Coachbuilt prams

I have both a full size Marmet coach built pram in navy with white floral interior and a doll's coach built Silver Cross in the same colours. They look like a matching set. Both bought 39 years ago and I'm not sure where to go to get them restored- the wheels need a little bit of attention. If anyone has any suggestions they would be gratefully recieved

I had a similar pram, certainly not a silver cross. I had two children at one end and a toddler at the other. As the younger two grew the toddler lay in the basket/tray underneath!

I had a coachbuilt pram but it was a Churchill .its what my mum had for us and if the story is true the same make my Granny and Grandfather walked home from Coatbridge to Glasgow when she was 7 months pregnant with her first in 1912,the story goes she was tired halfway so granda put her IN the pram and pushed it the rest of the way .
I had a soft bodied Silver Cross for my son and my kids had the same style for the GC....well they would... we paid for them.
Theres still one in the attic and I think the family christening robe and shawl are in it along with a new carrickmacross lace christening veil as the original one was never returned after being loaned to a neighbour

I had a Marmet bought in 1969 for my first baby.Not strictly a coach built as it had a soft body but the chassis was the same as a coach built.It asked through both my two DC and was still in perfect condition when I parted with it n 1975. That pram also carried rolls of wallpaper on the tray on the bottom, and also, but not at the same time, a hoover strapped across the body as well as a baby.
I bought a refurbished Wilson coach built when my youngest grandchild was born in 2002, I loved pushing her around in it but unfortunately her parents never used it as it would not go in the car!. I kept it for my great grandchildren when they began to arrive but unfortunately the same thing happened, not car friendly.
It stood taking up room in my house before I reluctantly had to sell it to a customer on a Facebook pram group but I know it went to a good home.

Lovely memories here. We had a Marmet coach built pram for our first two babies. It had belonged to my sister in law, and we had a new hood and apron made for it. When I could no longer justify keeping it, I have it to the local Barnados home.
Only very recently I saw a young mum pushing a coach built pram and thought how lovely they looked.

I lived in the South and mine was a Silver Cross Balmoral - so I don’t think it was just the north who bought them.

The children moved on to a silver cross pushchair, they were a very substantial piece of kit as well.

We did have a sort of collapsible pram for the car, which was given to me by a generous friend - but it was only ever used on days out or journeys in the car.

I gave my pram away along with cast off, toys etc. to a local house for homeless families, when we had completed our family. Only the mother and children were housed there - Dad had to make the best of it elsewhere. I always felt terribly sorry for those poor folk. “Cathy Come Home”

I used to see it carrying the babies.

My mum bought me one for DD, it was lovely but the top half took up the whole back seat of the car and the base filled the boot 🫣
This was 44 years ago so no car seats etc.
I then had a Silver Cross pushchair, it was brilliant and used by my two and my sister’s two children.

I loved my green Silvercross coach built pram with sunshade and seat when we had two children in 18 months. The whole package cost £25 second-hand in the late 80's.
The car wasn't available to me during the week so the pram went everywhere. A favourite was the blackberrying expeditions to the local heath.
I sold it, again for £25 - balancing wear and tear against 15% interest rates - to a friend's friend. It's still going strong in her family.

We couldn’t afford one for babies one and two, but for baby three I ordered one straight away
I absolutely loved it, walked miles with it, she would be sat up facing me, and we could chat as we went along.
A few years later we bought that little girl a child’s silver cross coach built dolls pram, it was beautiful.

My mother had a large cream Silver Cross for me when I was born. One day during WW2 my father was on leave and took me for a walk in it. A large car drew up alongside him and a man brandishing a bulging wallet asked him to name his price. (For the pram, not me!). He replied that it would be more than his life was worth to do so, no matter how much money he took home - prams were very hard to come by during the war.
It was a source of great pride to my mother, I believe.

Blondiescot

PamelaJ1

BlondisCot
Put it on eBay then someone else can love it.

There's quite a few on eBay but none seem to have any bids on them.

Just had a look, I want the twin one😂

Proper prams! Where babies can stretch and wriggle rather than being scrunched up those dreadful 'travel systems' that seem to be everywhere now.

I didn't have a Silver Cross for my babies, couldn't it afford despite yearning for one. Still had a proper pram though, even though it was second hand it was in fabulous condition, the lady who sold it to me even cleaned the white tyres with scouring detergent.

