equivalent RAL code?

simonbav

#1
Hi Angello,
there isn't an equivalent as such though I found bottle green Ral 6007 identical to the paint on the underside of my '61 transmission tunnel cover.
1961 88" 2286 petrol truck cab
1971 109" 2286 diesel station wagon

angello

Thanks simonbav  :cheers

I've been searching online and am amazed to find that nobody else ever seems to have asked this question! The closest I've got is some diving into a military vehicle forum which goes back to early paint history and codes and suggests early Land Rover Series 1s were a Rover colour, but thereafter classic Land Rover Bronze Green was straight out of the British Standard palette and equates to BS381C 224 .... nearest RAL match being RAL 6002...
 
Paintman paints suggest BS381C 224 is the closest match to DBG, but theirs is colour matched to an original sample.... and they couldn't offer any advice on a RAL code.

At this stage I'm leaning towards RAL 6002 as that is what the powder coaters have declared is the closest match to BS381C 224, but I'd love to hear any other opinions!  ;)

simonbav

Is there a sample on your own vehicle that hasn't been exposed to the sun that you can match to?
1961 88" 2286 petrol truck cab
1971 109" 2286 diesel station wagon

autorover1

There has been years of discussion about this subject on the S1 club forum and the consensus seems to be that there is not an equivalent RAL colour , but given fading and paint mixing differences it is difficult to really decide.   The BS 381c range appears to be the definitive DBG.

malcolm

You really have to match a piece of unexposed area of the car rather than go for the paint code. The LR or BS paint code nowadays will probably bear little resemblance to what was rolled of the production line.

GlenAnderson

Much like my BSA motorcycle, our Land-Rovers were made at a time when exact spectrum matching was a sci-fi fantasy, and paints were mixed by eye rather than to a specific formula. Whichever one you prefer is as "right" as the other. The beauty of the RAL system is that, once you have decided on a colour, a whole lot of suppliers, products and processes can be mixed and matched in the safety of knowing that they'll all be pretty damn close to the same colour. 👍

autorover1

If you look at the ICI paint mix for the LR Series One grey , it gives a mix of Black, White and yellow and then states  use a touch of Turkey Red to match. Which says it all regarding paint matching at the time , you did it by eye . 

angello

As suggested, I've taken the lid off the underseat box and dropped it into the powder coaters to match the sample... the closest match in the flesh was RAL 6007, which they report is a standard off-the-shelf colour  :cheers-man

Given how much the colours appear to vary, I'm happy to go with it and see how they look - the coaters are pretty confident it will be hard to spot any differences in shade when they are fitted.

Whatever happens my wheels are going to look fabulous and that's exciting!  :gold-cup

simonbav

That's great. My powder coaters put my wheels through with some local roadside telecom cabinets so they're a darker shade than 6007 but they do for now.
1961 88" 2286 petrol truck cab
1971 109" 2286 diesel station wagon

diffwhine

You will be fine. There is a visual barrier of a tyre and wheel arch between your wheel and the nearest painted panel. I defy anybody to spot the variation unless its really wrong. It's when you have two adjoining panels of different shades that things go wrong.

Who are you using for the powder coating?
1965 2A 88" Station Wagon