TR2/3/3A TR-3A Air Cleaners - Proper Finish

[angelfj1]

I discovered two of these in my treasure trove this weekend. They were in the original boxes and I am 99 percent sure that they are NOS. As you can see, the finish is flat black. However , I have seen restored TR's on both sides of the pond with air cleaners finished in high gloss black paint or powder coat. Since I can not be completely certain that mine are original, does anyone recall which is correct?

 

[Twosheds]

Piggott just says "black" and does not specify gloss or flat.

 

[Geo Hahn]

The TRA judging guideline also just says 'black'.

Mine are satin black just because they came from Moss like that.

I had always suspected that gloss black was correct as satin finishes are not all that characteristic of the 50s (seems like most things were gloss or wrinkle-finish). But if yours were in original AC boxes then that would lend credence to flat (or satin/semi-gloss which is what they look like in the pics).

Of course, it is possible both finishes were used.

 

[Tinkerman]

FJA, ditto both of the above. Most of the ones I have seen at events were either flat or satin black.
Regardss, Tinkerman

 

[Don Elliott]

At TRA, the judges will accept the flat black finish (as original) but they also accept the high gloss finish.

BTW FWIW Frank, I'm not sure if those are for a TR3A. The hole locations on the rear are centered on yours and mine are off-set. With mine bolted onto the intake manifold the air filters are off-set towards the rear of the engine for clearance so they don't interfere with the float bowls.