Need help with a 16ga Trojan

[Peter Brissette]

Good Afternoon,
I am new to the organization so please be gentle with me. A very close friend of mine who doesn't do any shooting announced to me recently that he'd inherited an old shotgun. It is a 16 ga. Parker Trojan, serial #161057. It's on a 1 size frame. The stock is not checkered but it does have a "checkering pattern" printed on both the fore end and the but stock. The fore end has a different serial number (169149) on it than all the rest of the parts. The butt plate is a Remington butt plate. The bluing on the barrels is about 60% and the case colors on the frame are pretty much gone. The worst thing about it is there is a crack in the stock at the wrist. My friend took the gun to Cabelas in Scarborough Maine and they said it would retail for $3200 but they would not buy it because of the crack. My dilemma is that I'd like to make him an offer but I want to be fair to him and to myself. Does anyone have a ballpark idea as to what this gun is worth? I've posted a few pictures (with great difficulty) Thanks for any suggestions.

[William Davis]

Welcome to the forum.

I paid 1450 last year, from a dealer, not a particularly low price, for the same gun in much better condition and no crack. Crack makes it a bad buy. It may be fixable but not cheap. Replacement stock cost way more than the repaired gun would be worth.

If you want a 16 G Trojan better to buy another. Advantage is buying another you don't risk offending friends who have been given inflated value ideas by Cabellas who was not willing to put cash behind the valuation.

Tough answer but believe it's accurate.

William

[Daniel Carter]

Guns International has a 16 ga. Trojan with a broken and repaired stock for $650.00 It is a good place to start and see what is the asking price for guns you are considering.condition being comparable remember it is asking price.

[Peter Brissette]

William,
Thanks for the information. I think you're correct. Better to run away from this than to either offend my friend or overpay for a marginal gun. Thanks again. Much appreciated.
Peter

[William Davis]

Gun Woodcock mentioned is about the right price for a repaired rough gun.

When I was first getting into Parkers wanted to see how they worked. With a friend of mine bought a rough VH 12 for 500 bucks. Took it apart put back together until we figured out the puzzle. Then cleaned the gun up and with the help of a PGCA member put the broken stock back together. He did a nice job for lot less than a professional would charge. I sold it for 500 bucks.

We were not looking at profit or loss just learning without stripping one of our nice guns. But you can see the economics, had we paid retail for the wood work gun would have been a big looser. As it was inexpensive lesson in Parkers.

William

[Kevin McCormack]

I have had a VERY nasty, flu-like head cold for about 3 weeks now. Sitting out 3-4 days a week in frozen duck blinds probably didn't help any. Lots of patent OTC meds didn't do much for it either. Whatever variety of weed they are smoking at Cabela's in Scarborough might be just what I need (I think I'll call Jack to see).

Their appraisal of $3200 'retail' brings to mind the absolutely mint, unfired, and new in the box Trojan 12 ga. that changed hands at the Vintagers the last time it was held at Sandanona NY. (Many members saw and examined that gun and will remember it). The gun sold for $4K. Is there a disconnect here? Did I miss something? Say what??

[Dean Romig]

A mint, as new, Trojan in its original box for $4k... That's a steal... really it is!

Remember EDM's that auctioned for some $12k.





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[Kevin McCormack]

Dean it was that exact same gun. Old Ed Ulrich the Winchester man bought it for $2k and displayed it at the very first Greewich Fine Arms Show. He took unlimited grief for paying that much for a Trojan, mostly from the "experts" at large. The next time the gun changed hands was at Sandanona at the aforementioned $4K. I think it even changed hands again before Ed wound up with it. After a couple of false starts on the sale, he finally consigned it to auction, stunning the civilized world with its hammer price.

[Dean Romig]

Showing us, once again, that condition trumps all else.






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