DHE 34" 163985

[Brian Hornacek]

I ran into 163985 on gun show set up day today, it left the factory as a 12 ga #2 frame 34" DHE straight grip with no safety. The butt was checkered with no plate, forearm is splinter. Barrels had been re-blacked tastefully, bores were rust free with one light dent. Wood was free of cracks and original. forearm iron had trace case color but the receiver was blued. It was not polished, the engraving was crisp and screws fairly clean. It was in a leather bound 34" case that may have been original with some accessories. What to do..... what to do...the guy was asking $4400 and that seemed not too bad??? If it was a DHE 30" I would not be thinking about it at this late hour but 34"??????

[George M. Purtill]

if its in the book as that gun- I'm away from the Book- I would have to seriously think why I am not buying the gun.

[Dean Romig]

That would be an easy decision for me...

The gun letters as described, except for the blued receiver.

My bank account would be $4400 lighter this morning!

What a great gun for the "Challenge" later this month!

[Brian Dudley]

Not something you find every day.

[Frank Cronin]

It would be in my gun safe by now....

[Dean Romig]

That would certainly have been a special order (bespoke?) gun... I wonder what the provenance is on it :cool:

[Bruce Day]

You can get that blue off the frame in less than an hour. You may find remaining case colors under the blue.

The good and bad about 34" barrels is that they are long. They can be unwieldy in the field. I find 32"s too long but depending on a person's height and the intended use, many are happy with these long barrels.

[Brian Hornacek]

OK I am off to spend some money bright and early this morning.

[Dean Romig]

Excellent!! I hope it is still there.

Please show us pictures!

[Jeff Christie]

Let me know if you don't want it.

[CraigThompson]

You can get that blue off the frame in less than an hour. You may find remaining case colors under the blue.

The good and bad about 34" barrels is that they are long. They can be unwieldy in the field. I find 32"s too long but depending on a person's height and the intended use, many are happy with these long barrels.

I have a friend thats a bit up in years but he still shoots well at skeet , trap and sporting and his go to sporting guns are a pair of Parker DHE 34" guns .

[Brian Dudley]

You can get that blue off the frame in less than an hour. You may find remaining case colors under the blue.

True, you can get the bluing off. But anyone who expects to remove bluing and find remaining case color is kidding themselves.

[Bruce Day]

The operative word was "may" as in,
maybe I have been imagining seeing some remaining case colors under bluing.

So, don't expect to see any , but you may get lucky and there may be some left if the frame was not buffed prior to bluing.

[edgarspencer]

you may get lucky and there may be some left if the frame was not buffed prior to bluing.
Exactly. If it was there before bluing, and the bluing is removed with something like vinegar, it will still be there.

[Brian Dudley]

But how can something be properly blued without prepping the surface with polishing. Even minimal polishing will remove case colors. Not the case, but the colors.

[edgarspencer]

but the receiver was blued. It was not polished
From the Original post
But how can something be properly blued without prepping the surface with polishing. Even minimal polishing will remove case colors. Not the case, but the colors.
'properly' being the key word. But, if, as Brian H says, it wasn't polished, surface bluing is unlikely to affect the colors resulting from heat treatment.

[Brian Hornacek]

I am the new owner more later

[Bob Hardison]

It was a steal from what I see. You could move it right here with dollars to easily cover your trouble if you decide that you do not like it. I would love to have one like it. Bob

[greg conomos]

Looks really nice. That forend looks a lot different than the stock for some reason.

[Brian Dudley]

Let's just agree to disagree on the case colors surviving bluing/bluing removal.

Back to the subject. Great find Brian!

[John Truitt]

Brian,

Nice find and good decision.

Shoot the gun and enjoy it.

[Chad Hefflinger]

Great looking gun Brian! In my opinion case color is over rated, especially when your talking about a 34" DHE with a great looking piece of wood on a straight stock.

[Jeff Davison]

Brian,

Good decision. Someone did the same to the DH I have prior to me getting it. If you decide to take it off be prepared. There were no case colors at all under the bluing on mine. Brad Bachelder is going to take care of that when he gets to feeling better though.

[Thomas L. Benson Sr.]

Brian: I was curious if you saw any other doubles at the show or mostly modern guns. Thomas

[CraigThompson]

I wonder if they made many 12 gauge GH guns either damascus or fluid steel with 34" pipes ? Heck I'd be happy with a 32"12 gauge GH with fluid or Damascus barrels .

[John Truitt]

they made a few gh 34" ers. I used to have one. It was a great shooter.

