Early Parker case colors

[Steve Havener]

Gentlemen I have a restoration question that I am sure has been answered many times in the past but in searching the files I have not been able to locate a response.

Today who is doing color case hardening which is closest to the colors found on a very early 1900s vintage Parker.

Lastly would someone be so kind as to post a photo of a high condition turn of last century Parker.

[Dean Romig]

I think you will find that Brad Bachelder's shop is possibly the best at reproducing early Parker Bros. bone/charcoal case colors. Doug Turnbull Restorations does a wonderful job too.

If you were a PGCA Member I would direct you to any number of Parker Pages articles written and photographed by our members. There are some wonderful examples of original case colors on guns that are in better than 95% original condition....

but you're not a member so you will not have received Parker Pages, the 48 page full-color quarterly journal (magazine actually) of the Parker Gun Collectors Association. Think about joining for only $40 annual membership. Members also have access to several other sections of our website, including guns for sale, among others.

Here are a couple of pictures of one of our member's guns which appeared in Parker Pages....

Best Regards, Dean



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[Steve Havener]

Thank you Dean. This is most helpful. I have seen some of Mr. Turnbull's work and while it is attractive I have the impression that they are a bit less subdued than the original colors.

[Brian Dudley]

Doug or Brad, as Dean said, would be the best choices for consistent Parker correct colors.

[John Campbell]

Please keep in mind that simulated colour is only one aspect of the process. Other factors can effect the steel itself and its qualities. For this, and more, I've sworn off re-casing for cosmetic reasons alone. But, if you must have the job done, I prefer Bachelder.

[Steve Havener]

I too have mixed feelings about re-case coloring for cosmetic reasons. I did my first restoration project of an LC Smith 16 gauge Featherweight in 1992. Ohio Color Case Company did a magnificent job of recoloring the receiver but after the gun was completed I was never happy with it. It seemed to have lost it's soul. Now I am considering doing the same to a decent old VH and wonder if I may not have the same feelings. One thing not in question is the worn engraving will get a touch up but I am still up in the air about having the gun re-cased. Thanks to all that have contributed their thoughts and opinions.

[Ray Masciarella]

In correctly reproducing the colors, I think it is important to properly polish the metal before hardening. This is especially true with lower grades which do not have a lot of engraving covering everything. For example, the gun Dean posted shows this. The high polish is seen through the color. If, on the other hand, your doing maybe a A grade or higher, do don't tend to see the shine because the gun was covered with engraving after being polished. The expert restorers know this and I think its part of the reason their colors look so original.

[Steve Havener]

Thank you Ray on my first restoration project the metal to be case colored was wet polished with 600 grit emery and it did achieve that nice translucent appearance. After it was colored it was coated the case colors with clear lacquer as Dr. Gaddy recommended. I couldn't find the product he recommended so I used Testor model airplane builders lacquer thinned 15 to 1 and achieved a beautiful tough transparent protective coating for the colors. That was over 20 years ago and the colors have not yellowed or flaked off.

[Bill Murphy]

I believe Oscar recommended Behlens Clear Spray Lacquer. There may be more than one variety, can't remember which one he liked.

[Steve Havener]

Yes Bill that is the product Dr. Gaddy recommended. He didn't specify a type so I assumed that there was only one. In addition to not being able to find the Behlens product I have always had a problem with spray on finishes but the Testor clear lacquer diluted to the consistency of water flowed on smoothly using an artists camel hair brush. As I remember I gave the receiver 2 coats and as I stated it has provided great abrasion resistance and has not peeled or yellowed.

[Dean Freeman]

I'm wondering what the ballpark is on an full engraving touch up and re-case hardening job. I'm not looking for a price, I simply want opinions on a range I can expect to pay for this type of work. I have a GH 16 0 frame I recently purchased for my wife. The metal was "cleaned" by someone with a bench grinder brush and no idea as to the crime they were committing. The metal is fine and all engraving is present, but the engraving is thin and needs to be reworked. I'm sending the bbls to be re-browned and am thinking of going ahead and giving this old beater the treatment. I'd like my wife to have a beautiful gun she can be proud of, and that she can call her own. I'd also like to get her hooked on collecting Parker guns so we can blissfully walk down the road to bankruptcy hand in penniless hand.

