Single barrel trap

[Thomas L. Benson Sr.]

Would like ser. no look up on 177819 Thanks Thomas L. Benson Sr.

[Dave Suponski]

Tom, It's in the book as an S(probably an SC) with 32" barrels and straight grip stock.

[Thomas L. Benson Sr.]

Dave: What determins S.b. from S.C. is it the amount of engraving and the quality of the wood. Thanks thomas.

[Dave Suponski]

Tom, Yes... Engraving,checkering and quality of wood. I believe that early SB and SC guns had Titanic marked barrels but later guns had Acme marked barrels in both grades. Peerless Steel was used on SA and SAA grade guns.

[John Dunkle]

Moved to the Parker SBT Forum ;)

John

[Dave Suponski]

I thought I felt the earth move.....I hate it when you do that.....:rotf:

[PAUL PLUNKETT III]

Tom here are a couple pics of typical SB engraving and checkering. Paul:)

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c40/FOXIST/ParkerSB005.jpg
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c40/FOXIST/ParkerSB007.jpg
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c40/FOXIST/ParkerSB006.jpg
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c40/FOXIST/ParkerSB001.jpg

[Thomas L. Benson Sr.]

Wow. This is great a new forum on SBT'S. I now can get a education on single barrel parkers. I looked at ser. no 177819 today and i believe after your great pictures that i was looking at a SB. I will try to get a closer look in a couple days. Thanks Thomas L. Benson Sr.

[Dean Romig]

Paul, do you shoot your SB? She's real purty!

[PAUL PLUNKETT III]

Dean I no longer own the gun but I did shoot several rounds with it when I did.
I let it go in a moment of weakness while chasing a nice Fox. :banghead:

[Dean Romig]

I hope you got the Fox... and I hope it was worth giving up that fabulous SB.

[PAUL PLUNKETT III]

Dean I did manage to pick it up. Its a J grade A H Fox SBT in near new condition with Original hang tag(See bottom gun in pick below).The only negative on the Fox is the stock has been cut and a extension added. The Ithaca 4E and L C Smith Specialty are a couple other nice SBT's.
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c40/FOXIST/DSC_0409.jpg

[Dean Romig]

Very nice SBT's Paul.

Thanks for your contributions to this new forum page.

[Steve McCarty]

I shoot my SBT and love it. I'll post a pic in a few days. The gun is original, but with what I believe is a replacement beavertail forearm. The wood doesn't match the butt stock very well.

No pistol grip and very little drop. I've replaced the original Silvers pad with a new Silvers pad. No safety, don't you love it? No more "oops, sorry". Sweet trigger. Ejector. I think mine is an SC since the engraving doesn't look as nice as the SB shown. But I'll tell you what a Parker SBT gun is: it is one heck of a trap gun!

[Dave Suponski]

Yes they are!

[Steve McCarty]

Here's my Parker SBT with an 177,8xx SS#. It has a 32 inch tube and straight stock. I bought the gun from the son in law of the original owner who was a tycoon in http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/ParkerShotguns003.jpgbusiness.

[Steve McCarty]

Here's another picture of my SBT http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/ParkerShotguns009.jpg

[Steve McCarty]

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/ParkerShotguns001.jpg

This is the under barrel table of the SBT.

[Bill Murphy]

When my single barrels are sold, I hope "they" refer to me as a tycoon.

[Steve McCarty]

When my single barrels are sold, I hope "they" refer to me as a tycoon.

Okay. You're a tycoon. Now you can live in peace.

[Steve McCarty]

I shoot my SBT and love it. I'll post a pic in a few days. The gun is original, but with what I believe is a replacement beavertail forearm. The wood doesn't match the butt stock very well.

No pistol grip and very little drop. I've replaced the original Silvers pad with a new Silvers pad. No safety, don't you love it? No more "oops, sorry". Sweet trigger. Ejector. I think mine is an SC since the engraving doesn't look as nice as the SB shown. But I'll tell you what a Parker SBT gun is: it is one heck of a trap gun!

I posted some pictures of my SBT, but I'm not proud of them. I'll make some more and delete these, but it'll take me a week or two to get to it. Moving. I hate moving, but don't we all?

Gun photography is difficult, as those who do it well know.

I'd also like to join your association. How do I do that anyway?

As an aside; I find it difficult to negociate this site. Not terribly difficult, just hard to do well.

[Robin Lewis]

I'd also like to join your association. How do I do that anyway?

As an aside; I find it difficult to negociate this site. Not terribly difficult, just hard to do well.

