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Just about at the tearing my hair out stage (what I have left anyhow),

I am unfortunate to have a 1960/61 3a in the mythical shade of Triumph Racing Green, the one where no codes or formulas seem to exist. I think triumph just mixed a load of odds and ends together and made up the name. 

Not being able to find anything online I went to my local auto store and went through the paint aerosols till I found one that appeared close, indeed I bought it and did a test piece and was quite happy with the match, a little darker but allowing for faded paint on my car, and as I am doing the whole car anyway I thought I had found a winner. It was supposed to be a match for Jaguar/Rover Brooklands Green, so I got a half litre mixed and ended up with the almost black offering on the left on my sample below. Missed by a mile.

Next using Ral colour chips found 6012 (Black green) which looked very close, so had a half litre of that mixed, see light greyish tone on the right of sample. Another miss, though I have sprayed the underside of the shell in it as a base coat, and I have to admit it looks better on a big area.

Today I went to a different paint shop, being too embarrassed to go back a third time to my original supplier, and the helpful chap there took some time and mixed me up Triumph BRG, code HAA/ or 75 depending on year you look at, and ended up with the colour centre top of my sample. A bit too green really, but pretty close to the model TR3a I sit opposite in my display cabinet. Interestingly the touch up paint that Rimmer Bros do (RX4030A) is the same for all versions of BRG from 1953 till the end of the TR6,Stag, Dolomite, and 2000/2500 ranges, so they must know something we don`t.

Anyway, can`t afford to buy any more sample paints, so unless someone out there has found a definitive match for Triumph Racing Green, circa 1960, I am going to go with HAA/75. At least it is a Triumph colour.

And to cap it all I have just realised I have posted this in the wrong forum, doh!. Not been my week.

20200211_161549.jpg

Edited by Ralph Whitaker
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Hi Ralph,

I'm not an expert with paint by a long way but should you have an under coat on the metal sheet?. That may be affecting the top coat shade a tad.

I'm sure there have been questions in the past regarding colours on the forum. Do a 'search'.

How about this  http://www.trregisterfrance.com/meca/paint.htm

and some more  

 

Roger

Edited by RogerH
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Hi Roger, the panel is a piece cut from the bottom of one of the doors during re-skinning. I compounded it to death to get back as far as pos to the original colour and have been using it as a colour chip. All the other paints are over the original green, but you are quite right in saying that the final colour can be influenced by the choice of primer colour, which I think should be dark grey for dark green.

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1 minute ago, John Morrison said:

Ralph presume you wanted this in 2/3/3A section, so placed here .Please let me know if this is incorrect,

I too would go the HAA, 

think it looks well.

 

John.

Please John, I had been browsing the 4/4a forum and forgot before posting, but it was intended for the 3a forum.

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4 minutes ago, iain said:

HAA I’m pretty sure is the Triumph Stag green of the mid 70’s available with either a blue or yellow tint just to confuse the issue even more.

..........you don’t need to ask how I know :-). 
 

Iain

 

Quite right, also TR7/8, TR6, Dolomite, Spitfire, and 2000 saloon range according to my research. Widely used in the seventies. I don`t know which my chap mixed for me. In some light it looks a perfect match for my sample, in others not so much.  I once re-sprayed the bonnet of a Vauxhall viva for a customer. Looked fantastic, perfect match for his green paintwork, till it was parked under the old sodium street lights when it changed colour completely and turned an odd shade of yellow.

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If it helps - the place I use lists Triumph Racing Green for the 1956 - 1961 vintage as well as the British racing green

Autopaints Brighton , may be worth a call.

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My car (1959 TR3a) was red when I bought it but when I started to strip it I found that it was dark green underneath. I subsequently obtained the build details via Bill Piggott and they confirmed that it was BRG. 

I sent a sample swatch from under the wing to an old guy who was retiring and shutting down his business and he mixed me several litres of cellulose that was a perfect match. Would it help if I sent you a sample of that as I still have some left. 

Rgds Ian

PS. I “T cutted” the sample swatch before I sent it to ensure it was clean and it came from an underwing area that wouldn’t have been sun bleached. 

Edited by Ian Vincent
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Hi Ralph

When looking for BRG shade to paint my TR3A a few years ago  I contacted Leonard Brooks Paint who I think are based in Essex. They very helpfully mixed up several different paint codes and sent me sprayed up samples on flexible cards which I took to one of the International Weekends in Malvern to try against all the 3A’s basking in the sun. The paint that in my opinion was the best match to the BRG TR’s on display was their (Brooks) 1970’s shade of cellulose BRG, Jaguar 254.  It took 5ltrs, applied on top of  a white primer filler and although perhaps not absolutely original, I’m happy with it!

