Shooting hammer guns

[Stepmac]

What a wonderful shotgun, Dave. I remember about decade (2) ago meeting a guy in a gunshow who told me that Linder guns are the very best ever. I looked closely at them. Most (all) were out of my price range, but what a nice gun! My W.C. Scott looks quite a bit like your beautiful Linder. It'd be fun to go shooting them with you. I was just rooting around in my garage and ran across a case of RST 12s that I bought years ago. What a nice surprise! As a fan of Double Gun's guru Sherman Bell I shoot standard shells in my demascus guns, but I kinda feel better shooting RST.

[Lloyd McKissick]

Gentlemen:

Hello! I just took delivery of a new "toy".





Is this the right place to discuss these sort of things?

I know that it's a mostly-unadorned #1 Frame 12-bore that was completed in 1887, I also know that it is referred-to as being a "Fish Tail" gun, it has 30-inch "Twist" tubes and an English stock. I intend to hunt it, so because of it's reportedly 2 5/8-inch chambers I will be using low-pressure 2 1/2-inch shells in it (RST). The tubes have adequate thickness (26k in the thinnest section) and are not pitted. I own several other Damascus hammer guns (American and otherwise) so this isn't a new adventure for me. I have a copy of one of Mr. Muderlak's books (Old Reliable) but it's not giving me very much about the technical nature of this artifact.

This gun has no grade designation marked upon it and there are only minimal stampings on it's barrel flats (I'm used to English guns), including a capitol "T" with semi-circles over and under it, and a big 3 with a smaller 12 next to it. I'm presuming the the "T" is for the "Twist" form of Damascus tubes and that the barrels originally weighed 3lbs12 upon completion?

Can anyone here educate me further on the fine points of this old Parker hammergun?

[Lloyd McKissick]

Researcher (& Dr. Drew) here will likely recognise some of this photography, but I think hammerguns are a literal blast to own & hunt with.



We kill a number of ruffed grouse every year at our lake house in Minnesota, and some are even taken with hammerless guns...

[Lloyd McKissick]

From my further reading here, it would appear that my recent acquisition is a Grade O, Quality U gun (am I right about that?). Rather a plain, entry level unit, but in very sound shape overall (& not bad for 138 years old). By comparison to some of my other American hammer guns (LC Smith & Ithaca) it measures up very favorably. I will be shooting it today for fit and function. Looking forward to that.

[Dean Romig]

You would be fine shooting 2 3/4” low pressure shells in your Grade-0 Parker. Your chambers, if originally cut to 2 5/8” were cut for 2 3/4” shells. The practice of cutting chambers 1/8” shorter than the (fired) shell length was to make for a better gas seal in the cone.

You are correct in your other assumptions though we would refer your Twist barrels as a type of composite rather than a type of Damascus… but many people use the identification term you used so that’s certainly okay.






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[Lloyd McKissick]

Thank you Mr. Romig, appreciate that input.

"Composite" instead of Damascus for a "Twist" description eh? Ok, I also have an early Best Laminated Steel LC Smith gun, is that considered a "composite" variety as well?

Also, in earlier discussions here I see the subject of hunting with the hammers cocked but with the gun being open. I have tried that and found it to be somewhat awkward and even slow. It may be a blasphemous admission here, but if I'm alone (and on mostly clear and level ground), my tubes are "hot" (i.e., gun closed, at port arms, hammers cocked). Hunting ruffed grouse with a hammergun almost demands this approach.

Mind you, this is only when things are feeling "birdy". If I'm hunting with a partner, my hammers are down until either a point or a flush are detected (or I've reverted to using a hammerless weapon).

Edit to add: as my footing inevitably becomes less-sure as I age, then I'll further revise this practice (or abandon it altogether).

[Dean Romig]

IMO any gun barrels manufactured with alternating blades or wires of iron and steel rather than “fluid steel” are by definition composite.





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[Lloyd McKissick]

Fair enough, but where does the use of the term "Damascus" then become appropriate? Only for 2-bar, 3-bar, or Crolle?

So...you're a Setter man?

[Dean Romig]

IMO the term Damascus describes alternating bundles of blades or wires of iron and steel twisted together and wound in groups of two, three, four, five or six around (hammer welded) a mandrel to form some kind of crolle pattern (“pattern-welded”). Bernard Steel barrels fall into this category as the same method is used in making them. Twist and Laminated are not…

Drew Hause may come on and give us his opinion on this. I always welcome and respect his contributions on this subject, as it is his forte.



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[Dean Romig]

Yup, I’m definitely a setter man but I lost my sweet Gracie in January of ‘24 to cancer at age 9 1/2 and chose not to take her grandson when he was offered to us. I’m 77 and wouldn’t do a young setter justice in the field…



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