Sunday, October 14, 2018

Miller 91: Front suspension and drive

The FWD system goes together well once HRM's typically cryptic instructions are deciphered. The parts are all very well made. The friction shocks are period items but the inboard brakes (drums, of course) and the De Dion axle, which snaps cleanly into place on pins at the end of the quarter elliptic springs, were used well into the '60s by companies like Maserati, Aston Martin and Rover. In fact the Rover 3500S, which was the V8-powered big brother to the Rover 2000 TC I ran for a few summers back in the early '80s, still had a De Dion axle as late as 1977.



Knuckles are missing because they need paint. The big brass radiator sits cleanly on top of the transmission, but won't get glued in until the body and hood are in place in order to avoid embarrassing gaps.



Part of me was afraid of this kit but so far all is well. The major issue is the obfuscatory instruction sheet which assumes you have access to lots of photos of the car in the Smithsonian, or better yet, Borgeson's book on Miller.



The kit includes a large number of bolts, nuts and rivets with diameter 0.020", so there may be plenty of occasions for swearing later.

I'll be away from the bench for the next little while. Stay tuned!

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7 comments:

  1. UnknownNovember 1, 2018 at 2:50 PM

    Glad I found this as I have just begun my Miller build and it helps with suspension layout. If Kingston has a show in 2019 will you be there?

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    1. Tom BrowneNovember 1, 2018 at 3:11 PM

      Yes, I intend to be in Kingston. A key resource for the Miller (or anything else) is https://www.the-blueprints.com/blueprints/cars/variouscars/27709/view/miller__1929_/

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  2. aurfalienJanuary 22, 2024 at 7:21 PM

    Well I'm back and hope to not pester too much. So I've gotten as far as what I see in your pics in terms of front suspension and drive but have no clue on what to do with the bits in bags 3, 5 and 6. Would you mind taking more pics that could help someone very clueless and with out much reference other than your lovely site.

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    1. Tom BrowneJanuary 22, 2024 at 8:27 PM

      I will shortly post some more pics taken today. Do you have the parts list and instructions that came with the kit? I'll also post scans of the sheets. You should also Google "Miller 91" and "Packard Cable Special" and see what you can find, there are lots of pics which are not just of built up models.

      Delete
    2. Tom BrowneJanuary 22, 2024 at 9:16 PM

      See new post made in the last few minutes (not an update to older posts).

      Delete
  3. aurfalienJanuary 23, 2024 at 10:05 AM

    Thank you sir. Welp I'm muddling through it. After downloading all of your current pics on this car, I've managed to get further via zooming in, panning etc... Valuable pic BTW. So don't go too much out of your way. I am of course looking around for pics and even have the book "The Golden Age of American Raving" which Harold recommended but all in all poor black and white low rez photos really. Some material floating around is good but I simply lack the experience to properly build this sort of kit. Still I motor on...

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  4. Tom BrowneJanuary 23, 2024 at 10:07 AM

    Car #18 is in the Smithsonian and there are pictures on the Web (in colour) as it stands today. Have fun!

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