Document G54NQjBOe6ERYXw7b5d9VKXBV

DUTCH BOV PM- i'Sh magazine Volume 30 1937 No. 2 Published bi-monthly by National Lead Company, Room 2020, in Broadway, New York, N. Y., in the interest ofbetter painting. Mailed without charge to painters and paint dealers. ONE of the interesting outgrowths is to say that the simple, dignified lines of the restoration of individual of the early American home showed to colonial homes in New England anbdest advantage when painted in colors of the entire colonial village of Wil of equal dignity and simplicity. liamsburg, Virginia, has been the effect While the modern builder has de on trends in exterior decoration. This parted somewhat from the conventional applies particularly, of course, to the all-wood, all-brick or wood-and-brick painting of homes built along early construction employed by his colonial American lines. predecessor, nevertheless present-day Colonial architecture naturally in decorative and protective treatments fluenced colonial color schemes. This i White body and trim, green shutters . , . a popular combination. * N41528 Body light, trim dark--both shades of the same base tint* show no radical change. Colonial-type homes may today have stucco, stone or shingle exteriors, as well as the usual siding and brick, but since the general lines rather faithfully follow the original colonial plan, the original early American color schemes continue in good taste. The atmosphere of dignity and simplicity that marked the handiwork of the colonial builder also distinguished the work of the cplpnial painter. Indeed, it is the combination of form and color that gives the colonial home its charm. Many colonial dwellings were painted in but a single color and more often than not this color was white, Where tints were employed they ran to the light grays and yellows. Sash and shutters, generally were not done in the over-all body color, but ,were painted either blue, green or dark gray, So much for color schemes employed two centuries ago and recently re created on the restoration projects mentioned at the beginning of this article, That, the present-day home owner and his painter have followed'the restoration with interest is shown in the resuits of a recent study of painting trends in a typical American community. Except for the treatment of shutters, it was found that most of the colonial-type homes have adopted true colonial schemes. This in spite of the fact that the painter today has access to an almost unlimited number of tinting colors and, in addition, has to deal with a highly color-conscious public. In the color-trend study referred to, itwas found that the most popular color scheme is a pure white paint on the body trim and sash, with a medium 28 t 4 ! i 4 0007-SWP-000325338 Dulclv BoifPalnter green on the shutters. The scheme is particularly elective on combination wood-and-brick or wood-and-stucco construction since it gives an appear ance of unity to the dwelling and tends to increase the apparent size of small homes. Second in popularity to white as a body color (51 per cent of the houses investigated), is ivory, followed closely by cream, warm gray and light tan. These four tints account for 19 per cent of the houses inspected. Twenty per cent of the dwellings included in the study were of unpainted brick or stone construction and the remainder, or 10 per cent, were found to be painted with various shades of green or buff. The stucco house generally appears to good advantage when the body is painted a light color and the trim a considerably deeper shade to provide contrast. A combination much in favor is a light buff body with a rich brown trim. Another color scheme that is widely used on colonial-type homes, particu larly those with all-siding exteriors, is a colonial yellow body, cream-colored trim and sash and green shutters and front door--just the opposite treatment from the one described next above. A bit of red on the flower boxes adds a nice complimentary touch. Houses with shingled exteriors may appropriately be painted white or two shades of gray--a medium tone of gray for the body and a deeper shade on the trim and front door. The window sash may be painted in the body color and red used on the shutters. L -I "X -.'I- J Body medium, trim light--both shades of the same base color. 29 ' x' ./! 