Bachelor Brougham On Deck

So the “Public Enemies” movie broke last night. There have been a few viewings of the movie over the last few weeks for celebrities, producers, dignitaries and so on but last night was the public opening. Two busses full of revelers left Columbus last night for a special showing in Madison. From the reviews I’m seeing it’s getting some mixed vibes. I’ve seen a couple reviews that thought Depp was mis-cast for the part of John Dillinger. I kind of wondered that myself but I see one movie every five years so who am I to say. If I were a big shot producer I would have put Leo Dicaprio in that roll. I guess that’s why I’m not a big shot Hollywood producer.



Of course it was fun meeting Johny Depp. I was very impressed with his demeanor and especially his loyalty to his fans. He struck me as a real gentleman. I took this photo the day of filming the bank robbery scene in Columbus.



So on deck for restoration is this beautiful Bachelor Brougham. It was manufactured by C.P. Kimball and really has a great look. The carriage is a nice solid vehicle but in need of a complete restoration.



The interior is the great challenge. It is in really nice original condition. When an interior is in this kind of condition it is often nice to leave it intact. It’s kind of a pain from a restoration standpoint but might be worth while for this project. It makes finishing the door jambs difficult as you are always concerned about damaging the trim which can be brittle. So we will be having some discussions about that part of the project.



All in all the body is really tight. Other than the so-so restoration work in another life the body is really clean and intact. Often trim and details are destroyed with sloppy restoration work but not in this case which is really good news.



The Brougham was partially restored a number of years ago. It is very complete other than lamps. We have a few cracked panels to deal with and the roof is loose is some areas.



So into the shop it rolls. Work has already begun and we are making good progress. Of course it all begins with stripping of the paint and rust so stay tuned. We will be posting on this project regularly.

Have a great day.

Best!
Todd