Match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea Horse 35hp **Updated--Purchased w/ pics!**

[Bigkat650]

EDIT: Purchased the motor listed below--see post #19 for the pics!

Hello everyone,

I'm looking to pick up a oldie but a goodie!! A 1957 Johnson Sea Horse 35hp--which I will be using to restore my 1958 Alumacraft FDR. I am looking to refinish the boat and paint it a white/red similar to the way the boat would have came off the showroom floor. I was hoping to find the exact color, or as close as possible to the original color of these Johnson outboards. The outboard is the common deep red color with white details. Anyone tried this in the past and found a shade that matched?

This is a picture of it, hoping to pick it up Friday



I can always just grab a bunch of paint samples and compare it to the motor until I find a matching one, but I just thought maybe someone else has already done this work since it seems to be an extremely popular motor for restoration around here

Thanks everyone

 

[1946Zephyr]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

www.nymarine.ca They have decals as well. Plus, if you need medallions, they have those too.

 

[kfa4303]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Nice lookin' motor. Yup Nymarine.com is the place to go to get top quality restoration goods. The official color is "holiday bronze", but I think of it as more of a garnet/dark red myself. They should also have the Johnson "white" as well. Congrats on the new toys. Keep us posted. We love pics

 

[nwcove]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

if you're not looking for an exact match, and are on a budget, dupli-color "vintage red pearl" is close.

 

[Bigkat650]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

if you're not looking for an exact match, and are on a budget, dupli-color "vintage red pearl" is close.

Well I won't know what my budget is until a little later on in the project. However, every project--no matter what it is--I always figure a rough number and say to myself "Yeah, I should be able to get this project done with that amount of money"... then the project tends to exceed that by about 40% when its all said and done.

However I probably will not need an exact match. I also have to find a carpet that will match/accent pretty well too. If I find a good durable product that is a good match, that will most likely be sufficient--but it will all come down to what the budget is a little later on the project. Which is why it's good to have options!

 

[HighTrim]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Another very close colour, not as good as Peters at NYmarine, but close is Plasti-Kote GM#7198 at Advanced Auto

 

[HighTrim]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Post a pic of the boat, love the oldies

 

[nwcove]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp



heres a couple of pics of a cd 13 cowl....painted with duplicolor vintage red pearl, sitting atop of a cd 14 that is faded to almost purlple! ( the painted cowl is my avitar..... after a few hours of work)

 

[Bigkat650]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Post a pic of the boat, love the oldies

First pic is as it sits when I bought it--completely stripped of everything, and was converted at some point in the past from a 1950's runabout to a simplified fishing boat with a tiller motor.


This is something close to what I would like to do. It will not be a factory restoration, rather a modified restoration--as Its primary use will be for fishing. (I would LOVE to do a full restoration on it back to show-room condition, but it's impractical as a fishing boat that way... maybe in the future I will though if I upgrade to better fishing rig)


Note, the colors are not accurate, I was just going more for lay-out... and the cheesy red and white boxes are suppose to represent fold down fishing seats. There will be about an 16"-20" space in between the seats depending on what size seat I get. I will also have a removable seat centered in the front, and one centered in the back (represented by the grey circle in the front)... Still a work in progress, but I have about 5 months before its warm enough here in NY to use it anyways.

 

[nwcove]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

that second pic threw me for a loop!! had to put my glasses on. lol

 

[Bigkat650]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

View attachment 126482View attachment 126483

heres a couple of pics of a cd 13 cowl....painted with duplicolor vintage red pearl, sitting atop of a cd 14 that is faded to almost purlple! ( the painted cowl is my avitar..... after a few hours of work)

Ohh that would work for me, that looks beautiful! I'm not really a purist, so the fact that its not the same paint that it rolled out of the factory with is OK with me, I can appreciate it for what it is. I'm going for a good mix of form and function--and yes, on a tight budget.

 

[Bigkat650]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

that second pic threw me for a loop!! had to put my glasses on. lol

haha yea I was playing on MS Paint lol. Again, its only a rough idea at the moment--and regardless of what I do I have to work in storage compartments, a battery compartment, place for the gas tank, it needs 5-6 cubic feet of foam flotation hidden throughout--all without building the deck too high for stability sake.

 

[nwcove]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

i do have the decals from nymarine.....and they are top quality! will put them on and finish the job with a couple of coats of clear......in the spring.

 

[HighTrim]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

I just noticed, you say 1957 in your title, but the pic is of a 1958, is the pic right or the title?

The colour I gave you is for a 1958, as I just looked at the pic and didnt actually read.

 

[Bigkat650]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

I just noticed, you say 1957 in your title, but the pic is of a 1958, is the pic right or the title?

The colour I gave you is for a 1958, as I just looked at the pic and didnt actually read.

The pic I assume is of the actual motor he has for sale--so I think the picture is right. The guy bought it from someone else I believe, and put a little into it. It sounds like he fixes up old outboards as a hobby--he called it a 1957 as well.

 

[JB]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Ummm, . . .er. . .Say, Bigkat. What you have is a Johnson Sea HORSE. Sea King is the brand name used by Montgomery Ward for the outboards it marketed. Though some were made by OMC's Gale division, they were not Johnsons.

Would you like me to edit your title?

 

[Bigkat650]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea King 35hp

Ummm, . . .er. . .Say, Bigkat. What you have is a Johnson Sea HORSE. Sea King is the brand name used by Montgomery Ward for the outboards it marketed. Though some were made by OMC's Gale division, they were not Johnsons.

Would you like me to edit your title?

Ohhhhh, well theres my problem!! In the immortal words of Homer Simpson: "Doohhh!" That mistake was all me, not the seller. Sure, please do fix it... although it may gather more interest this way! haha

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea Horse 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea Horse 35hp

Aside from the color already mentioned, Duplicolor GM341 Maple Leaf Red is a close match...I've used it with success on similar projects. Another GM color, Cayenne Red, is another option but can't remember the product number. I've used a couple of Duplicolor white's on those motors...the only one I didn't like was Pure White...the original color is more of a cream color, not exactly a white per se. Do your prep work well, use self-etching primer, then apply the colors and follow with a couple of clear coats...I'm partial to Rustoleum clear enamel...which you can get at Wallyworld. Finish it off with a couple of coats of car or boat wax and Bob's your uncle. Gotta be real clean when you're doing the painting, wipe everything down between paint coats or wear disposable gloves...if you leave fingerprints anywhere on it between coats, the next coat of paint won't want to stick in those spots due to oil from your hand/fingers. Good luck and post back with pix as you go along.

 

[Bigkat650]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea Horse 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea Horse 35hp

I bought her!!

Now 'The Leaky Rivet' has it's powerhouse!! (Not sold on the name--but it works for now)



Guy I got it from really hooked me up. I got the motor, pressurized gas tank, throttle cables, throttle controls, and pulley steering helm/wheel. I traded him 2 smaller outboards and $150 (total investment for me is right around $350 between the motors and the cash) for the whole package.

I have almost all the parts for the boat now, just gotta put the hours in to get her done!!

And thanks everyone again on the advise on the paint options--I'm stoked to get this project started!!

 

[1946Zephyr]

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea Horse 35hp

Re: Looking to match the color of a 1957 Johnson Sea Horse 35hp

Yep, that is a '58. Same as the '57, but the paint scheme on the cover is reversed and if I'm not mistaken, the factory paint was a slightly different shade from the previous year. I know Evinrude dropped the Polychromatic Blue and went to the Commodore Blue in '58.

Heck, that old classic looks pretty decent. Why do you want to paint it?