At it again - 16 gauge grouse gun restoration

[24 grams]

Parker VH.jpg

I just purchased this with the idea of restoring it for an upcoming grouse hunt at Pineridge Grouse Camp this fall.

It should arrive this week, and I hope it is worth doing a restoration on.

The purpose of the restoration is to end up with a humble, but well made and lovingly cared for Parker. It is 93 years old, and it deserves a little face-lift, without destroying its soul: it is a plain gun, which should exhibit quality, absent the adornments of a higher grade gun.

I am hoping to make it the ideal north woods grouse gun, not too fancy, because it will take the punishment of the "popples," but a Parker through and through.

Here is what I am thinking about:

• Mechanical checkup/repairs if necessary
• Barrels reblued
• Chokes relieved
• Lengthen and bend stock to specs, if possible, or butt transplant, if necessary
• Blend/refinish as necessary
• Case color, if appropriate
• Discuss the merits and demerits of lengthening forcing cones and/or chambers

I have paid for the gun, but I have the right to reject it upon inspection, so please free to provide caveats and/or suggestions.

There is so much knowledge here, I would be a fool not to solicit opinions.

Cheers,

SCG

Left side.jpg
Right side.jpg
Under.jpg
Stock left.jpg

[Harold Pickens]

Loooks great as is, of course dont know the LOP, or what you need in length. As for chokes, well I certainly like them open for grouse--cyl/cyl works great for me. What are they currently? Doubtful you could have all that work done and back in your hands by October. Honestly, I hate taking nice guns thru rough territory. My grouse gun is a little beat up VHE20, I have an identical VH 20 that was reblued, recased, wood refinished, but rarely carry that one in the woods. Great find and good luck this fall.

[B. Dudley]

That list looks close to a full out restoration to me. Not the “refreshing it and not destroying soul” That you talk about.

And all that by fall? You sure are running out of time for nearly anyone that may be worth a darn. Maybe next fall.

[24 grams]

Originally Posted by Brian Dudley

That list looks close to a full out restoration to me. Not the “refreshing it and not destroying soul” That you talk about.

And all that by fall? You sure are running out of time for nearly anyone that may be worth a darn. Maybe next fall.

Agreed. The timetable is inauspicious, but there it is.

If it won't work, I'll just slap a temporary pad on it, and call it good until next fall.

And I guess you are right, I am talking about a full out restoration. But if done properly, it will make the gun last another hundred years. And that would not be a bad thing.

[Marty K.]

I have been where you are many years ago....have it cleaned period..it will last a hundred more years without restoration....it looks like a good honest gun..... don't do it.....I think you'll be sorry if you do....I was.....

[24 grams]

Originally Posted by Marty Kohler

I have been where you are many years ago....have it cleaned period..it will last a hundred more years without restoration....it looks like a good honest gun..... don't do it.....I think you'll be sorry if you do....I was.....

Taken under advisement.

But I have to do something about the stock. I am not 5'2."

[Dean Romig]

There is no reason to lengthen chambers or cones and unless it is F/F there is probably no reason to alter the chokes, just shooting spreaders will accomplish about the same thing.

Hunt with it this fall as it is and take it to the Skeet range or SC course and practice with it.
If you need more length you can use a slip-on pad with spacers in it if necessary.

Just out of curiosity and not intending to be insulting or flippant.... why did you buy a gun you knew you wouldn't be happy with?





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[24 grams]

Originally Posted by Dean Romig

There is no reason to lengthen chambers or cones and unless it is F/F there is probably no reason to alter the chokes, just shooting spreaders will accomplish about the same thing.

Hunt with it this fall as it is and take it to the Skeet range or SC course and practice with it.
If you need more length you can use a slip-on pad with spacers in it if necessary.

Just out of curiosity and not intending to be insulting or flippant.... why did you buy a gun you knew you wouldn't be happy with?.

Chokes are M and F. I like the idea of seeing what spreaders look like on paper. Thanks.

I also like the idea of hunting it with it with temporary solutions to accommodate a 13 3/4" LOP.

As far as buying a gun that I knew I wouldn't be happy with, I would have been more than willing to pay more for a gun that suited me better, but I found nothing that fit the bill.

This gun looks to be relatively unmolested, and it wouldn't take that much to make it suit me perfectly, just a little time and money.

A cheap way out would be to bend the stock a bit, install a proper pad, and call it good, which might be exactly what I do for now.

But if the gun is nice and tidy, wouldn't a restoration be worth it? And I don't mean in terms of dollars and cents.

[Dean Romig]

Originally Posted by Steven Groh

But if the gun is nice and tidy, wouldn't a restoration be worth it? And I don't mean in terms of dollars and cents.

It's the ones that are abused beaters that warrant a restoration of sorts. Guns like yours are sought after to just put to work and and never have to worry about taking them out in the weather and the thickets. And this earns them a lot of pride and respect because they go wherever, and whenever, you go.

But it's your gun after all...





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[24 grams]

Originally Posted by Dean Romig

It's the ones that are abused beaters that warrant a restoration of sorts. Guns like yours are sought after to just put to work and and never have to worry about taking them out in the weather and the thickets. And this earns them a lot of pride and respect because they go wherever, and whenever, you go.
.

Nice thoughts. That is sort of what I had in mind: a gun to take to the woods without worrying about my "investment."

This is what I am thinking:

I bought the gun for $2,000. I could shoot it for a few years and sell it for that or perhaps a little more. Is a VH ever going to be worth a lot of money? I don't think so.

Realistically, if I spent $1,000-1,500 on a restoration, it might be worth $2,500 -3,000, so I would "lose" $500-1,000 in doing so.

But if it gives me a few years of pleasure in the field, restored to how it might have looked nearly a century ago, it would be well worth it.

Would I be destroying a bit of history by commissioning a faithful restoration, employing gunmaking processes from the last century? I don't think so.

I may love the gun so much that I shoot it "as is," but I also may love it so much after shooting it "as is" this season that I want to bring it back to life.

In either event, it should see honest use in the field for decades to come.

SCG