Go to www.parkerguns.org (http://www.parkerguns.org) and on the left side find the link "Membership" and click on it. Follow the instructions and you should be all set. If you have any problems post back here and I am sure someone will help you gain membership. Glad to have you!

[Dean Romig]

As an aside; I find it difficult to negociate this site. Not terribly difficult, just hard to do well.

After you've done it for a while you'll find it extremely simple to negotiate this website. I find it to be one of the easiest websites I visit... "user friendly" so to speak.

Welcome aboard Steve!

[Steve McCarty]

Welp, I've just joined the association.

Went to the store where my GH is on lay-away. I'll pick it up on the 15th. Say, I studied the engraving. I was expecting to see a Smoe like bird, but, while a little hard to see due to grime, the engraved bird looks like it is laying flat on the ground dead!!! Did someone at Parker have a sense of humor? Or am I going blind?

Bore is mirror.

I'm excited.

[Robin Lewis]

Steve, when you get her home post some pictures, I would love to see that bird!

[Steve McCarty]

Steve, when you get her home post some pictures, I would love to see that bird!

I'll post a pic as soon as I can, but it'll be a week or two. I'm excited as a kid waiting for Christmas. Isn't that great! I'm old. I think that one should be making payments for a new Parker continously! Since they are expensive you'd get one new gun a year.

The trouble is I'm getting so old that when I pass a cemetery I feel homesick.

Steve
Here's another pic of my SBT. This is a SBT thread after all!http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/Parkershotguns147.jpg

[Steve McCarty]

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/Parkershotguns139.jpg


I promise to no long post out of focus pictures. Using a different and better camera now than I was using when I snapped this one.

When I bought this gun is was totally covered with a thin coat of orange rust. I very lightly touched the surface with Liquid Wrench soaked 0000 steel wool and you can see what happened. I have not worked the metal any harder than that, so there is some blemish mixed with case color. I'm not going to removed either. There is some pitting on the barrel and rib, most on the rib, but the gun is as it will remain. I love the silvery slate gray/blue of the tube, which is 32 inches long.

How does my SBT stack up with others?

Steve

[Steve McCarty]

Concerning the engraving on my SBT. I have seen this heart motif (on the underside of the receiver in front of the trigger guard) on Parkers before. Probably the same engraver. However I have not seen so much shading. The engraving seems almost bold as opposed to feathery with fine detail. However the shading makes the work immediately easy to see at first glance and is pleasing.

[Dean Romig]

Steve, first let me say "Welcome to the PGCA!" :smiley7:

Your SC's engraving is very similar to the engraving on a lot of the other SC's we see.
I'm surprised it came out as well as it did, considering the fine rust and 0000 steel wool.... Very Nice!

[Steve McCarty]

Steve, first let me say "Welcome to the PGCA!" :smiley7:

Your SC's engraving is very similar to the engraving on a lot of the other SC's we see.
I'm surprised it came out as well as it did, considering the fine rust and 0000 steel wool.... Very Nice!

Thank you very much.

If you look closely you can see some scaring caused by the rust. Looks like the gun had smallpox. I worked very slowly not wanting to remove the case colors, which are pretty bright. 40%? Liquid Wrench does a pretty good job of penetrating the rust and lifting it off. The steel wool just brushes it away.

I have the original Silvers pad, which was smashed flat and flaking away. The replacement Silvers pad must look like the old one, when it was new.

Beaver tail forearm must be a replacement. I read that Parker did that, and I've seen splinter forearms on SBT guns. Nor do the wood colors match very well. Way off actually.

Not sure what to do about the chip missing from along side the lower tang. It's almost 2" long, but it's not that wide, so I think I'll let it be. It is an old gun after all.

SM

[Bill Murphy]

You haven't shown us the views of the forearm. Let's see those.

[Steve McCarty]

You haven't shown us the views of the forearm. Let's see those.http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/Parkershotguns144.jpg

Okay, here's one. Not very exciting however.

[Dean Romig]

Doggone nice checkering and the latch is obviously the original.

[Steve McCarty]

Doggone nice checkering and the latch is obviously the original.

Thank you for your comments. The forearm has seen some use. Yes the checkering looks find to me, sharp points and lots per inch. This gun was shot pretty heavily. Where it was held the bluing is gone. I bought it from the son in law of the original owner, who was a successful businessman. If I named his product you'd know who I'm talking about.

