John, as gas 44 says, your truck, your choice.
As you said 'fit in better with the era' I assume you're thinking as it was in the '50s? In that case, DBG gloss, prep it properly and spray it. From my experience with K9s they all started that way until there was a reason to repaint them - they got sent to Suez or Aden, for example, or they survived to the NATO green era - then they got the 4" brush!