OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Restoring, Customising and Modifying Victa Walk-Behind Rotary Mowers Victa 18. What color and what air cleaner

Hello everyone, I have bought 3 old Victa 18 toe cutters over the years and am now ready to restore them. I pulled them apart years ago when I bought them, and now I'm lost as to what color, what air cleaner/throttle arrangement etc to use. I have new reproduction wheels and hub caps, low mounted air cleaner/rotary throttle assembly, re-manufactured axles, VICTA handle bar sign, spring loaded pull start, etc but I don't know what color hammer tone to paint it. I know it is supposed to be Avocado green, but every photo I see of a restored Victa is a different color green, some light green and some dark green. I got on to a fella Jeff at Paint Place in QLD who says sells the correct color, but how do I know what the correct color is? Any help would be greatly appreciated, as I want it to be painted the correct color.
Thanks, Brad.

hey im resoring a model 4 at the moment and my tank had the orginal paint still on it under the sticker and the bottom of the tank. i rang galmet and they gave me the formular for the avacado green as they no longer make it and took that to my local paint shop who stocked galmet and they mixed it up on the spot and i got to say it,s almost spot on considering the old paint it 55+ years old. Dulux tint SS27 in galmet gunmetal hammertone the paint store told me it was at my own expence if it didnt work. if you want to see how it came out check my restor

https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=55858#Post55858

Welcome Brad,

Agreed...The Original paint code/colour is Avocado made by Galmet.

If your after originality then this is the Colour to get.

The shade has changed a bit ove the years but it still remains fairly close to the original tint.

The reason for the green variations is made up of a few factors. Galmet no longer make this formula for shelf sale,its by order only,and its no longer available in sprays.

There are a wide range of colurs in different brands that people tend to go with for cost and ease of use as not everyone has or will outlay the cost to set up for a spray gun.

The fastidious restorer will sometimes not be happy with the current tint of Avocado as it does slightly differ from 50s examples. They will attempt to get colour matches to find that perfect match....But it often takes a few attempts for a good match and becomes expensive,and it is starting to get to a point where uniformity no longer exists. But with that said each restorer and restoration is by the owners tastes and interpretation.

So Avocado would be your best bet if your going for originality. Also Deep brunswick green in the Wattle Killlrust spray is widely used and a well recognised match for the handlebars,brackets and toe ring assys.

As for your models post some images of the bases and serial no of the engines and we can tell you what goes with what mower

Thanks for that very helpful advice. I have 2 mowers in bits, so I will post the engine numbers and some photos. That would be great Bluegmhtmonaro if you could tell me what goes with what mower.
Great forum, Thanks Brad.

How do I post photos? I'm not great with computers. One engine has the number 209310 and the other has the number AC 65544. I have one of the large round low mounted air filter assemblies with a rotary switch. Which engine would go with that air filter assembly? Cheers, Brad.

Hi AusVicV8,
The instruction for posting pics using our forum Inline Uploader can be found HERE
Looking forward to seeing the pics.

Hey brad,

Model 5 S2....Filter goes with the AC mate, just get them pics up so we can make sure the engine and filter you refer to are correctly mated to the right base. ...:)

OK, here goes. Thanks for the help guys. I have also included a couple of photos of new axles I made for the Victa 18's. They are all new but I re used the segment gears. Cheers.

Correct me if im wrong mal but is thw 1st photo a model 5 series 2

welcome AusVicV8,
nice work on the axles they look a treat, I agree with Blue as that air cleaner/choke goes with the later AC engine and would suit a base without a edger groove or base with an edger groove but without the front or rear axle extentions, so either model 5 series 2 or series 3, the 209K engine I would estamate to be a series 1 and would sit on a base with the front and rear axle extentions and edger groove, as for paint, also as Blue has said each to their own, I had some Dulux tint SS27 in galmet gunmetal hammertone mixed up and once compaired to some original paint I ended up trying to get it matched to the original but it ended up being a bit to yellow looking so I used it to paint my Lathe lol, so start again and can get expensive at $45 a litre, also as mentioned the shades were a darker shade on the early ones, would be good to see some more pics of your other stuff as there are suttle differences in other things as well. cheers.

Great axle reman Aus:). The first engine photo Cj? That is a model 5 series 1 serial, base with edger groove and axle housing overhang, exactly as Jonesy has stated. (Let me know if your unsure about the serial runs CJ as im happy to clarify:). The second image is a model 5 S2,edger groove with no axle housing overhang. The AC stamping is of the early style so its a bit too early for a model 5S3.

Thanks mate im getting there trying to learn bit by bit hopefully ill get it all dow pat

Thanks so much guys. It's so amazing hope much knowledge and interest is out there for these beautiful old mowers.