So originally I thought my ‘72 was original paint but do these pics show otherwise?

I heard this part is usually black from the factory.

 

The blackout was applied after the body color so it's not a surprise to see orange under the blackout. The application of blackout paint wasn't very precise, but instead it was often quite hap hazard.

There's better places to explore if you're trying to determine if a car's been repainted. If the trim tag was taped off for a repaint you can almost always see the tape lines and a build up of paint around the tag. Look around the door handles to see if they've been taped off. Look at the outer door glass wipes, lift them up and look for a tape line or paint edge left by being taped off. Look under the wiper grill and rear deck grills for signs of overspray or missing black out. Look at the weatherstrip for signs of overspray or tape lines. Look for overspray underneath, not in the wheel wells where they'll likely be blacked out, but at the mufflers, spare tire tub, the frame rails below the doors and the front suspension and crossmember. These are spots people often forget to blackout again after a repaint.

 

I’ll have to take a better look. In the meantime here are a few more pics.

 

Enjoy it!

 

I'd say it's original but it's looks like it's time for an appointment with your favorite painter.
Ontario Orange is one of the best C3 colors ever.

 

^is that a repaint?
Kinda wanted to keep it as is if it’s original. If not then I wouldn’t mind having it redone the original color after a body off resto.

 

A lot of your car does look original paint. That said, I think this grille may have been repainted on the car. I believe the grille and wiper door were not installed on the body when the car was factory painted. The engine compartment side surround lips got body color, but the rear lip didn't; after masking the body color side lips, the black-out paint was then sprayed on the rear lip and into the wiper cove. Only after that were the separately painted grille and wiper door installed. (At least that's how I understand the painting process for '72.)

If the grille was on the car during paint, then there'd be pretty heavy overspray underneath, on the brackets, and in the wiper cove. I've not seen that on my original paint car or others.

 

Looking at the trim tag and the door certification label I'd say it's probably original paint. If nothing else, the door jams have never been re-shot.

Another good sign is the lack of paint on the bottom edge of the rear valance panel and to a lessor degree the bottom of the rear fenders. It's very typical to find little or no paint on the lower sides and bottom edges of fenders, doors, etc. The GM painters back then weren't to inclined to bend over real far to make sure the lower edges and sides of the bodies got much paint on them. The thin and missing paint on the lower fenders, behind the tires, might be a result of road rash, but not the missing paint on the bottom center of the rear valance panel. Another place to look is to open the doors and look to see how much, if any paint is on the underside of the door frames.

The rear license bumper and white nylon license plate nuts are another good sign. Painters rarely remove them before doing a repaint. The paint worn through on the fender peaks is also a good sign, since factory paint was pretty thin and it's not surprising to see it worn off from waxing, washing and general wear. I can't tell from the pictures, but are any of the fender bonding seams showing? That's also usually a pretty good sign of original paint.

 

I don’t believe so but I’ll take a few closer pics. Am I losing anything by having it repainted? I know it’s only original once and don’t wanna mess with that. If anything I’m not in a hurry to have her repainted. Appreciate the input!

 

My '76 was re-painted and was done very nicely EXCEPT, they did not mask off the trim tag and it irritates me! But I don't want to remove the rivets and it would make me nervous to block it off with metal and then try to use a solvent to remove the paint! I'll just leave as is.

Your car looks nice for an original that has been driven. I'm not so sure I'd go with a total re-paint. I'd see what a paint shop would suggest to put a little more life back into the paint or.....just drive it as is.

 

Looks original to me..
maguires #7 and drive it.. if it was me..
or if you like repaint it.
beautiful car..
see below
https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-on-e69-2.html

 

I’ve heard about the meguires #7 but it takes paint for and I’m already low in most areas

 

Thats called patina…primer is paint too

 

someone told me once to apply light rubbing compound on an inconspicuous area. If color comes off it lacquer if not it’s been repainted.. however I personally never try it on my all original paint 75

 

For some years the tag was installed before paint, in others it was put on after. I know 78-81 (St Louis 81's only, Bowling Green 81's had the tag installed after painting) had the tag installed before painting so they left St. Louis with the tags painted. Because the tags are stainless steel the paint didn't stick well to them and either peeled off on it's own, or was removed by owners. I can't recall if 76 tags were originally painted, but I think they might have been. While it's too late for you to try this, for others who are curious if their tag was originally painted, a quick look in the rivet holes of bare tags will usually reveal remnants of paint since unlike the tag surface, the rivet holes usually retain some paint. Someone with a better memory, more familiar with 76's, or with a 76 Judging Manual may be able to confirm if 76's left St. Louis with a bare or painted trim tag.

Rubbing compound, Meguire's #7, a good quality wax and sometimes even just a bare rag rubbed on lacquer will reveal hints of color. The problem with this process is that many cars have been repainted using lacquer paint. Any car repainted in the 70's was surely painted with lacquer, and probably plenty in the 80's and 90's too. The use of lacquer paints wasn't really curtailed until 98 or 99 when national VOC laws started to restrict it's use. Chevrolet painted all Corvettes using acrylic lacquer till they closed St. Louis in September 81. A lot of 60's and 70's Corvettes have been repainted since then using lacquer too.

 

I bought mine new and they definitely left the factory painted.
Like you said, some has peeled off because they're stainless but most of the paint is still there...

 

Ah hah! So I won’t sweat it! The painter put the new paint over the old paint on the tag! I’m not quite as irritated now!

 

It appears from the pictures you posted that your car has original paint. If you don't want to paint it the best thing you can do is use Meguiar's # 7 glaze. Use a whole bottle and put it on and let it soak for 3-5 days. Wipe off/work the paint with a microfiber and repeat the process. The oils in the Meguiar's #7 will soak into the paint and bring back the shine. You will still have the patina and lacquer checking but you will definitely improve the paint quality. Once you are done, apply the Pinnacle Sovereign wax. The Pinnacle wax is a wipe on wipe off wax that is amazing: