1946 Chief Dark Blue Color

[cdf6333]

OK, after being the doubter of doubter for over 20 years. I argued with Toney Watson about the availability of any colors in 1946 except for Deluxe Black(all early Chiefs), Indian Red, ( later bikes) and Police Silver. Just found a 1947 Indian Factory Accessory Sheet, copy attached, that lists a "dark blue" under Indian Paint.
As far as I know this is the first proof that the color actually existed and I will order an extra helping of crow tonight. Hope this helps.drak blue.jpg

[exeric]

You don't need to eat crow. It's an honorable man that seeks the truth in spite of having to revise a previous idea. A rare commodity these days.

[rmmccon]

I went with the dark blue on my 1946 because of what Toney Watson claimed. I also could never find any factory info. Thanks for the post.

[cdf6333]

I have the whole 6 page Accessory Sheet on eBay now, I'm: nj46chief. The attached pic here is very low resolution, under 80kb, ( Forum rules) the ebay pic is 2mb, if you want a copy get it there.

[rmmccon]

Here is a pic of my dark blue. You can see the blue on the tank in the bright sunlight, but out of the light (like the front fender below) the paint looks like it is black.

[bernhardt]

I noticed the sheet also lists the 11 color headdress decals and the 1940 'bullet' style tank emblems as being available also. Does that mean you could order your chief with the older tank decals or emblems in 46-47? Or are they repair parts..? The plot thickens...

[cdf6333]

No, it doesn't thicken, these are Accessories usually stocked by the Dealer for after market sales. A 1946 came with only 1 type tank emblem, 1947 another, etc. This is the stuff that today Harley dealers have hanging on the wall and on retail counters. Has absolutely nothing to do with production motorcycles, where the required parts are ordered at least a year beforehand, so they knew what the bike cost Indian to build.