So the gun hasn't gone through many hands. Oh, I suppose the fellow who owned it might have been a second owner, but it is unlikely. His son in law inherited all of his guns including a battery of Winchester Model 21's, rifles, etc. They were all stolen except for this gun and another, a pistol. What a crying shame! I hope there is a special place in hell for people who steal fine guns.

[Steve McCarty]

As I compare this wonderful SB to my SC it is easy to see the more deluz engraving on the former. Not that my gun has fleas.

What is to me the most amazing part of the SBT's, is how adept they are at breaking clay pigeons! It must be that mine just happens to fit me like a glove.

[Dave Suponski]

Really want to see what these wonderful guns can do?....Let the targets run out there and crush them as they drop.

[Steve McCarty]

Really want to see what these wonderful guns can do?....Let the targets run out there and crush them as they drop.

I've always thought that those falling shots are the hardest. One takes them after one has already missed once, and then if there's a shell in the other barrel you take a hope shot of that rapidly falling pigeon. You never hit them. Least I don't.

[Dave Suponski]

At my local(home) club yesterday we were joined by the Yale Skeet/Trap team for a little friendly competition. There were 4 girls and 6 guys. A very nice group of young adults. We shot mixed squads of them and us. One of my rounds of trap I shot with 4 four of them. I shot a 23 which was right in the middle of the pack. When it was over one of the young lady shooters asked "What kind of gun is that?" I told her it was a Parker Single Barrel Trap gun. She said "Boy that gun sure reaches out there". I told her "sure does" and it was made in 1935. She just shook here head and walked away.

The highlight of our day was that Mattie who is 15 and the son of one members competed in a 27 yard "wipe your eye" event with 4 other club members and 5 of the Yale team and beat them all! He had a day he will never forget. The guys and gals of the Yale team gave him a rousing ovation at the end. These young people showed some real class and it was great to see a college sponsored team.

[Steve McCarty]

At my local(home) club yesterday we were joined by the Yale Skeet/Trap team for a little friendly competition. There were 4 girls and 6 guys. A very nice group of young adults. We shot mixed squads of them and us. One of my rounds of trap I shot with 4 four of them. I shot a 23 which was right in the middle of the pack. When it was over one of the young lady shooters asked "What kind of gun is that?" I told her it was a Parker Single Barrel Trap gun. She said "Boy that gun sure reaches out there". I told her "sure does" and it was made in 1935. She just shook here head and walked away.

The highlight of our day was that Mattie who is 15 and the son of one members competed in a 27 yard "wipe your eye" event with 4 other club members and 5 of the Yale team and beat them all! He had a day he will never forget. The guys and gals of the Yale team gave him a rousing ovation at the end. These young people showed some real class and it was great to see a college sponsored team.

Watching young people shooting and having fun brings a tear to my eye. Great story.

[Steve McCarty]

I have shot my SC, but just joined a trap club and plan to shoot it more, probably 200 plus rounds a month. I also shoot skeet, but not with a Parker.

My SC has a lot of "float" it shoots high, so the bird is floating pretty high above the line of sight when the clay breaks, which I like. It makes it easier to see and then follow the clay. In addition I tend to watch the bird and not the gun barrel. So I see the bird follow it with my eye, the gun follows along and it almost shoots itself. I have never shot a gun at trap that I like better.

While I have never weighted by SBC it feels pretty light, but the new Silver's pad seems to soak up felt recoil pretty well. Gun has a 32" very full choke tube. It also ejects which I do not like, I'd rather pluck out the empty with my fingers and then pocket it, but as it is now, after a round, I have to race around picking up empties.

My gun is an early one with the screw high on the right side of the receiver which gives access to the floating firing pin. Have not broken one yet.

Everyone in my club show up with extremely expensive new trap and or skeet guns. I am the only one shooting an old Parker. My GH is full and full and someday I'll try it at trap too, but the comb is pretty low so it will tend to shoot low and it will likely have very little "float" which means I'll miss more birds.

[Steve McCarty]

I've been shooting my SBT weekly and it is doing fine. I've been shooting it along with an ancient (1923) Model 12 that has had a lot of bending done to the stock, so it's comb is high and has cast off so it is a good shooter, but my SC Parker shoot better for me.

I like shooting old shotguns. So I shoot a Fox Sterlingworth, Model 37's, Parkers, Model 12s and an I grade Lefever. I also have a new Browning Gold Fusion that I could not pass up when I found it at a local gun show, used and cheap.

The low combs of my old guns is a handicap. I don't care.

[Steve McCarty]

Took my SBT SC to the trap range yesterday. It was the third time I've shot the gun. I had to find out where it was shooting and then broke 23, which means 25 isn't far behind!