0007-SWP-000325339 "inTERnnTionnr cets a nm nnmE and a IIEIII PREIDEIIT V the recent convention of the A- International Society of Master Painters and Decorators in San An tonio, Texas, it was decided to change the name of this fifty-three year old organization to the "Painting and Decorating Contractors of America." The new president of the association, Henry Afman of Denver, Colorado, wishes it to be understood that although the name has been changed the aims of the organization have not. "The P & D C of A will continue to shoulder the burdens of painting contractors everywhere," says Mr. Af- man. "In these days of social and in dustrial unrest, no one pays much attention to single, disunited voices. Organization is the*order and the need of the day. Our industry's voice will Henry Afman be just as powerful, just as persuasive, date business practices; and finally, as our association is representative of (5) our effort to point out to non the industry. members the advantage of P & D C of "Our problems, broadly speaking, A membership. are two-fold--educational and legisla "Our legislative problem includes tive. Under the general heading of keeping a watchful and analytic eye on education we may include (i) our ef the introduction of bills in the national forts to teach the public the important and state legislatures which may affect difference between painting as an in our industry. We propose, too, to active vestment and painting as a gamble; ly and aggressively support measures (2) our effort to rededicate the indus tending to return to our industry cer try to a sane, practical, workable sys tain phases of maintenance activities tem of apprentice-training; (3) our that have been slipping away from our effort to establish painting courses in jurisdiction. vocational schools; {4) our effort to "As our friends know, this associa keep our members informed of up-to- tion, for administrative reasons, is 0007-SWP-000325341 c *ffl*V*N 10 fsi*n* article based on a discussion of faint behavior by Dr, G, W, Thompsons in the Dutch Boy sound film uThe Winning Formula", Dr, Thompson is.Chief Chemist and a Director of National Lead Company, HERE'S a Reason, the phrase popularized by a maker of break fast cereals, might well be applied to the things that may happen to paint. As we all know, paint is perishable. All that one should really hope for in a paint job is that it will have a reasonable life and maintain its integ rity and protective value for a reason able time. When paint fails, as it ulti mately must, the main thing to be desired is that the surface shall be in a condition most suitable for repainting. Let us take up some of the troubles that beset paint jobs and try to see what they mean and what lessons we can derive from them--lessons that will be of value to the painter. The painter knows what checking and all igatoring mean. These two things are definitely distinguishable and are readily identified. They look very much alike to some, but the ex perienced painter knows the great difference there is between them. All linseed oil paint films shrink in volume; that is, the oil itself shrinks to the extent of perhaps 15 per cent in drying. In some cases this is likely to cause a partial separation of the film called "checking". Inasmuch as it is the oil that shrinks, the more oil used the more pronounced the checking will be. Obviously, too large a proportion of oil in paint means excessive checking. Although check lines are visible on the outside of the film, checking does not go through to the underlying surface. The paint still protects the surface which, after all, is its real job. 33 * I j i j L [ m fc r ff; | 1 i 0007-SWP-000325343 IXttcKBotfPalnten Thus checking can hardly be called a fault, since: 1. It should not noticeably affect the appearance of the paint film. 2. It should not affect the protective value of the paint. 3. It offers no repainting obstacle. In attempting to produce a coating that will not check, one must be care ful to avoid measures that will result in a hard, brittle paint film. It is ob vious that every surface expands and contracts with the heat and cold and sometimes with the amount of mois ture in the material painted. If the paint film hasn't sufficient elasticity it breaks. It may lose its hold on the sur 34 face painted and you may then have the most serious of all painting troubles --cracking with scaling. The experienced painter has learned that cracking and scaling, considered as one, is a serious fault that makes a job look unsightly, that ruins the pro tective value of the paint film, and that in most cases entails expensive burning and scraping before repainting. Alligatoring presents a more serious problem than checking. Basically it is due to a soft undercoat which allows a slipping of the outer coat during its shrinking operation. The cracks that develop in alligatoring go deeper into the film than in the case of checking and allow moisture to penetrate. To avoid alligatoring, the experi enced painter is careful to see that old paint or varnish coats of this soft type are removed before applying whitelead paint. He also allows sufficient time be tween the several coats on a painting job for each coat to harden properly. In general, about a week is considered _____________DiticliBot* Pointer the best practice between coats. How ever, the painter knows that if a sur face does not sandpaper without gum ming, more time should be