12 ga. Parker Chamber Length ?

[Mike Stahle]

So my question is, back in 1900 when Joe owner went to the local hardware store for a box of shells what length of shells would he have come home with? Or did it really matter?

[Austin W Hogan]

Prior to 1900, the buyer specified length to both gunmaker and shell provider, according to the Winchester and Parker catalogs of the time. What we would now call the "default" length was 2 5/8 inches for twelve gauge. Winchester also made 2 3/4 inch loads for the M1897, which they labeled "repeater" prior to 1900.
We have been able to find some 10 ga unfired shells of the era and they measure 2 7/8 inch; we have found only a few 12 ga unfired shells, they measure 2 9 /16 inch. We would like to obtain unfired 12 ga shells from several makers from the era to determine the original length.

Best, Austin

[Mike Stahle]

A good reply I recieved of the same question from 86er over on the Lever Guns Forum.

"A lot of shotgun ammo dubbed 2 1/2 inch (which is 65mm) is actually 67mm. This is just about the norm in British ammo as well as Italian ammo. FWIW, a true 2 1/2 chamber can handle the 67mm ammo perfectly well. Your shotgun could very well be 2 1/2" in American terms but is actually chambered 67mm which is totally acceptable and within spec. The only other possible scenario that makes sense is that it was 2 1/2 inch and later the forcing cones were lengthened, allowing the gauge some slight forward movement. If it were originally 2 5/8" it would measure that or a tad more, not less. I am an English trained gunmaker so I am intimately familiar with all side by side guns as far as repairs, restoration and fitting but I am much less familiar with the history and nostalgia of the American brands. I can't rule out some oddity in the Parker specs but I've never seen it on the many Parkers I've worked on and at least to me my analogy(s) makes the most sense."

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