They have a gun rack where the guys line up their shotguns. Some very fancy guns believe me. I like setting my ca. 1918 Parker along side those others. My guns is not as nice as the SB shown above, but boy does she shoot! Fits me like a glove. I'm excited. The head guy said that as soon as I break 25 straight I get a patch, then ohttp://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/ParkerShotguns003.jpgne for 50, 100, 150 etc. Not there yet, but me and my old Parker SBT are on our way!

[Steve McCarty]

Went out to the club today. Two rounds of 16s. Didn't do so well. Missed six and then five. No good. Need to shoot more. I was trying something new, catching the shells as they are ejected from the gun, so I was fumbling with shells and it broke my consentration. Is that enough of an excuse?

I need to do better. Most of those guys miss one or maybe two. Don't see many 25s. Guy showed me his fancy shotgun. Said it cost $16,000! Most of these guys are shooting guns that cost about what a car costs. Fine with me. At 16's they are shooting modified and improved modified chokes. Thinking about taking my Superposed out there that is Mod and Full just for the heck of it. But I am still a Parker guy, I just don't want to embarrass the gun by missing.

[Mike Franzen]

Hi Steve. I enjoy reading your adventures with your SBT. I have one and love to shoot it too. Keep the posts coming.

[Jeff Christie]

Has anyone out there in Parkerdom tried the 3/4 oz loads the guys are raving about in the reloading thread at trap? I have been using both 1 oz and 7/8 oz loads and the results are generally indistinguishable. Normal 1 1/8th oz loads are very tiring.

I started the summer season as always using a relatively late made VH (bored tight and really tight). I acquired a nice SBT SC early summer and have used it exclusively since its arrival. It is brutally tight as well (83 + percent with old shells). Someone told me Parker expected them to be used at the 23 + yard station. That may be an urban legend. At any rate guys who are a far better trap shooters than I love the SBT at the handicap distances. I am a p1$$ poor trap shooter (but an excellent skeet guy). At 16 yds any load crushes (or misses) targets.

Trap is the only game here in town in Spirit Lake (home of Fred Gilbert, Johnny Jahn, and Bob Allen (all ATA Hall of Fame-ers). Skeet is just another 5 letter word.

Jeff Christie

[David Holes]

I use 1 oz. skeet wads for the 16 yard targets. The pattern opens slightly faster. I use 1 1/8 cb wads for 23 yard handicap. I have to work really hard to break all 25 on 16's. Have broke better scores from the 23, compared to 16's, many times. They truely are great handicap guns.

[Dave Suponski]

My son Danny shoots my SC with 1 oz. loads at 16 yards and also handicap.I have not as of yet tried the 3/4 oz loads but soon will. He likes to fool around and wait till they are dropping and then smash them. Oh to have young eyes and reflexes....:rolleyes: But I firmly believe that the chokes Parker put in these guns are truly wonderful.

[Daryl Corona]

I now shoot 3/4oz. loads at everything. Trap, skeet, 5-stand, wobble trap and sporting clays and a game we at my gun club call Chinese skeet. We start the round with 25 shells and shoot the wobble trap only it's shot from the skeet stations. You must break 2 targets before you can leave the station and you have 4 shots to do it with. Stations 1-7 are the normal skeet stations but if you make it to station 8 the lead shooter can pick any spot he likes to shoot from. By that time everyone is down to 4-5 shells and as you run out of shells you're done. The average distance for these targets is 45-50yds. and the wobble trap can throw some wicked targets. I've not felt handicapped with the 3/4oz load. Dave is right, my Parker double trap throws wonderful patterns that just crushes targets with that light load.

[Steve McCarty]

My son Danny shoots my SC with 1 oz. loads at 16 yards and also handicap.I have not as of yet tried the 3/4 oz loads but soon will.

Just today I was reading one of Jack O'Connor's books on shooting. Discussing shotshell loads he said that ligher softer shooting shells produce better patterns than hard shooting heavy loads and that feels right to me. If O'Connor is indeed correct then a 3/4 load would outperform the 1 oz load.

[Steve McCarty]

Just finished reading an article in Double Gun (2011 issue) about Parker SBTs. Said that most of them are bored for 2 5/8 inch shells, but were advertised as being able to accept 2 3/4 inchers even if they had the shorter chamber. I've been shooting mine right along with 2 3/4ers.