David

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What green indeed. There seem to be as many shades of 'British racing green' as there are cars on the road. The colour also looks different depending on whether the sun is shining or it is a dull day or it is indoors under different types of lighting. It is almost impossible to photograph a green car and end up with something that looks the same on the photo. I have a 4A that was originally conifer green. However this has now acquired a different shade after 55 years in those areas of the car with still the original colour. The Jaguar racing green is a nice colour but more green than the Triumph equivalent. Conifer green is more of a blue-green and not used on the cars before the 4/4A as far as I am aware.

My 4A is Vauxhall Jade Green which is a nice colour but not original of course. When I bought the car the salesman said it was American racing green - as if! I am torn between going back to the conifer green to preserve originality (but I don't like the colour), going to Jaguar racing green which is a nicer colour (but again non original) or saying to hell with it and respraying with the Jade green.

In the end it is what shade you are happy with and does the car look good or not.

Keith

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Triumph Racing Green is the same colour as Conifer Green. The shade has two names, it's paint code 25.

How do I know - I've owned a Conifer Green TR4 for the past 45 years!

See also the list of paint codes as stated on this list from the French Triumph club I've just found on Google at http://www.trregisterfrance.com/meca/paint.htm

Edited by JeffR
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Here is a closeup of my TR2's original green paint from 1955.

The paint sample at the start seems close to the TR4A green which is more bluish.

It looks fairly close to the TR3A model and the Stag.

 

Dirk

REduced_size2.jpg

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  • 1 month later...

Well, after all the procrastinating, I had to make a decision, forced upon me really by realising I would have a lot of time on my hands due to the covid19 lockdown.  I decided to get some paint whilst the suppliers were still open and get on with the job, but it had to be repeatable, which meant going for a colour with a known formulation rather than having it mixed to a sample. Here is what I ended up with. 

Went for conifer 25, although if anyone asks I will use its other name of Triumph racing green.  Wasn`t sure if I had done the right thing but I am very happy with the result.

resized 1.jpg

resized2.jpg

Edited by Ralph Whitaker
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Thanks John,  almost impossible to photograph, and the actual colour looks more green in real life than on the pics, probably different on different computers too, but at least it is a genuine triumph colour albeit from  2 years after the car was made. Importantly it ties up with the Heritage certificate which lists it as Triumph Racing Green.  Looks nearer to the proper colour on this photo that I took last night when the sun was shining.

IMG-20200410-WA0000.jpg

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Hi Ralph,

Lovely paint job and if your are happy and it is as close as possible that's brilliant and all that matters. My  car , my rules r is OK

My issue is try matching January 1954 factory BRG or Racing green as per my factory build sheet and it wasn't even an option at the time. luckily before total dip and strip we kept samples or areas for spectrum analysis and will be pretty close.

Also Cellulose and two pack are different animals in any light, and paint isn't just paint.

Not sure from pics but there seems something a bit odd about the area for fitting rear light. Have you tried the fitting in the hole as I suspect that the bulb tube section wont fit in the rear panel side without a mod or two.

Nice car, nice colour.

Rod

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1 hour ago, Rodbr said:

Hi Ralph,

Lovely paint job and if your are happy and it is as close as possible that's brilliant and all that matters. My  car , my rules r is OK

My issue is try matching January 1954 factory BRG or Racing green as per my factory build sheet and it wasn't even an option at the time. luckily before total dip and strip we kept samples or areas for spectrum analysis and will be pretty close.

Also Cellulose and two pack are different animals in any light, and paint isn't just paint.

Not sure from pics but there seems something a bit odd about the area for fitting rear light. Have you tried the fitting in the hole as I suspect that the bulb tube section wont fit in the rear panel side without a mod or two.

Nice car, nice colour.

Rod

The lights were on there for a while whilst I trial fitted everything, from memory they are just flat at the back, though I might have to make a hole for the wires.  The panel is one of those rear repair panels that took a lot of altering to make fit, but the middle section is original and already had the extra holes in for 2 matching round reversing lamps. I was going to fill them in but decided they were useful and part of its history, and as the gearbox has a reverse light switch anyway ( 2000 4 synchro overdrive box).

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Its come a long way from this, still a long way to go though.

20180401_143111.jpg

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