Touch up paint

I recently bought a red Seabring. I think it is “Colorado Red”. The car was built in 1989.

Does anyone know the paint code for Colorado Red or whatever red the Seabrings were painted with in 1989? I would like to buy some touch up paint.

Thank you.

There is no paint code because there was no paint.
The final finish was gelcoat. Does polish up very well.
The original gelcoat was pretty thick and will take a lot of buffing and polishing. MOST people walking by do not know the difference because it looks like paint.
When i got mine, I thought it was painted.
Look really close at all the edges to see if it is.
If yours is painted, then a previous owner did it and you'll have to have it paint matched.

What is the preferred method of buffing the gelcoat?

Oh boy Ed, that's one of those politics/religion/port vacuum questions. Lots of screaming opinions, so here's mine based on 20+ years on both gel coat and clear coat.
Many years ago we found a product that claimed it was best for gelcoat. It was just marketing hype aimed at boat owners. By asking around we learned to use exactly the same products everyone uses on modern paint. Same compounds, same wax and same buffers.
It's important to stick with the big-name brands. We only chose Griots because they do ALL their R&D, manufacturing and packaging in America. The owner has a collection of cars and is a hands-on kind of guy.
Do believe the other big-name brands are probably just as good but there is some cheap junk out there.
All the big brands have websites with how-to and videos.
No matter what you chose, it's a lot of work to master a perfect finish and not cheap. With all the supplies and buffers we're at $500+. In some cases, it might be easier to have a car professionally finished and just maintain it. Either way, I'll use the Griots tag line here "Have fun in your garage".

Jerry, thank you for the response. You are most definitely correct about some of the low cost, easy to apply products not living up to marketing claims. I picked one up at a World of Wheels Autorama a year ago and now have an uneven haze which I am pretty sure will come out with some buffing. The original and only other owner prior to my purchase 9 years ago, seemingly never let the car see the light of day. He finished and registered the car in ‘89 and had 3,000 miles when I purchased in ‘14. So the original gelcoat is in great shape other than the haze which I introduced this summer.
A big thank you to Jerry and all the others who make this forum such an awesome resource.
Ed

Hi Ed,
Great Advice from Jerry, and agree on the Products
Have you tried using a Clay Bar to Clean things up , it's not abrasive if you stay with the light strength ones but they also might not get that haze off . I've used it on my CX-5 and it's unbelievable the difference in look and feel, esp the feel. The test they talk about is taking a baggie or grocery bag and put you hand in and let it glide over the surface, if you don't feel or "hear" anything you're in good shape, if you feel it drag, or have a rough texture, or you hear it then the Clay Bar will yield results.
Here's what I bought [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Look forward to seeing pics of your Car !!!
Take Care,
Craig
They have the Chemical Guys kit for about 24 dollars, with the Clay bar and the lube to keep it from sticking.

Thanks everyone for responding. My car is bright red and based on the string of responses, I am almost certain it is a gel coat finish. It looks like the same red color I have seen on this forum for other cars. If there are chips on the gel coat, does anyone know the color red that should be used for this for repairs? I assume that even with repairing gel coat, I still need to find the base color?

thanks again.

JD535

Hi JD,
Going to a paint store and getting a paint match for YOUR car is the most accurate way to go. With variations over the years at Classic Roadsters and weather/sun fade there are different shades.
Option two - and this might sound a little weird at first - is nail polish. Being there is about 700 shades of red, it can actually work very well. Might have to buy a few different shades and do your own mixing. Will also be way less money if you don't buy designer colors. Just buy the cheap stuff, normally lacquer.

Jerry and Lisa,

That is a great idea about the red nail polish! Thanks!