1960's Schaefer Cadillac Ambulance Paint Color?

Root Beer Color

Michael: I received a message from Lou Farah last night and he said that the Schaefer color you are asking about is a (GM Special Factory) Color called "Root Beer Metallic" and was used on the Schaefer fleet from 1959 thru 1980. Lou bought (6) of their old Cadillacs in 1986 and has lots of pictures of them if you are interested? MM

Mike McDonald said:

Michael: I received a message from Lou Farah last night and he said that the Schaefer color you are asking about is a (GM Special Factory) Color called "Root Beer Metallic" and was used on the Schaefer fleet from 1959 thru 1980. Lou bought (6) of their old Cadillacs in 1986 and has lots of pictures of them if you are interested? MM

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PM sent! Thanks for finding out the brown color for me.

Pictures and story on the way to you. MM

so did you not see the part about special color. you had the root beer all ready figured out. if you don't come up with a paint code that is transferable to another paint manufactures formula it's still a dart toss. but Lou may have a number that worked for him if he had one repaired.

there are to many variables when looking at pictures to decide one doesn't look like the other. you can take the paint out of the same can and do two different cars and have them appear different shades.

I e-mailed a couple of places and am waiting for a reply regarding the GM Root Beer Metallic color.

I can't find anything online that shows evidence this GM color even existed. It's very odd.

The body builders didn't limit themselves to only GM colors on GM cars. They used whatever color that the customer specified. As an example, States like Florida and Massachusetts both use a propriety color scheme for their Highway / State Police vehicles, and all 3 of the US car manufacturers will paint the cars this color.

if it's not a gm color gm will no nothing about it. first of all colors are not listed by name, same color can be given a different name in different years and different lines. the same name may have a dozen formulas for it each a different color. these are the facts of paint mix and match. to add to the confusion each paint line has there own code for each color give a gm paint code. each of them also derive at a color match using different tints.

this fleet user want a distinctive color for there fleet. he tossed open a color chip book poked his finger at a color chip and said paint them this color.

it doesn't have to be a GM color it doesn't have to be a automobile manufacturers color . maybe he or his wife(9 times out 10 it's a woman that picks the color) decided they liked A&W root beer so they chose that corporations brown for there cars.

GM never painted the cars they would not have been involved it that part of there construction. Shaffer used a wide variety of manufactures cars for there fleet all painted the same color combination for brand recognition.

your only hope in finding the color they used is with them or with a panel off one of there cars. if they no longer have the fleet paint coed or the manufactures paint year and code in there files. then it's match up a panel from a known car.

if you can't do that and only have pictures to go by then the 55 color is a good as it gets for a root beer brown. the only thing that you do know is it can't be a color newer then when they started using it. unless some one started using it again like the Chrysler muscle cars in the 70s root beer brown.

this is what you are hoping to find the after market builders paint information
MM stamped theirs S&S printed theirs this one was found in the glove box of one. but once again. you need a car to find it. Shaffer could have ordered all white and had Earle Shive paint the brown when the got the cars in.

these kind of things can only be found out threw older employees of the company or older company records or a physical march from a existing car. photos will only give you a general Ida of what the color combination was.

Michael: There is a very popular 2014-2016 Peterbilt Truck Color that is nearly identical. I will try and get you that Paint #-Code in the next couple of days. MM

Thanks guys!

Mike - let me know what you find out about the Peterbuilt color.

I know this is a later year GM color, but 1970 Classic Copper looks a lot like Root Beer.

here are the chip books from mid 50s o around 2005 when DuPont stopped handing them out and went to on line. drop in and look threw them I'll put the coffee on. when I got started I thought I would never fill that green one up.

John, That's impressive! I wish I lived closer.

So you don't have the chip for 'Root Beer Metallic' in all that?

Does anyone know if Schaefer ever used a color called 'Rose' or a rose color?

