22 replies to this topic

[cobraman]

This car is built from the double Model T kit. I really wasn't going to build this kit as I bought it for the hot rod. Then I thought it might be a good in between project. I remembered that old Henry Ford said one time " You can have any color you want as long as it is black " . I wondered what if you could get other colors. ( I remember reading somewhere that he did build some dark green ones but I don't know if that is true ). Anyway here is what I came up with. It is built stock with only the color being different. Looks OK I think. As always comments pro or con are welcome. Thanks for looking.

[cobra98]

I think it looks really sharp in yellow, Nice Build

[jeffs396]

Pretty cool as-is Ray, but I'll bet black fenders would REALLY set it off!

[cobraman]

Thanks Joe.

Jeff, now you tell me. : ) I think black fenders would have looked pretty good.

[realgone58]

Looks great! You actually could get these in seven available colors, other than black. When Ford spoke of any color as long as it's black, I believe it was in the earlier 1900's. I too was only planning to build the hot rod in the kit, but after seeing your stock pickup, I think I'll do mine too.

[Harry P.]

Model Ts were available in a lot of different colors in the beginning. But ol' Henry was always looking for ways to increase productivity, speed up the assembly line and keep costs low... in1914 he found that a certain black paint dried faster than other colors did, so he decided that from then on all Ts would be available in black only.

[bondo bill]

yeah, that hot

[crazyrichard]

nice job , love the wooden spoke wheels ,

[kerc]

That is cute.

[vintagedragfan]

thats nice Ray, it kinda brighten's my day,

[cobraman]

Thanks guys. It is a pretty cool and simple kit. The only thing I did not like and should have fixed is the wheel base. The rear ones do not fit in the center of the fender as I believe it should.

[Danno]

Model Ts were available in a lot of different colors in the beginning. But ol' Henry was always looking for ways to increase productivity, speed up the assembly line and keep costs low... in1914 he found that a certain black paint dried faster than other colors did, so he decided that from then on all Ts would be available in black only.

Here's another take on the question ... this one from the Frontenac website FAQ page:

"What where the original colors of the Ford Model T, and in what year did Ford start painting them all black?
No one really knows if Henry Ford ever said that the buying public could have Model T Fords "in any color, so long as it's black", but it is commonly attributed to him. While this saying is true for the model years after 1913, earlier cars were available in Brewster Green, Red, Blue and Gray. In fact, in the first year, Model T Fords were not available in Black at all, but only in Gray, Red and Brewster Green.

Why did Henry Ford choose black for the color of the Model T Ford?
It is often quoted that Ford chose black because the paint dried faster than other colored paints available at the time, and a faster drying paint would allow him to build cars faster as he would not have to wait for the paint to dry. This theory is not supported by fact however.

The fact is that over 30 different types of black paint were used to paint various parts of the Model T. The different types of paint were formulated to satisfy the different means of applying the paint to the different parts, and had different drying times, depending on the paint and the drying method used for a particular part. Ford engineering documents suggest that the color black was chosen because it was cheap and it was durable. Common sense tells us that Ford, being a pragmatic man building a very practical car, certainly would have chosen black for this reason."


In 1926 and 1927, surrendering to the popularity of mulitiple color choices available from rival Chevrolet and its sales successes, Ford offered seven colors on the Model T in addition to black. The available options were Gunmetal Blue, Highland Green, Phoenix Brown, Fawn Gray, Deep Channel Green, Commercial Green, and Royal Maroon. But even when Model T bodies were painted other colors, the chassis and fenders remained black because they came from sub-assembly lines. Only 'special orders' for fleets got fenders of colors other than black.

[Danno]

By the way, nice build, Ray!

[cobraman]

Thanks. That info is very interesting. It's strange then that with all the photos I have seen and car shows I have been to that I can't recall ever seeing one that was not black. I think I will seach the web for photos of the other colors. Thanks again everyone.

[Danno]

The thing is, the vast majority of the Model Ts that were manufactured were built between 1913 and 1925, the years that black was the only color available.

Fords didn't sell that well in their earliest years and sales dropped off big-time in 1925-1927.

Ford was forced into offering colors in 1926 & 1927 but that didn't do enough to recapture sales lost to the more stylish and powerful ~ and colorful ~ Chevrolets.

That's why the Model A was rushed into production.

[Brudda]

Beautiful in yellow! Cool build!

[PistonDog]

I like it a lot. Thanks for giving another idea for the to do list. This will be #243 ...lol

[realgone58]

Paintref.com shows the paint chips..........Ford colors start in 1926, as per the article above.

[cobraman]

Thank you guys .

[1930fordpickup]

Very nice looking T .