New member

[Rick Mercer]

Hi folks, new member to the forum and am enjoying the wealth of knowledge & information. I would like some feedback on my Great Grandfather's 1910 Hammerless VH 12 gage. My father drove it down from Canada a couple of years ago poorly packed in the belly locker os his RV. One of the barrells has a small dent in it. It also has hald the butt plate missing (years ago) and a minor chip in the stock where it meets the plate.
My questions are;
Should I have the gun restored? In addition to the above about 95% of barrel finish is gone. Who is the "name" for restoring Parker's particularly barrels?
Where can i get a buttplate?
Any feedback would be great.
Thanks,
Rick

[Larry Frey]

Hi Rick,
Welcome to the Parker forum. I saw your post earlier today and hoped that someone from the left coast would reply with some names of the really good gunsmiths in your area. If it were my grandfathers Parker I would fix the dent and reblue the barrels. Also have the chipped stock repaired and an aftermarket butt plate or if you plan to shoot it much a Silvers pad installed. As long as the gun is tight I wouldn’t do anything more except shoot it. You are a lucky man to have that piece of family history to enjoy and pass down to future generations.

[Pete Lester]

I concur with Larry 100%. Without seeing the gun the only other thing you might consider is having the checkering freshened up if it is badly worn. You are indeed fortunate to have a family Parker.

[Rick Mercer]

Thanks Larry and Pete. I am very fortunate to have the Parker but to have one that's a family heirloom makes it completely different and very special. My son shoots with me and passing it on to him will be special.
I like the idea of repairing/rebluing the barrels, and generally cleaning the gun up a bit without a full restoration. I read a thread earlier that scared the #@$ out of me on the costs of a full/expert resto. I like to shoot my guns anyway and none are display pieces.
So now the big question is who's the guy to call in the Socialist Republic of California (or close by) for work like this. Or who to call in general anywhere in the country? Any thoughts or would you know someone who's been down this road I could ask?

[Bill Murphy]

On the left coast, Keith Kearcher would be the man to do what you want done at a reasonable cost. Use google.

[Rick Mercer]

Perfect, thanks Bill

[Paul Ehlers]

Take an afternoon and run up to Covina. Let Jim or Jerry at Ivory beads look it over and they can point you in the right direction. Both Jim & Jerry are great guys and they have really good connections to get the type of work done that your gun needs.

[Harry Collins]

Rick,

Let us see a picture! This is my fathers little Parker Trojan that he found under the Christmas Tree. All the blue that is worn off this gun was done by his hands and I would never hide his use of the gun. Depending on how yours looks you may just want to have the dent removed and enjoy the wear this Parker received from the hands of your grandfather.

Kindest, Harry

[Bobby Cash]

Les Pittman
(760)868-2424

He's not fast, but he's great.

[Rick Mercer]

Paul, Harry & Bobby,
Thanks for the tips. I will talk to the guys in Covina and call Les Pittman. I don't need speed just want to do it right. By the way what type of loads do you guys use? Will get some pictures taken and post them soon.

[Rick Mercer]

Paul saw Jim last weekend. Great Guy with great advice. Thanks

[Frederick Wynkoop]

Have enjoyed reading your forum and so decided to join. I am relatively new to shotguns but not shooting or reloading, and have recently bought my first double rifle..great fun.
I do have a question about Parkers and that is, did PArker ever make a hammer 10ga, in what models, and what are the current pricing for a shooter?
Thanks all in advance!!
Fred

[Robin Lewis]

First, welcome to the group!

Did Parker ever make 10 ga. hammer guns..... they sure did. If you are new to Parkers, have a look at the "grades" link on the left side of the www.parkerguns.org main page. There you will find information on the different types and quality grades Parker made. I believe there were 10 ga. made in all the hammer grades. Make sure to click on the "view" button in each section.

[Frederick Wynkoop]

Thank you sir, I will surely take a look at that forum

[Paul Ehlers]

Rick,
I hope you found Jim to be helpful. I met Jim a couple of years ago when I was in LA on business. We hit it off well enough that I'm meeting him at the end of the month in Argentina for two weeks of Dove & Duck shooting.

[Rick Mercer]

Some of you guys asked for pics. Eventually we'll have before & after. For now here's the before. The guys at Ivory Beads said the gun is sound and easily restorable. I'm looking forward to it as my impression is those guys know their stuff.

[David Borrowman]

Check out RST shells.

http://www.rstshells.com/

[Rick Mercer]

David,
Those prices are fantastic. Thanks