allowed. Another problem confronting the painter is blistering, with subsequent peeling. This generally is not the fault of the paint but instead is due to mois ture. If only a small amount of water is in the wood, or gets under the paint for some other reason, it may in the course of time slowly evaporate. On the other hand, if it is present to an excessive degree it will break the bond between the paint and the surface painted forcing the paint off in the form of blisters in which very often water may be found. There is no way of avoiding blister ing trouble that results from faulty building construction, except to correct the structural defect. Most painters have learned, however, that to prevent failures arising from moisture in ma- 'l'he cut at right shows how moisture (white dots) in the wood is drawn up under the paint film causing blisters like those shown below. sonry and plaster in new construction, time must be allowed for the building to dry out thoroughly before painting. Some defects reflect directly on the skill of the person who applied the paint. Wrinkling is one of these and it can be traced to lack of proper brush ing. Of course, a sudden change in temperature and humidity during the drying time of the paint may be a con tributing factor where this type of trouble develops but, generally speak ing, a well brushed-out paint (with plenty of time between coats) will not wrinkle. [Comments on some other paint troubles will appear in the next number of this magazine.] fe- 0007-SWP-000325345 PRESEHTinG m c m THE OLDEST RCTIUE MUTER HE man who first said, "It's a long lane that has no turning/* certainly knew his way around. That is our earnest conviction after follow ing the trail in search of the oldest ac tive painter. We started in Illinois, went to the Pacific Coast, back to New England and then returned to the Mid dle West. Occasionally our clues led us up blind alleys and into dead-end streets. But, like the famed Canadian Monntics, we eventually got our man. We cannot claifh much credit, how ever. It took one of our "deputies," Mr. C. Jones of Askew-Jones Lumber Co., West Helena, Arkansas, to actu ally find the man we have been seeking. And who is this man? None other than Mr. John Monroe Bradley of West Helena, Arkansas. Mr. Brad ley w as horn on May 22,1843 "at four o'clock in the morning," to quote him accurately. A little quick work with your pencil will credit Mr. Bradley with 94 years, come May. That gives him a lead of six years over his nearest reporting competitor, and when you get up in those high brackets that is some lead, Mr. Bradley was born in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi. His family lived on a farm there until 1852 when they removed to Helena, Arkansas. When the Civil War started, Bradley, then about 18 years old, ran away and joined the boys in gray. He served through out the war and was mustered out with an honorable discharge. After the war, Mr. Bradley turned to painting to earn a livelihood, his chief interest being sign work. Within a short time, Mr. Bradley went up to St. Louis where he worked for four years with Mr. J. W. O'Connell. Our next glimpse of Mr. Bradley Jfinds him in Chicago after the great fire of 1871. His employers there were Heath & Milligan. It was while he 'was working for this concern that Mr. Bradley conceived the idea of putting up small batches of paint in containers for resale. In 1894, Mr. Bradley returned to Helena, Arkansas, and has remained there. After plying his trade in many parts of Missouri, Illinois and Arkan sas, Mr. Bradley concludes that there is no paint to compare with white-lead and oil. He insists on making his own paint to suit the job. Despite his ninety-odd years, Mr. Bradley sends out this challenge, via Mr. Jones, to the younger generation: "You tell those fellows to give me lead and oil and I will spread more paint than any twenty-five year old boy they can dig up. The young squirts today don't use enough elbow grease and I have to do most of my own work be cause they don't suit me. Not one of them can come on a job today and do as much work as I can." 36 \ I \ A JOHN MONROE BRADLEY Born May 22, 1843 Thus we close our books on the search for the oldest active painter. It has been an enjoyable task and a most educational one. We have, by mail, made the acquaintance of scores of old timers in the craft. We have found these veterans willing and anxious to come forward with information con cerning themselves. They are a credit to the grand old trade of painting. A. salute to you as craftsmen . . . as otf timers . . . and as gentlemen! M: 0007-SWP-000325347 PHiminD HOTEL mnnconiTcc uiitu d h iiit f:' ROM time to time, in these pages, r we have shown several ways in which paint could be used--in fact, is being used--to modernize the interiors of private dwellings. Now we show the importance of paint in modernizing