Frankie the 5th just took possession of his first classic British vehicle.
A 1972 genuine English pram (aka baby buggy)
Back in 72, my soon to be boss was stationed in England, his wife had a
girl, she bought a cool looking baby buggy while over there.
His 2nd child also used that pram. Flash forward to 1979, I have a son,
my boss gives me the pram since his girls have out grown it, now they
are 7 and 5.
We use it for our kids until about 1983, now it's an aging baby buggy.
We gave it to relatives who used it and put it away until now. We forgot
about it, they gave it back today, a rusty fadded buggy.
So Diane bleached the frilly lace and repainted the snaps white, she
cleaned the Wilton Wool coach and I spent the day brass wheeling and
steel wooling all the chrome and each of the 14 spoke wire wheels and
bleaching the solid rubber white tires.
This thing came out stunning! All chrome wheels, frame, handle, brake
bars etc and a blue coach with white frilly.
It beats the heck out of the chinese made plastic POS the kids tried to use.
This thing has chrome fenders over wire wheels! Not plastic molded tires
on plastic wheels with no fenders.
Oh there are no warning labels plastered all over the pram in 4
languages and I guess the kid could get his fingers pinched if he sticks
them in the folding metal frame, or he could get sick if he gnaws the
chrome off the handle but it will not collapse if he jumps around, the
tires will not wear out after a few trips to Grandpa's house, and there
is not a spec of plastic on the thing anywhere.
Daughter in law loves it, all the neighbors saw it and the new born
today, the ladies admired the baby, the men admired the coach.
Now they can put the "new" buggy where it belongs, in the trash with the
rest of the chinese crap and maybe when my son becomes a granddad, he
can clean up the pram for his grandkid. I know it will last another 37
years.
--
Frank Clarici
Toms River, NJ
My own Fleet of Sprites
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