CoachBuilt Prams | Perfect Elegance

Here is my latest   acquisiton!     Do you all think I'm potty? Maybe   I am.

This is a Millson twin pram,    it has a   balancing axle - which moves the wheels farther apart   and so makes for a more stable pram when there is a heavy load in it.    In the   Jack Hampshire   book Prams Mailcarts and Bassinets it is   described as a Millson Prince, but I would really like   confirmation of that if anyone can do such a thing for me. I have no real knowledge of Millson prams at all, except that they were the pram of choice for the royal family.

Jack Hampshire describes it as:-    'Prince. the largest    and most expensive Twin Pram of its day.   The body is the popular canoe shape, with moulded edging.   All   navy blue, pinstriped   in white.    Measures overall some    50 in x 21 1/2 in.   Bed measurement 42 in x 18 in Wheel sizes all    20 in.   fitted balancing axle.   Understood to cost, with all accessories, just on �105 in 1965.'

Here is a scanned photograph of the Millson Prince from page 182 of the JH book. I hope that mine will look this good eventually.

The pram seems to have been languishing in a barn for some years along with quite a few more beautiful prams and let's face it it looks as though it has doesn't it? All the prams in cluding this one are original Jack Hampshire prams, the Millson is number 81345

Looking a little better here it has been lifted slightly with the aid of cable ties for the Ebay photograph.

At the front of the pram you can clearly see   the damage done   when the leather straps gave way during it's stay in that barn and the wooden body   plunged   down inside the chassis.    On the right side   there are only scratches   but on the left of the picture   there is a hole where the      chassis arm has    punctured the   body, which will have to be   repaired.

Well    this shows that JH wasn't always right   because   I don't have a   Prince, I have a Portman I believe.    And it doesn't have a balancing axle either! so much for that It is still as    decrepit as the pictures   show though I can assure you!

It is huge though, all of 49 inches long at the top of the body but    width isn't any more than a single pram it is only   21 inches wide.

I have stripped it right down now that I have it home and taken all of the necessary photographs so that I can show you how I went about the restoration. I have a huge great hole to fill in on it, where the body support straps just gave way and the body fell into the C chassis, one of the arms went straight through the bodywork and to I have got to take a crash course in fibre glassing or whatever I am going to have to do with it, that will be fun.

I have found some lovely fabric for the hood and apron but I am going to try very hard not to reveal the colour, but let you guess. However I can promise you it won't be dark navy with red coach lines, I can't bear it it looks so dull!