public rooms. Pantlind Hotel, Grand Rapids, Michigan, had a problem on its hands --how to give the modern touch to the ballroom and the grill, both of which were distinctly "period" rooms. The former w as an Adam room, structural ly English Georgian ivith formal Greek decoration. The grill, on the other hand, exhibited the Romanesque influence, with its beamed arches and heavy, square supports. Under the capable direction of J. Stuart Clingman, a well-known figure in the furniture industry, these rooms were completely transformed. The ballroom was done over in a mellow biege, with a chalk white wall trim. The grill was painted two shades of green--light on the walls and pillars, with a dark green stencil design on the pillar entablatures--and silver on the 0007-SWP-000325348 Dutch. Boif Pointer square ceiling areas between beams, In modernizing these rooms, Mr. Clingman has skillfully retained a subtle touch of their "period" influence blended with the unmistakable mod' ernism of the paint treatment. Dutch Boy white-lead and Lead Mixing Oil were used for the painting. Pj m X f iu r ib u s unum (lor the many, one) PAINTERS whose activities cover that this is the age of specialization. all types of work know full well Well, we say that Dutch Boy special the all-around usefulness of Dutch Boyizes in versatility, which means the white-lead. It would be difficult in ability to*do a lot of jobs . . . and do deed to name a painting or decorating them right. job that could not be handled by Dutch A noteworthy case in point is the Boy white-lead, along with its com decoration of the City Hall in Baypanion oils and colors. Some folks say shore, California. The work was done 39 by the well-known decorator, William Menne of San Francisco. The specifications covering this job were drawn up by a Dutch Boy representative, F.T. Ross, of our San Francisco office. The abovc illustration is an exterior view of the City Hall. A corner of the council chamber is shown below. The walls and ceiling of the room are lined with plywood, This material was back-primed with white-lead and linseed oil before it was nailed in place. Extra care was taken to secure good joints, the plywood being nailed every two inches at the joints. Once in place, the entire plywood surface was coated with white-lead paint, thinned with linseed oil and turps. Plenty of time was allowed for this coat to dry. The joints in the plywood were then filled with a hard stopping, made by mixing paste white-lead, dry white-lead and varnish. This putty was pressed into the openings with a broadknife and brought up flush with the surface. After the joints were dry and hard, the white-lead plastic paint was ap plied. This was pulled out straight with a plasterer's square trowel and then the mortar courses were lined out using a straight-edge and a stick of the proper thickness. When the plastic paint had set sufficiently, the rough surface of each "stone" was pressed down with the square trowel. During 40 ..... '3jh 0007-SWP-000325350 this operation the working face of the trowel was kept wet with turps to keep the plastic paint from dragging. Once the plastic paint was thorough ly dry, each "stone" was glazed with an opaque glazing liquid made ofwhitelead, Lead Mixing Oil and colors. To lend a realistic touch to the "stones", six different glaze colors were em ployed. They were put on lightly and wiped so that each "stone" showed a slight change of hue. To finish the job, the mortar courses were lined off in a typical mortar color. The picture above shows a close-up of the final effect. The ceiling of the chamber was painted with regular white-lead and Lead Mixing Oil paint, with a stippled finish on the final coat. The lobby of the City Hall, a por tion of which is shown at the right, also was lined with plywood and was given the same preparatory treatment that was accorded the council chamber. In this room, however, a whisk broom was used on the plastic paint to produce the grained-effect of driftwood. The walls were marked off vertically with straightedge and stick to simulate indi vidual boards of varying widths. A typical driftwood color was secured by glazing the job with a burnt umber glaze. The "knots" in the "wood" were placed by hand and were over glazed along with the rest of the work. The finishing touch was supplied by 0007-SWP-000325351 Hutch Bo| fViinlcr- nvo coats of varnish--the first one gloss and the final one flat. Bayshore's mayor, the Honorable J. P. Lawson, was well pleased with the appearance of his official quarters. Here we see him pointing with pride to the realistic stone effect produced with Dutch Boy white-lead plastic paint. During the week of the Dutch Boy's painter meeting in Lynn, Massachusetts, it is customary for local Dutch Boy distributors to install complete Dutch Boy windows. The picture below shows how Hutchinson's hardware store tied in