Someone mentioned this color to me.

about 300 of them, you pick.

what I always loved, being in the business was a customer dropping inn saying they wanted this (name of color) . you would go threw all the 21 questions of who what and when. dig threw all the books come up with a correct formula for what they asked for and painted there project. only to have them come to get it and say I don't like that color on that.

the one I did that worked the best was for my brother. they had dark stained
cabinets in the kitchen, that orange counter top that was hot in the 70-80s and a orange and brown flooring. the white appliances looked bad. so we painted them Omaha Orange . used the DuPont enamel with the high gloss hardener. you could sit at the chrome and orange table on the dark stained orange covered chairs and wiggle your fingers watching your reflection on the front of that refrigerator. I kid you not it was sharp

you match paint by number not by name. you compare it by physically having the requested color in hand. not a picture. your efforts need to be in those directions. asking like you did is the way to start. as a number of people that may have a lead to those two things have popped up

what I use to do was tell people that wanted to look at a few colors to decide on one to repaint there car, was look around at what is on the street , see something you like get the modal and year if you can. we can go from there.
have got numbers for root beer yes do, lots of them. some dark some light some brown some red some with big flakes some with small and some with a combination of them. some that sparkly gold in the sun and look black in the shade. but if I had to pick one I would go for the 71 Challenger RT. I liked that one

here it is and here is a 55 caddy same color as the 55 chevy root beer but the caddy has a more reined name. then look at he 990 base clear high flake ones then back to 75 yest there it is the color I was wanting to see. oh the one with the hole punched in is the red everyone is picking for there ambulances now days.

I have a feeling that what you're going to need to do is sit down with one (or more) of those books, look through, and find a color (not a name) that is close to your recollection of the color. Paint it that, and it will match your memory. Beyond that, nobody else is going to know if it's a shade off one way or the other. Nobody apparently has a Schaefer's paint chip to match it to...

John ED Renstrom said:

about 300 of them, you pick.

what I always loved, being in the business was a customer dropping inn saying they wanted this (name of color) . you would go threw all the 21 questions of who what and when. dig threw all the books come up with a correct formula for what they asked for and painted there project. only to have them come to get it and say I don't like that color on that.

the one I did that worked the best was for my brother. they had dark stained
cabinets in the kitchen, that orange counter top that was hot in the 70-80s and a orange and brown flooring. the white appliances looked bad. so we painted them Omaha Orange . used the DuPont enamel with the high gloss hardener. you could sit at the chrome and orange table on the dark stained orange covered chairs and wiggle your fingers watching your reflection on the front of that refrigerator. I kid you not it was sharp

you match paint by number not by name. you compare it by physically having the requested color in hand. not a picture. your efforts need to be in those directions. asking like you did is the way to start. as a number of people that may have a lead to those two things have popped up

what I use to do was tell people that wanted to look at a few colors to decide on one to repaint there car, was look around at what is on the street , see something you like get the modal and year if you can. we can go from there.
have got numbers for root beer yes do, lots of them. some dark some light some brown some red some with big flakes some with small and some with a combination of them. some that sparkly gold in the sun and look black in the shade. but if I had to pick one I would go for the 71 Challenger RT. I liked that one

here it is and here is a 55 caddy same color as the 55 chevy root beer but the caddy has a more reined name. then look at he 990 base clear high flake ones then back to 75 yest there it is the color I was wanting to see. oh the one with the hole punched in is the red everyone is picking for there ambulances now days.

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The 55 Cadillac Cocobar Brown Metallic looks good. At least it does in the picture you posted.

Have you seen the 55 Caddy Cocobar Brown Metallic next to the Root Beer Metallic in person?

Which would you say is closer to the Root Beer Metallic that the Schaefer Ambulances were painted? The 55 Caddy Cocobar Brown Metallic or the 1975 GM brown?

I can't make out the name of the 75 GM color you are referring to in the picture.

Change the air pressure of the spray gun, or the outside temperature, humidity, etc., and you can get two different colors with the same paint out of the same paint gun. There is nothing in this world that will allow you to duplicate a factory color finish in a paint shop setting. Anyone that tells you that that they can match the paint to a paint chip, is only lying to you. I am certain that Ed will agree with this. He can get it close, but painting from one day to the next, it can change. Too many variables that cannot be controlled, unless you paint in a environmentally closed booth that is computer controlled.

that and you are a robot with a good tape in . you get the color to match be blending it. you can change the tone by rubbing it. but they do have at the locale paint store a set of 2 x4 chips that go around the color wheel sliding from one shade into the other from yellow to red to green to blue. one set for solid colors and one set for metallic. I have found them vary help full on the discontinue colors.