[Brian Hornacek]

She's a shooter for sure, I am quite happy and the guy was VERY negotiable. I also picked up a brand new in the box 28 ga repro 2 barrel set, straight grip splinter. Yes there were a bunch of doubles at the show. :cheers:

DOC 1 5/8", DOH 2 5/8", LOP 14 3/8", 5 degrees of pitch.

And yes the letter is in process.

Thanks everyone for your input. My question to buy this gun may have seemed silly but some times its obvious to me and other times I just need a little support from the group. Considerate insightful advice is what helps make the organization grow.

Brian

[Dave Suponski]

What a wonderful gun! Congratulations Brian!

[George M. Purtill]

That is a drop dead good find.
Go back to the second post on this thread. Am I prophetic or what? [I need to take my own advice.]
But keep us posted when you remove that bluing with vinegar and find some case colors.

[charlie cleveland]

mighty nice gun at a fair price in my opinion...love the long barrels...charlie

[Dean Romig]

A very nice find. Who wouldn't like to have that one!?!

[Dean Romig]

Before you do anything, get a research letter on that gun. You may find it was blued at the factory... probably not, but there is always the possibility.

[Chad Hefflinger]

Very unique but plate, I like it.

[Dean Romig]

Heff, that is a 'checkered butt'. Sometimes found in the order books referred to as "no butt treatment" or "no butt" but later as "checked butt" or "checkered butt".

[John Havard]

Wonderful gun Brian! Congratulations on a solid find.

[Scott Janowski]

And no Safety to boot! I bet it will be an interesting letter.
Nice find!

[Chris Travinski]

I'm a fan of 32-34" barrels, I think you found a more than fair deal. Long barrels, straight stock and safety delete are items at the top of my list of desirable criteria!

For whomever was asking, here is a 34" GHE for your consideration. Not as reasonably priced as Brian's deal, but the lesson here is to get them when you can find them!:whistle:

http://kevinsguns.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=72_63&product_id=1436

[Dean Romig]

That price is no surprise, considering the store that has it for sale.

[Bill Murphy]

Dean, I only hit the "Thanks" button once, but I would hit it a few more times for your last post if it would work. By the way, I own two Parkers with blued receivers and have no plans to change them.

[Chad Hefflinger]

Heff, that is a 'checkered butt'. Sometimes found in the order books referred to as "no butt treatment" or "no butt" but later as "checked butt" or "checkered butt".

Wow good catch Dean, I should have looked closer last nite or at least put my glasses on. I like it even more now!

I have a GHE with a checkered butt, so I should have known better.

[Larry Stauch]

What a gun!


Brian, you hit the jack pot on that one!

[charlie cleveland]

HAPPY EASTER EVERY BODY....E pecially the men and women on duty watching out for the home front...charlie

[Richard Flanders]

The receiver looks incredible. I don't think I'd let the bluing bother me ONE LITTLE BIT on that one. What a gorgeous gun. I don't have a 34" gun but do shoot (at) ducks with a 32" hammer gun and it will really reach out there. Trigg used to have a v nice 34" G grade but has long sold it.

[Brian Hornacek]

Well what do you do on Easter Sunday while you are waiting for a late afternoon dinner? You tear your new Parker apart and clean the heck out of it! I was amazed at how dirty the receiver was on the outside. I tried to take some very clear pictures of the engraving emphasizing what I think is very crisp and clean. I did not find any case color on the inside but I do not believe the blue is original. Have a great afternoon.

Yes the nifty pay pall ordering thingy was done on Friday night. I am looking forward to this one for sure.

Brian

[Dean Romig]

Have you ordered a letter yet? I'm really antsy to know what it will say.

[Rick Losey]

you can order one too Dean


:duck:

[Chris Travinski]

It's hard to tell that it's been blued by the photo's. The engraving looks exceptional for a D grade, there is a lot of fine detail. Consider me green!

[Erick Dorr]

Nice gun. Nice photos.
Erick

[greg conomos]

Definitely one of the nicer 'finds' I've seen in a while. The difference between you and me is that the gun woulda been gone when I went back to get it.

[Ed Blake]

I have a 32" DHE from 1915 just like this one. It has deep engraving also, and it seems to me that guns from around this era have extraordinary engraving. Enjoy, that is one great gun.

