What to look for in a "shooter" ?

[Bill Graham]

Hello Folks

New here. Good bit of experience fixing Foxes and Elsie's. No experience whatsoever with Parkers of any kind, and haven't shot a Damascus gun before, or blackpowder. I do have low- pressure shells for the Foxes around (RST). The budget will allow for a shooter condition hammer gun as a first Parker. I am not a collector per se, as what I'd want to buy would be something safe and viable to shoot, not a wall hanger.

Is there a summary of what to pay particular attention to when buying a Parker hammer gun within the parameters?

I respect that this is not a simple topic, and I have a lot of reading to do here, but perhaps there is a "buyer's guide" of sorts compiled somewhere to get started with?

Thank you!

[Mills Morrison]

Make sure the barrels are safe and that the stock has no bad cracks. Those are the big items. Then, make sure the action functions properly.

[Bill Graham]

Make sure the barrels are safe and that the stock has no bad cracks. Those are the big items. Then, make sure the action functions properly.

Are there tell tale signs with damascus that will indicate a safety issue? Bulging and cracks of course, but anything unique to these guns?

[Dean Romig]

Barrel wall thickness is paramount as well as pitting both inside and out.





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[Mills Morrison]

I would not shoot decarbonized barrels and the really early barrels Parker manufactured. There is nothing inherently dangerous with Damascus or Twist or else some would have failed on me long ago. As Dean says, wall thickness is the key.

[Rick Losey]

"shooter" will mean different things to different people

to me - there is no difference in any of the safety or structural features (lock up, solid wood and such) between a "shooter" and a good condition gun

a shooter is simply one that has finish issues - worn barrel blue or brown, well worn wood, little or no case, a gun I am not going to worry about hauling into a marsh in my canoe or on a rainy day in a thick woodcock cover

any thing else (wood issues, rust) falls to the "project" class - which you then have to evaluate each fault on its own and how much it will take (your time or your money) to get it fixed up. Rarity or desirable features or bargain price may make it worth while.

[Dean Romig]

Mills, from my experience, the Parker made Laminated Steel barrels are some of the stoutest barrels I have ever examined and guns with them are often somewhat 'barrel heavy' in handling dynamics. But I see no reason not to shoot them, keeping in mind of course, the warning signs we look for in all barrels.





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[Mills Morrison]

Laminated are ok. I was talking about decarbonized

[Bill Graham]

Laminated are ok. I was talking about decarbonized

I will have to look up the definition of decarbonized.

[Bill Graham]

"shooter" will mean different things to different people

to me - there is no difference in any of the safety or structural features (lock up, solid wood and such) between a "shooter" and a good condition gun

a shooter is simply one that has finish issues

any thing else (wood issues, rust) falls to the "project" class

Generally, I am fine with certain levels of project guns, largely determined by what I can do myself. Wood is not problem to address, surface rust is OK, and since I like rust bluing barrels, learning how to work with damascus seems like a good next step.

[Bill Graham]

As Dean says, wall thickness is the key.
Thank you Sir. Is the minimum threashold for wall thickness the same as that of a plain steel barrel?

[Mills Morrison]

Hopefully, Drew Hause will chime in on this thread as he is the expert in old shotgun barrels

[charlie cleveland]

mills i have shot the decarbinized barrels i have had no problems this was a plain steel barreled gun..i have 2 of the guns in 10 ga both lifters...i think in that study they done on barrel steel that decarbonized steel is very strong...charlie

[Bill Murphy]

"Decarbonized Steel" barrels are identified on the barrel legend, stanped on the rib. Wall thickness is determined when you buy the gauge and use it. There is no other way to identify safe barrels. The gauge is not expensive and only about one in a hundred gunsmiths own one.

[Bill Graham]

Wall thickness is determined when you buy the gauge and use it. There is no other way to identify safe barrels. The gauge is not expensive and only about one in a hundred gunsmiths own one.

Deep River is where I shoot and they have the gauge and knowhow to use it. I was wondering more about what is wall thickness safety threshold people agree on for damascus is. .025", .030" ?

[Paul Harm]

I think you'll find Parker barrels are thicker than 25 to 30 thou, unless they've been honed quite a bit. I'd feel better with 40 to 60 only because they're less easy to dent. Decarbonized steel was a Remington term for their steel barrels and Parker also used it for a short period of time. Some think maybe they got those barrels from Remington. I have two Remingtons with decarbonized barrels and shoot nitro reloads in them all the time [ same is true for my Damascus guns ]. The only draw back Bachelder found was " they dent easier", but no safety issues with them.

[Paul Harm]

I had two Parker lifter 10ga hammer guns. One had 2 5/8" chambers with a sharp step - no forcing cones, and the other 2 7/8" chambers. With a 10, you'll need to reload or buy RST shells. With the 12, even with a tad shorter chambers, you can still shoot 2 3/4" nitro low pressure shells. Some guys even shoot regular modern shells, but that's up to you.

[Dave Moore]

My definition of a "shooter" is a gun that is in very nice condition and showing no signs of heavy use or neglect but they may have the value diminished by some alteration or refinishing.