Yes I had a navy blue Coach built Silver Cross Perambulator!
Second hand from a midwife who lived a few doors down. It also had green fringed sun canopy.
Cleaned the chrome up with polish, and whitened the tyres. We had a Silver Cross stockist in town so could buy pram reins and other related accessories
It glided along beautifully due to the suspension they were the Rolls Royce of prams really. Certainly not bus friendly.. but did a lot of walking then and took it to the parks.
I had both a single Silver Cross pushchair too and a Twin version both second hand but in pristine condition.
Never liked the look .of the “buggies” anyway but we’d gone past that by then😊

We’d three under fours so had a variety of prams, double buggies, slings over the years. One of which was a secondhand navy Royale. I’d walk 2 mikes into town with one in the pram, one on top in a pram seat, one in a sling, and 2 miles back with the tray underneath crammed with shopping. There’s a killer hill on the way home that I struggle a bit with now without shopping. No wonder I was so slim back then.

We have a 40s weekend near us and the old prams always appear then - I assume they’re in storage for the rest of the year.

The toy versions are so cute. I tried to persuade the DDs to ask for one for Christmas or birthdays, but no luck!

I bought a second hand Silver Cross coach built pram just before my first grand-daughter was born 10 years ago. It was navy with a white and navy striped interior. I did not drive, lived on the flat and used it to take my grand-daughter shopping when I looked after her 2 days a week. It also doubled as a cot when she was a young baby.
Whenever we went to town it always drew remarks, usually from women my age who used to reminisce about their own prams.
The pram only had one baby in it previously and was like new. It was bought on the Preloved site for the price asked for. I could not be doing with any auctions on E.Bay. It came with a broderie anglaise canopy and I bought a new mattress and pram bag on Amazon. My daughter and I travelled 200 miles round trip to pay and collect the pram.
After my second grand-daughter became a toddler, the pram was sold on. I asked the same price that I had paid, so the prices do hold firm on them.
There are web sites dedicated to coach- built prams and there are firms who do refurbish them. Even an old one stuck in a shed would probably go for about £150 or more.

I borrowed a pram for each of my 4 babies. One was a coach built silver cross and he slept beautifully in it. It rocked him to sleep.
My DiL used a family one for her DC and old ladies would comment and chat to her. She was told there was another one in Edinbugh's Princes St and sure enough these 2 mums met over their prams and are still friends 16 years later.

I’m glad I started this thread as you’ve posted lovely stories of your prams.

I’ve also still got the canopy for the pram. It’s a Morlands one, in the original box. That was second hand in 1975 so goodness know how old it is! I used to wash it regularly and starch the white broderie anglais outer cover - surely I had better things to do with my time??

I must have walked miles with that pram - as someone commented earlier, I used to be slim in those days!

Yes Beechnut it's fascinating.
I actually have a silver cross coach-built pram looking for a good home.
I acquired it to take my DGC out but they are much too big now! They all had their own buggies.

SueDonim
Yes, I walked miles every day.
I was working half days, and I’d race to nursery to collect baby, race home, and out with the pram in all wind and weathers, we moved to a different area when I was pregnant, and I had lots to explore.
If you want to make friends, buy a coach built pram, almost everyone stops to chat.

They certainly had their uses, Sara! I didn’t drive when I had my first baby. When DS was about three weeks old my cat had a fight with a dog and needed urgent vet treatment. I walked about two miles to the surgery with a bleeding cat in a basket balanced on top of the pram apron!

When I collected my DS1 from school he would sit in the bottom of the pram, baby inside and toddler on the shopping rack. Luckily there were no hills.
I still have the Silver cross I acquired for my DGC which is looking for a new home.
Let me know if you would like it. I even bought a new mattress for it and had the brakes renewed.

I bought my Silver Cross coachbuilt pram secondhand when expecting baby number 1. I bought from a friend who`s mother had baby minded, and the pram had never been outside, We paid £32 for it, and it served 3 babies. Just after parting with it, I found myself pregnant again, bought a brand new Silver Cross, a decent size, but not coachbuilt, it had a vinyl body, that did for babies 4 and 5.

I should add that back in the 60s and early 70s we didn`t have a car, so fitting in the car wasn`t a problem for us. I hate those piddling little things they call prams nowadays!