Restoration Help Please

[Paul Mazan]

I recently rescued a Parker tat most of you would probably be ashamed to own. It is #129274 and appears to be a VH. 12 ga on a #2 frame. Anyway, the stock is oil soaked and cracked with a down rod put throught it to stop the cracking. It has been reblued and I cannot remove the barrels from the receiver unless I remove the bottom plare and use a thin screwdriver tro unlock the barrels. I know this will never be a collector grade gun and that is why I'm asking about what would be proper to restore it. I can degrease the stock but then I will have to refinish. I can stripp the bluing but I will have to do something about refinishing. From your points of view what is the best way to procede to make the gun into something that looks it's age. I also understand that there may be a book available that would shoe what barrel length the gun had when new. At the moment the barrels are 24" and choked IC and Imprved Modified. They don't look to have been cut but with the refinish polishing and the engraving barly there anything is possible. Thank you for your opinions.

[Austin J Hawthorne Jr.]

#129274 books as a VH 12 gauge with a capped pistol grip and 30" barrels.
If your barrels are 24" and still have some choke, look to see if the serial number on the barrels match the serial number on the reciever.

[Paul Mazan]

I just rechecked the barrels and they do have the same serial number as the receiver. Remeasuring I get 26" not 24 so when the gun was refinished someone had to have cut the barrels. My choke gauge shows the left barrel as a cylinder and the right as Improved Cylinder. The numbers I gave you originally were what was on the tag, this time I actually checked. So among the other problems I have cut barrels.

[Rick Losey]

if the stock is oil soaked- its going to deteriorate if its not de-oiled so i do not see refinishing as a negative

assuming its salvageable- check to see if the wood has gone soft - get the oil out and see what you have and if the crack can be repaired-

[Brian Dudley]

From a financial standpoint, there could not be a worse gun to put money and time into.

You would have way more in money/time into a gun than it will ever be worth and it will still have a damaged stock and cut barrels in the end.

[Austin J Hawthorne Jr.]

Something else to consider.....Used VH #2 frame stocks are sometimes advertised for sale on this forum. They are not expensive, and you would probably be better off replacing the stock. Since the gun also has other issues, why not attend a SxS sporting clays event like the Southern or Hausmann's and bring the gun with you. Evaluations are best with the gun in hand, and there are often plenty of Parker guys there that can guide you.

[Paul Mazan]

Thank you once again Gentlemen. I bought the gun for $300 as a project to learn about the Parker and how it works. There is nothing like getting inside a gun that has little value to learn on. So I could always part it out later on if nothing else. I had no illusions when I bought it so I can't say I'm disappointed just facing a challenge. I've started deoiling the stock and am curious what method you used to remove oil that has soaked into the wood. The wood seems pretty solid, at least as I'm scrubbuing it with a stiff brush nothing is breaking away or falling off. It is simply knowing when to stop deoiling. So far most of it looks pretty good but there is still oil in the wood right behind the receiver.

[Bruce Day]

Take the stock off and soak it in acetone for several days.

Then heat it numerous times with a hair dryer to pull more oil out.

That will take the oil out but the stock may be ruined anyway.

[Ed Blake]

Consider the $300 you paid for the gun as tuition. You can learn a lot by restoring a gun yourself. Use Bullseye shellac to refinish the stock. You can teach yourself how to rust blue the barrels. If the receiver screws are buggered Brownels has the proper files to recut them. Lots of highly skilled people here can answer your questions. Have fun

[Paul Mazan]

That was the idea Mr.Blake. I think that if I can clean the gun up and get everything working I should be able to get my tuition back, learn about Parkers, and enjoy shooting it a little first.
Mr. Day, I had never tried acetone. I've used Turpentine and mineral spirits and haven't ruined a stock with them. Thank you for another idea to try.

[Jerry Harlow]

Whether you use acetone or lacquer thinner (I prefer) make sure you buy a plastic tub with a lid on it; otherwise it will all disappear soon. Make sure all of the wood is below the liquid surface or you will get a streak in the wood that is hard to get rid of. I put a wrench on the stock to keep it under.

[Chuck Bishop]

Acetone will melt most plastics. Better to use a metal pan with cover.

[Garry L Gordon]

Acetone is deadly stuff, so be careful. It's easily absorbed into your skin and stays with you when it does. It's a strong hydrocarbon that will do the job, but use it with good ventilation and appropriate gloves.

[Eric Eis]

Isn't there something called "Whitening" that can be used on an oil soaked stock? I've only used acetone and then after the stock has dried for a few days put it in an oven set to a lowest temp on a rack so that the oil can dip out of the stock and wipe down periodically with paper towels. Oh it's a good idea to do this project when the wife isn't home.............

[Ed Blake]

I use the large aluminum basting pans from the grocery store. Put a weight on the stock to ensure it stays submerged in the acetone. A heat gun on the end grain will draw out any residual oils not remedied by the acetone.

[Brian Dudley]

Whiting is more of a pain than anything.

[Eric Eis]

Never used it only heard about it so I'll take your word for it Brian. I'll stick with what I have been doing

[Paul Mazan]

You guys are a font of knowledge, thank you so much

[Bill Murphy]

Whiting is normally only used locally at the head of the stock.

[Brian Dudley]

The same effect can be had by hanging the stock head down in the oven and baking it. The oil will run out of it. Quickly.

[Jerry VanHorn]

I just removed my 16 hammer gun stock from the alcohol bath this AM. The aluminum baking pan...and I use a piece of glass for the cover..is a perfect way to do it. I soaked it for a week in acetone...turning it 3-4 times a day...Then..5 days in clean alcohol..Now hanging to dry for a least 10 days. This method always worked for me.

[wayne goerres]

Don't buy the cheap pans from Wally World. Garenteed to have a hole in it somewhere. I have lost about three gallons of acetone using them. I don't bother with them any more.

[Brian Arthur]

I just found this thread. I am doing EXACTLY the same thing as you, Paul. I bought a real beater of a VH for $230 and am using it to learn about the guns. Steps completed so far:
- Disassembled the receiver to the level described by Brian Dudley. Ultrasonically cleaned and walnut tumbled the Trigger plate and triggers. Parts still are highly mottled, so next steps are to try polishing the parts.
- Bought a nice book on engraving
- Read almost all the posts under "Parker Restorations". Yet I persist...

[Mike Franzen]

Brian if you have any before pics how about post ing them now and updating from time to time?

[edgarspencer]

so next steps are to try polishing the parts.


Oh the horrors

[Brian Dudley]

Without annealing the parts, you will find that polishing and re-cutting engraving will be a bit of a bear. Especially those walked borders on the VH.

[Tom Flanigan]

I could be wrong but I always believed parts need to be annealed before case hardening to prevent issues. I think Oscar told me that once, but I don't know for sure.

[Brian Arthur]

I have started a thread under Parker Restorations titled, "Learning on a VH" to document my journey.

I look forward to continuing the conversations there!