Graded Lifter Needs Restored
 

Hello folks, I am new to the forum. I picked up an old Parker lifter with aspirations of restoring it back to its former glory. However, the more I look at it, the more I think it may not be a financially sound move. It sure has its share of issues.
What I do know; the barrels appear to be non matching, replaced firing pin, stock has been sanded/cut/destroyed as well as a ding in left barrel. On the plus side, the bores are excellent with good wall thickness and the lockup is crisp and on face.

I hate to ask such an ambiguous question, but what do you folks think a ballpark restoration might be on a gun such as this? Just a ballpark, no need to get carried away. Or maybe advise me that this gun is just better as a wall hanger and leave it alone. I believe it is a D grade 10 gauge.

Thank you in advance for any suggestions, horror stories, or warnings in regard to restoring a very heavily abused Parker such as this one.

Cheers, Aron

Aaron,
I have seen much worse. Action appears to be in reasonable condition, not pitted. I take it the barrel SN don't match, which certainly affects any collector value. So perhaps it is a "shooter" and not worth a full restoration. But, with the barrel condition as you describe, the dent can be raised, and a new stock put on it to make it a great shooter. A full restoration, metal finish, new stock, is many thousand dollars likely exceeding the guns value.

Thank you kindly for the input. It is such a shame this gun is in poor condition. I have attached a couple photos of serial numbers. It appears the tang, water table, and forearm all match with #20758 and the barrel flats show #11816.

I own an English double with barrel serial numbers far later than the other numbers on the gun. A factory letter confirmed a new set of barrels was made 5 years after mfg due to the original set developing an issue. That makes good sense. I assume this Parker just has a set of cobbled on barrels that never related to this gun from the factory. The fact the barrels are earlier by 10,000 serial number is very odd.
Thanks again folks. This is educational and I appreciate the help.
Aron

Both serial numbers you mention are listed as 12ga., 30". However, the earlier number reflects a plain twist gun (PT). Can you show the view of the bottom of the rear lugs, which may show gauge and frame size, and the sides of the lugs which show serial number.
I can say, from experience, that a 30" 12gauge lifter, on a 1 frame, is a joy to shoot.

It rarely makes financial sense to restore any gun. You do it because you want to.

Thank you for the info. It is sporting 30” barrels. Please see attached photos of barrel markings and 10 gauge rst ammo chambered. This is getting interesting, thank you folks for the info.

I own a 12ga lifter that was thoughtfully gifted to me by a friend. I always wanted a 10ga to go along with it. I think what happened is a purchased a “10ga” that may not be ideal for a thoughtful restoration. Thanks again for the advice and help

I have never seen lifter barrels earlier than 13,000 or so that have the radius at the bottom where they meet the breech face. Most are square cut. That and the fact that the serialization book shows that serial number went on Plain Twist barrels and not Damascus makes me wonder if the number on the flats is a production number rather than a serial number. Others would know more than I on this. I would restore it just to save the engraving. Wouldn't be cost effective but would be a gun you would always take pleasure in owning and shooting.

Look on the barrel lug both front, bottom, back and sides for other numbers. In my opinion that set of barrels match the grade three damascus that was the original to the gun.

I will also state that I wouldn't hesitate to do a little work to that gun and use it. I don't know that I believe the wood is original, but it looks decent and solid. I would first get the barrels put in shape and refinished. Generally $500 would be close to right for that I believe. Take the rest of the gun down completely and give all the metal a good sonic cleaning. Remove the finish from the wood, give it a soaking in acetone then mineral spirits to de-oil the wood. Then install a period correct recoil pad with solid black spacers to the limits of good looks. sand the pad down to the level of the wood and then fine sand down to 320 or 400 grit. Teach yourself how to apply an oil finish and do it. There are hundreds of U-tube videos on doing this. If that puts you off, get a can of Watco's Danish Oil Finish in either walnut or clear depending on your preference and have at it with a soft cloth. It gives an excellent soft finish in three or four coats and completely fills the grain along with the finish. If you do the stock work yourself, total out of pocket expenses will be in the neigborhood of $750-800. I can't tell if the stock is checkered or not so I can't speak to that. I have no idea what you paid for it, but I would think just the cleanup and barrel refinish would raise the value as much as that part of the cost, so I doubt you would lose any money on the work.

You will also pick up some valuable skills in the process.

My general impression is that, with the situation of a significant high end gun, you will never recover the value of a new complete custom stock. As noted, you can only justify tht by the fact you want it.

The stock is a poorly shaped replacement that looks to be very short. Putting any effort into that piece of wood would be a complete waste. Except for maybe learning a thing or two if it were a DIY job.

Thank you again for the feedback. I examined the barrel flats and could find no other markings. Just a very very faint April 1876 patent date. I looked for markings on my lifter 12 for comparison. It did not even have the serial number on the barrel flats, it is serial number 19113. Picture attached.

I would love to fix the 10 up a bit. Unfortunately that stock would have to go. I have never commissioned a replacement stock on a shotgun, I’m sure a quality one would not be cheap these days. Fortunately I didn’t have to pay much for this gun,so I’m certainly not opposed to spending money having it done right by a professional. I doubt my chances of finding a set of original wood for this gun would be slim to none.

Here are the photos of the other lifters barrel flats

The serial number for the barrels are likely on the left side of the barrel lug. The numbers on the right side of the barrel flats could be a production number as somebody already stated. Left barrel side of lug.....

Well my eyesight sure isn’t what it used to be. Sure enough there was a serial number hiding on the upper part of the left side barrel lug. I was happy to see the number there matched the other components on the gun. That is welcomed news. The 5 digit number on the barrel flat really threw me for a loop, I just assumed it was a serial number. Thank you gentleman for the advice on that one.

With that being said, a matching gun is worth of more attention in my perspective. Do any of you gentlemen know of a stock maker familiar with these old Parkers that might be up for the task?
I know this would be no small task (or cheap).

Thank you all kindly for the advice so far!

Aron, it's difficult to tell from your pictures but it appears the right hammer may not be original to the gun. It appears to be unengraved, but again it could just be a bad angle in the picture.
I would suggest you have the dent raised in the barrel, assure yourself of the safe function of the gun and then take it out and shoot it. What ever form of restoration you decide to do can be considered over time. A replacement stock will be a challenge to find and will likely need to be properly refit to the action. The top quality stock makers can make a stock of the correct grain figure and profile it to original shape and length of pull of your choice. The resulting stock will be top notch and look way finer than the rest of the gun. However, the price will likely be worth more than the guns value, even before any other work being done. There are men around that are not professional stock makers that could likely do a good enough job to make a stock to look close to correct for a more reasonable price.

That is good advice. I would have no intention of selling it, but logic must be applied when considering how much work vs value of finish product.
I did look over the hammers, thankfully they are original and engraved to match.
Thanks again for the input!