Papa's Trojan Doubles Again

[Harry Collins]

About 10 years ago Papa and I were in the field he first took me to retrieve. He was shooting the little 20 gauge Trojan he found under the Christmas Tree some 66 years before. I was shooting the 20 gauge hammered Parker. My little Boykin Spaniel and I were picking up Papa's dove. We sat down to count how
many birds we had and how many shells we had shot. Papa was out and I had two birds to go. Some birds were coming in and I asked to shoot the Trojan and dropped a double. Papa gave me his Parker that afternoon. Today I was in a field we had hunted before with the Trojan and dropped my first double of the year. Last Monday I was hunting with my nephew in the rain at 7:30 in the morning. He is in my will to receive his grandfathers Parker. I pray he docent inherit it any time soon.

[David Holes]

keep shootin them doubles, and it will be a while. good shootin Dave

[Steve McCarty]

One day I was sneaking up to a pond dam with some old Marine Corps buddies of mine. I was shooting a Charles Daly Diamond Grade O/U. I was in the left. I hung back. The other guys jumped up and startled the geese and ducks. I peeked over the berm and dropped back down. The birds came up and seeing the other guys turned and flew over me. The ducks came first. I dropped one and then another almost right overhead. I broke the gun open and jammed in two more shells. Then came the geese. I dropped one and had to step aside as he was falling right at me. He landed at my feet. Then I turned and shot another as he was going away. I had to chase him down.

A double double.

If I had died at that moment I would have lived a happy life.

[Destry L. Hoffard]

Nice work Harry.

DLH

[Steve McCarty]

As reguards to Trojan guns. There were two Parkers in town for sale. One a pretty nice GH and a pretty poor Trojan. The GH was a grand and the Trojan a grand plus a C note. I sprung for the GH since it is such a pretty thing. But how are Trojan's accepted by the Parker community? They are plain guns, but the ones that I have handled lock up fine and point well. So how do they stack up?

[Pete Lester]

The Trojan was Parker's economy gun. You have probably noticed by now it's frame is shaped differently from any other grade. It lacks any engraving. There is no fore end release lever, it has a unique plain butt plate and never came with ejectors, offered only in 12, 16, and 20ga. It had a shorter run of production than the V so somewhat surprisingly they are less common (but widely available) than a V. Frame sizes are standard, 12/2, 16/1, 20/0.

As you have noted they can handle and point extremely well. Internally they were built to the same demanding Parker standards. They are rugged. Being the low end gun they were used as tools and not often cherished by their original owners, rode hard and put away wet. There are very few of them in "collectable" condition as a percentage of their production than most other grades. A Trojan is generally not considered "collectable". Many here have a Trojan or two and many more started their interest in Parker with a Trojan. Harry is most fortunate to have a legacy Trojan (priceless to him I am sure). Several Trojans have been in the Parker of the month picture. Many are still bringing home the game. I like mine and they are more interesting and better as far as I am concerned than a Browning BSS or Ithaca SKB etc. It still remains what it was built to be, a well made gun that will seldom let you down and won't make you cry if you add some character to it by dragging it through the brush. They will almost never make you any money but the memories of hunts gone by with one may become priceless.

[Dave Suponski]

Like Pete I have had a few over the years and they are great guns. Currently I use a 26" 20 gauge Trojan for my "Go to" grouse gun.This little gun is wonderful to carry all day.

[Steve McCarty]

Thanks gents. I just can't buy as many Parkers that I'd like; a common problem I'm sure. I just dumped what is for me, a ton of money on my GH and a few Win Mod 12s. That Trojan will sit at the pawn shop for a long time. Expensive well worn shotguns just don't sell quickly around these parts. In LA the gun would fly off the rack. Here it lingers.