[Brian Hornacek]

Well the letter showed up with nothing exciting.......yes I know all letters are exciting in there own way but I was hoping for something extra special. "No butt plate" and "no safety" are clearly stated along with very specific stock dimensions. Order was from the Marshall Wells Co of Winnipeg Manitoba with shipment to the same in Duluth MN. Original shipment was 8/4/1913. Unfortunately no providence of the owner beyond "Attention: Osborne", price was $75.00 plus $18.75 for ejectors.


Question now is to leave the blue or remove the blue?? Use vinegar or navel jelly, what's the best way? Do I need to take the receiver completely apart? What's the best way to stabilize the metal after?

Thanks!

[Brian Dudley]

Remove. My vote.

[Bob Hardison]

Brian H: They look really nice with the case color worn off with remaining crisp engraving. Just MHO. Take a look through some photos to see for yourself. I have a CH that I can take photo for you if you would like me to. Bob

[George M. Purtill]

Listen to Edgar. Take off the blue gently.

[greg conomos]

I'd do absolutely nothing with it for one year. Then, I'd decide once the honeymoon phase was over.

If you case color it, from what I understand*, you'll have to get someone to first 'polish' the metal then recut the engraving. Lotta money, and then the engraving has been recut. You might just learn to like it well enough as it is. Even blued, it's a great gun.

*I'm still not convinced the guys who are case coloring these guns are doing it right...admittedly I've never tired it but I am fairly sure one could prep a receiver for case hardening without polishing or recutting.

[Dean Romig]

Another truth about re-case coloring is the fact that the wonderful engraving will be much more difficult to see.

[Chris Travinski]

I would leave it the way it is, once you start to take it off your going to be committed to follow through to the end. I think it looks better than a polished receiver, and you certainly don't want to degrade the engraving any. The chances of finding any case color after you take off the blue are pretty slim too. I have a similar trap gun in similar condition, I thought the stock was a little ratty and I let the smith talk me into refinishing the barrels too. I have regretted it ever since, as crusty as it was before, it had character and it looked right. If there are things about the gun that bother you, you may do better to find another one you like.

[Jeff Christie]

I'm a great fan of the wait and see approach. Live with it for a year or so. Take it to the range and enjoy it. You probably will grow to like it a lot. First rule of medicine- Do no harm.

[Brian Dudley]

If that gun were to be recolored, there would be no need to have to recut the engraving.

I personally do not think it should be recolored. Just the bluing temoved.

[Bob Hardison]

Brian: Photos per request. Think CC was intentionally removed. No CC in protective areas. I have no idea how it could be done without damaging the engraving. You have a great Parker that many of us would be proud of with or without the blue. Bob

[edgarspencer]

Bob, That is one beautiful C grade!

[Brian Hornacek]

Well I decided to remove the blue with the vinegar method. This is the 1st Parker where I entirely disassembled the receiver...... and I mean everything. I wanted to be able to wash all parts thoroughly after removing the blue and soak everything well with oil to prevent future rust. What a enjoyable experience but I only say that since it went back together and I have no parts left over. I used 0000 super fine steel wool to clean everything up and did not polish the receiver beyond that. The finish is similar to an old Browning French gray. I am very happy with the outcome and It was the right choice for me.

[Bob Hardison]

Brian: Glad it turned out good for you. Try Frontier Pad & Hoppes #9 for the rest of the gun. It will not harm the blue or other finish. Do not let the pad touch the wood finish. I learned about it on this forum and have since used it for all kinds of metal cleaning. http://www.frontiermetalcleaner.com/ Bob

[Bob Hardison]

Edgar: Thanks for the kind words. Especially coming from someone of you knowledge and experience. Wish I could take credit for it but; I did not build it. Somebody else did:cool:. I am only its most recent keeper.

[Brian Dudley]

Brian, that is MUCH better!

[Bob Hardison]

Brian: Beautiful without damage! Bob

[Dave Suponski]

A great gun thats even better now.....congrats.

[Bill Murphy]

Is it possible to use vinegar to remove the blue from a gun that has not been disassembled? Is there a downside to this method?

[Richard Flanders]

That looks gorgeous! I like the contrast with the blued barrels; really accents the excellent engraving. What a gorgeous floorplate. Good job.

[Gary Rennles]

In Sporting Life 1913 issue is a listing of Peters amateur averages for 1912
2 Osbornes are listed C.E. Osborne and B.F. Osborne . Other listings for Osborne can be found, if you search you might find a Osborne from the area the gun was shipped.
Link to list
http://library.la84.org/SportsLibrary/SportingLife/1913/VOL_60_NO_20/SL6020021.PDF

Gary


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