Annie Oakley in 1925 was shooting an SBT SC. No one knows the guns serial number. Gee do you think I'm shooting Annie Oakley's gun? In the well known picture of her shooting her Parker one can see it has a splinter forearm. Mine's got a beaver tail that looks like a factory replacement since it does not match the stock very well.

Going out tomorrow morning to shoot trap with it. It is always a thrill to shoot that ancient Parker SBT.

[Steve McCarty]

deleted

[Chuck Bishop]

Steve, if you can show me a picture of a splinter forend on a Parker SBT I'd appreciate it cause I've never seen one. The picture of Annie shooting at the 1925 Grand and the examples of your SBT forend are all beavertail forends.

I'd bet your forend is original to the gun.

[Steve McCarty]

Steve, if you can show me a picture of a splinter forend on a Parker SBT I'd appreciate it cause I've never seen one. The picture of Annie shooting at the 1925 Grand and the examples of your SBT forend are all beavertail forends.

I'd bet your forend is original to the gun.
Chuck: This is all I've got of the forearm. http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/Parkershotguns144.jpg

[Steve McCarty]

Chuck: This is all I've got of the forearm on my gun. I'll have to see if I can find a splinter forearm on a SBT. I thought that the pic of Annie O showed a splinter forearm. http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/Parkershotguns144.jpg

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/ParkerShotguns009.jpg

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/ParkerShotguns004.jpg

Are all SBT forearms beaver tail? I don't know, but since mine does not match the butt stock at all I figured it was a replacement.

[Steve McCarty]

Here's what I've got Chuck. The forearm does not match the stock very well, which is very nice, as you can see. There is a sizable chip out of the bottom of the wrist alongside the lower tang, but I'm not going to do anything about it. Call it patina.

No marks at all at the breech end of the barrel. It is an early SBT, 177853, I think (from memory). I have only seen one earlier and that was in the pages of the Parker magazine.

Not the best focus, but you can see it's an early SBT and obviously a SC.

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa23/GermVMA211/Parker%20Shotguns/Parkershotguns139.jpg

[Bill Murphy]

Your forearm looks like an original. Nice early gun with scroll on the trigger plate. My first Parker single is #177,741, traded a pair of Model 21s for it. It came with the original case and tags and in new condition. I didn't want to give up the Model 21s, but I had no money and I had to have the trap gun. I have shot that SC since 1973 and the receiver is not as nice as it was when it came home with me, but I wouldn't miss forty years of shooting all those targets in good weather and bad.

[Chuck Bishop]

The forend is a Parker forend but is the wood original to the gun? It could also be that the straight stock is a replacement and not original and that's why the colors don't match. Is the S/N of the gun and a 4 stamped in the wood under the trigger guard? If it's there, then it's possible the wood has been refinished to a different color or Parker just did a poor match of color.

[Dean Romig]

The mullered borders of the forend appear to be slightly different from the mullered borders of the stock - or maybe it's just the quality of the pictures.

[Steve McCarty]

The forend a Parker forend but is the wood original to the gun? It could also be that the straight stock is a replacement and not original and that's why the colors don't match. Is the S/N of the gun and a 4 stamped in the wood under the trigger guard? If it's there, then it's possible the wood has been refinished to a different color or Parker just did a poor match of color.

Indeed the stock could be a replacement, but it sure fits well, as original Parker wood does. I have not removed the trigger guard because I hate to mess with the screws, even tho I have good screw drivers. The S# on the inside of the forearm matches the gun and the case colors glow. No color on the lower tang so it was shot quite a bit. Original owner was Ray Folger, of coffee fame. Pretty good sized chip missing alongside the lower tang, as if someone removed the trigger guard and pulled off a piece off wood with it. I've seen that happen before. The chiped place is slightly worn, so the gun was shot after it was damaged, probably by the original owner.

It was badly stored. When I got it, it had been kept in a cheap plastic case which did not breath. The gun was literally coated with rust and the pad was trash. I very carefully removed the rust, but the gun still shows some pitting. Paid $1500 for the gun to the son-in-law of the original owner. The man was burglerized and they took all of his shotguns (a complete group of 21s) but this one.

I shoot this shotgun weekly. Last year I shot mostly skeet, but this coming spring/summer I'm going to concentrate on trap and shooting this great, classic Parker.

[Steve McCarty]

The mullered borders of the forend appear to be slightly different from the mullered borders of the stock - or maybe it's just the quality of the pictures.

I'm still trying to produce close up and in focus photos to post here. My eyes, ears and everything else is getting old. Okay, it's an excuse and we know what excuses are don't we.

[Richard Flanders]

We do....