First year Trojans vs later year Trojans
 

Is there any difference in the Trojan line as the gun became more popular? Would there have been short cuts made in the quality of this production line as the years went by? There seems to be the sense that when the model first comes (for any gun) the QAQC of the gun appears to be better that the later models in an effert to maximize on profit vs production cost. Or was Parker just one of those companies that gave it all regardless of the mentioned conflict?
Thanks Guys!!

The top leaver spring actually improved on later models I’ve learned. I have a 1912 Trojan, and when the top lever started flopping around Mr. Dudley and other members pointed out that early Trojans had a leaf spring that was more prone to breakage than the later design.

To answer the original poster's question... Not really. The Trojan grade remained as we know it for the length of it's production run. The Trojan was an economy gun to begin with that had as many corners cut as possible in order to save on production labor costs. So, there was no more room to cut corners any farther than they already were.

The only cosmetic change that the Trojan had was the rib extension. The original guns had a simple straight extension and it was then completely eliminated within 5-7 years into production. Some find the rib extension interesting, some don't. nothing more than that.

There were some internal changes to the gun such as the top lever spring design and the safety design, but these were changes implemented throughout Parker's whole line. Not just on the Trojans.

I have a 20ga Trojan from the Remington era ,237,xxx serial number . Great gun and built as well as any other Parker I have. Not like Sterlingworth's that to me went down hill.

My father found this 20 gauge under the Christmas Tree. It is my favorite Parker.

The elimination of the Trojan's rib extension was yet another cost saving modification to the already 'cheapest' entry level hammerless gun that Parker made. By eliminating the rib extension it also eliminated the necessity of recessing the top of the frame to accept it. Further, the top rib could now be more cheaply made as a one-piece, full-length rib.






.

When the Sterlingworth came out in 1910 it had a price of $25. The price stayed at $25 thru 1915, then climbed quickly to $55 by 1919. A.H. Fox Gun Co. reduced the price to $48 in 1922 and again to $36.50 in 1926. Workmanship of course declined.

Parker Bros. introduced their Trojan Grade at $25.50 in 1912. The Trojan’s price climbed like the Sterlingworth to $55. Parker Bros. kept the price and the quality of the Trojan high and sold about 33000 total. Fox began cutting the price of the Sterlingworth and sold well over 100000.

The quality of the Trojan didn't diminish over the years. It actually got a bit better with the enclosed top lever coil spring that replaced the old leaf spring as an example. The guns were always fit by hand. The wood to metal fit was better than on the Fox or L. C. Smith guns. I bought an original Trojan stock and tip wood for my deceased uncle's gun. Even though the serial number was only about 200 higher than my gun, I still had a lot of fitting to do on the tip and also the stock. I couldn't believe how much I had to work the new stock and tip to get them to fit properly. It took me a day to do working with scrapers and other tools. In my opinion, the Trojan was the finest field grade gun ever built in this country. Sorry to Kevin McCormack and other Fox lovers, but that is my opinion.

The Trojan was born as a result of James Hayes 1910-1911 “$25 gun project”.

At the time, all other manufacturers offered an entry level gun at that price point. Parker’s entry level gun at the time (the VH) was nearly double that price point.

Please elaborate more on the "$25 project gun" ! What is the story behind that?