with the igy6 meeting. The effect was worked out by Hutchinson's display manager, Arthur Dalton. The large background piece showing two painters carrying a jumbo keg was made especially for the occasion by Mr. Dalton. Not clearly visible in the picture is a turntable on which is placed a pyramid of Dutch Boy white-lead packages. The other products in the Dutch Boy line are also featured in the layout. The Hutchinson business is no new-comer to the hardware and paint field--it will celebrate its 104th anniversary this year. 0007-SWP-000325352 Tain't Cake... It's Paint HOW'S this for a paint film? If we asked Jimmy Durante to de scribe it he would say, "It's gargan tuan ; in fact it's colossal!" Be that as it may, the man who sent the specimen in, E. O. Maker of Guthrie, Okla homa, writes: "Here is a block of paint containing more coats than I have been able to count. This is a sec tion of `film' that began to grow 30 years ago in the paint shop of the Guthrie Paint & Wallpaper Company. contained one hundred coats by actual I believe this is the thickest paint film count. The above exhibit is 1 ]/> inches on record. If anyone can produce a. thick and thus may be made up of 800 bigger one, Ed like to know it." coats. We say "may" because we have Some months ago we printed a pic neither the keen eyesight nor the ture of a fairly robust paint film three- patience of the man who wrote the sixteenths inch thick. That specimen Gettysburg address on a postage stamp. Brush-support for Paint Pots TRULY, "Necessity is the mother of invention" in the painting trade, if nowhere else. In the course of a year we are privileged to inspect and pass opinion on any number of devices for which their inventors claim numer ous and sundry advantages. Some of these may be said to have both novelty and utility; others have only novelty to recommend them. One device that is both new (to us, -at least) and useful is the paint pot brush-support shown here. It was sent in by Mr. H. De Weil of Hoboken, New Jersey. The "hook" if it may be termed that, is merely a length of stiff 0007-SWP-000325353 Dutch Boif Painter. wire cut from a wire coat-hanger and were laid across the top of the pot, f bent as indicated. The N-shaped loop When working on ladders, it solves of the wire is slipped over the edge of the problem of what to do with the the paint pot and the brush is suspended brush used in applying one color when on the horizontal end of the "hook". It the workman wants to put on a differ- is, of course, necessary to bore a small ent trim or sash color using another hole through the brush, just above the brush out of another pot. There's no base of the bristles, to admit the wire, need to park the first pot and brush in This device allows the painter to the eave-trough or on a window ledge, keep his brush suspended in the pot nor to make an extra trip down and up with the bristles off the bottom and the the ladder. heel out of the paint. It prevents the Mr. De Weil generously allowed us dripping which might occur if a brush to pass this idea along to our readers. WORDS FAIL US There are thou sands of words in our language --and it would take plenty of them to describe the changeshown here. So, ad mitting the futil ity of a descrip tion, we print these pictures, with a how to the sender--Victor H\ Andress of Boulder, Colora do--in the hope that they will be used to tell paint jobs. Show this page to property owners who un derestimate the value of paint as (/) a surface saver; (2) a sprucer-u p per ; {j) a value-rais er; (4) a pride developer. / 0007-SWP-000325354 National Lead Company*s staff ofpractical paint men will help you solve your painting problems without charge. Address your letter to National Lead Co.y Room 2020, in Broadway , New York, N. Y. Please state your problem fully and be sure to place your name and address on your letter. Our reply will reach you promptly by math The problems discussed below are printed here because they appear to be of general interest--space limitations permit the printing of only a few of the problems handled Painting Stained Shingles Question--/ have a job painting a shingled house. A number of years ago the shingles were treated with a green stain.. Is it safe to use lead and oil paint on top of the stain f A nsu'er--It is always risky to apply paint over a stain the composition of which is unknown to the painter. Creosote stains, even though old and weatherworn, often bleed through oil paints applied over them. As you know, creosote is a non-drying oil that tends to remain in the wood in a permanently soluble, condition. I f the shingles were stained with a lin seed oil preparation containing chrome green or chromium oxide, they may now safely be painted with lead and oil. In the absence of definite informa tion as to the previous treatment, we would suggest your applying a lightcolored lead and oil paint