[John Campbell]

I'm wondering what the ballpark is on an full engraving touch up and re-case hardening job... so we can blissfully walk down the road to bankruptcy hand in penniless hand.

A prescient sentiment. To clean up the engraving, it is necessary to anneal the steel bits. Then polish. Then engrave. Then re-harden. Then hard-fit. Then write a series of very big cheques!

It would be cheaper to simply buy another gun, I'm afraid. But love knows few bounds...

[Dean Freeman]

I'm wondering what the ballpark is on an full engraving touch up and re-case hardening job. I'm not looking for a price, I simply want opinions on a range I can expect to pay for this type of work. I have a GH 16 0 frame I recently purchased for my wife. The metal was "cleaned" by someone with a bench grinder brush and no idea as to the crime they were committing. The metal is fine and all engraving is present, but the engraving is thin and needs to be reworked. I'm sending the bbls to be re-browned and am thinking of going ahead and giving this old beater the treatment. I'd like my wife to have a beautiful gun she can be proud of, and that she can call her own. I'd also like to get her hooked on collecting Parker guns so we can blissfully walk down the road to bankruptcy hand in penniless hand.

The question still stands...

[Dean Romig]

Suggest you contact someone like Brad Bachelder or Doug Turnbull or any of a short number of craftsmen whose business is in total restorations of fine guns as well as any lesser refinishing jobs.
Asking the folks here will get you a myriad of different opinions and answers, none of which are necessarily a reflection of what kind of actual quote you will get from one of the gentlemen referenced in the above paragraph.

[Bill Murphy]

Doug is a friend, but he charged me $200 to reengrave a VH Parker that had been previously reengraved by a talented engraver. I protested, but ended up paying the freight. Maybe you could contact someone who is less motivated by the bottom line.

[Dean Freeman]

I was hoping to avoid troubling an already too busy craftsman, but it would appear easier to get a straight answer by going that route. I'll ask that no more responses be made to my query. All apologies for hijacking this thread.

[Dean Romig]

Dean, they will generally have a menu of the services they provide, with prices, on their websites.

[Dean Freeman]

Dean, they will generally have a menu of the services they provide, with prices, on their websites.

Tried this with Doug's website; everything was "call for quote", which is what brought me back to the forum. I'll call Brian D. Brad B. or Doug T. Between the three of them I'm sure I'll get the answers I need. They are never too busy to answer a question and always seem eager to help folks out on the forum.

For the record, the only reason I didn't go this route in the first place is that I feel as though I'm being a bit annoying or troublesome when I ask someone for a quote on services for which I may have no intention of securing. I'd prefer a "round" number for these purposes, so I can simply decide if I can afford them or not. Anyway, I suppose it's best to go straight to the horses mouth in these instances.

[Dean Romig]

Yes they are quite cordial and always willing to help.
I know Brad does all this work 'in house' and I believe Brian outsources some of this work.

[Brian Dudley]

Prices for case coloring is pretty much set by most shops that do the work. I know Turnbull is $275 to color w polished action. And that price just recently increased from $250.

The big variable in your gun is the amount of polishing and touching up that the engraving needs. That would be impossible to accurately quote without seeing the job.

Another thing to note is that your engraving may not need any taking up. I have had frames that I thought needed recutting, but after annealing, the year's worth of crud got burned out of the engraving and it was actually in good shape and not needing recut.

[Chris Travinski]

Last year I sent a Super Fox to Turnbull's. I sent him the complete assembled gun and he quoted me $600 to strip, polish, re-case harden etc. and reassemble the gun. $1000 if the barrels needed to be refitted to the action after. There was no engraving involved, ended up costing $600, excellent job too!