to a shingle or two on the rear of the house, in an inconspicuous but typical location, and see what happens. Of course, you will have to wait several weeks or perhaps a couple'of months before you decide the underlying stain has or has not dis colored the paint. If no discoloration occurs, you are pretty safe in doing the whole job as the customer originally wished it done. If, however, the test paint indicates a definite reaction from the old stains, you would do well to advise the owner to stain the job again. In this event, the test paint can be taken off with some paint remover. Cleaning Stone Work Question--A customer wants me to clean some stone sills on his house. Can you tell me how to do this work properly f Answer--A mixture consisting of one gallon good soft soap, two pounds finely powdered pumice stone and one pint clear ammonia solution usually works satisfactorily on both glazed and 45 0007-SWP-000325355 Dutclv Boif Palmier.. unglazed stone. First remove the soot and dust from the surface, then apply a liberal coating of the soap-pumiceammonia mixture. Let it stand a half hour or so, then with a stiff brush or stubby broom, scrub the mixture well into the surface. Following this, rinse the stone thoroughly with clean water. If one treatment fails to do the work, a second should do a complete job. Painting Window Glass Question--A restaurant owner wants me to paint the windows in his kitchen pri marily to subdue the strong sunlight and also lo block the gaze of curious passersby. IVhat is the best way to paint glass t After the first coat is thoroughly dry one or more coats of the same paint may be applied. This gives a frosted effect which, while shutting out the public's gaze, still allows plentyof light to enter the kitchen. The amount of light admitted naturally depends upon the number of coats applied. It is un wise to try to save the labor of putting on a number of thin coats by substitut ing one or two heavy coats. Thick coats almost invariably show a tendency to peel from glass, so play safe and take the time and trouble to apply several thin coats, well brushed out. Answer--It is difficult to make paint stick to glass under some conditions. The smooth surface, the frequent wash ings and the continued sweating pre sent obstacles to even the best of paint films. However, we recommend that, as the first step, you thoroughly clean the windows, especially the inside sur face that has been subjected to grease, steam and grime. Since it is best to paint only the inside, wipe these sur faces with denatured alcohol just prior to painting. The first coat should consist of a very thin mixture of white-lead and turpentine to which a small amount of a good, hard-drying varnish has been added--about a pint of varnish to each gallon of turps. Spread this on the glass very rapidly with a soft brush and immediately stipple the paint with a wall stippler or a bridled sash tool. "Painting" a hog Cabin Question--What is the best preservative treatment for a cabin built of smooth cedar logsf The owner wants to keep the wood in good shape hut objects to the use of both paint and creosote. Answer--While paint is an ideal preservative for exterior woodwork, its decorative effect would not be in keeping with the rough, "homespun" char acter of a log cabin. A good protective, unpigmented coating is a liquid com posed of equal parts of bcfiled linseed oil and Lead Mixing Oil. Two coats of this preparation applied now, then one coat a year or as often as appears necessary should keep the cedar logs in first class condition. Of course, this treatment will darken the wood a bit, but the change won't be objectionable. In fact, the effect will be to give the cedar a richer, more pleasing tone, 46 \ \ j \ tj |j 0007-SWP-000325356 WHEN YOU PAINT YOUR BUSINESS PICTURE T TAKES more than good craftsmanship to flj|ike a I successful painter these days. He must be gi|od at "pen work" too--estimating, job and shop mpiage- ment, tax-computing, accounting, etc. 1 To help you "paint your business picture^ in its true colors, we offer the following "pen work"ffprms: Item Price Business Record Outfit (Simplified Bookkeeping) . . $3.00 complete Check list--Contract forms (Pads of 50 sets)..................................50 per pad Job Record Envelopes (Packs of 100) ' .... * .60 per pack Ring Binder (For Job Record Envelopes)................................ Forget-Not Estimating Forms (Pads of 100 sheets) .... Daily Time Cards (Packs of 100) . .85 each .50 per pad .40 per pack Weekly Time Reports (Pads of 50) Employee's Wage Record Cards (For Social Security Tax Data) . .35 per pad .02 per card This material is sold cash-with-order only--no C.O.D/s. Send remittance in check, money order or postage stamps. AH material is shipped prepaid. Send orders to: NATIONAL LEAD COMPANY Room 2020 111 Broadway New York, N. Y. a*3y. 0007-SWP-000325358