2 Parkers

[Richard M Anderson]

My dad had a Parker a double barrel 20 gauge and my mom had what I am guessing is a double barrel muzzle loader (?). Both are now mine as they have passed. The 20 gauge is 162995 and was used as his regular hunter. The muzzle loader was never fired as long as I have known it and was probably purchased at an auction somewhere in Virginia.

How do I find out more about these guns?

[John Dunkle]

Hi Richard!

First of all - welcome to the PGCA Forum! I'm going to move this to the main forum for you so more folks will see your post. In the meantime...

We'd love to see a few pics to help you out.

My best and welcome again!

John

[Richard M Anderson]

Thanks, I will take some photos and post them.

[Russ Jackson]

Hello Richard ,Sorry ,I looked in the serialization book and your guns serial # ,is not listed ,but our Home Page ,shows there are records for your gun in the PGCA Data Base ! With the pics. you will find out what you have ,but if you send for a letter you should get the info. on the gun ! Russ

[Richard M Anderson]

I took some photos, but I can't seem to upload them. Maybe the file size is too large and I do not know how to resize them. Any suggestions?

[Mark Ouellette]

Richard,

One must first post photos to a photo sharing site such as photobucket.com or picturetrail (not sure of URL). Once on a sharing site (actually in a server which allows sharing) look for the URL for websites. There will be several URLs listed for each photo. Copy the correct URL and paste into your post. It's that simple! The photo sharing site will automatically reduce the photo for a website.

Please sign up for a FREE photo sharing site and upload your photos. If you cannot locate the correct URL ask again on this site and someone will walk you through the process!

Also, this link provides better instructions than did I; http://parkerguns.org/forums/faq.php...l&titlesonly=0

Respectfully,
Mark

[Richard M Anderson]

I hope that this link works. I have not used this type of application in the past.

The muzzle loader has a crack in the stock and may have mismatched hammers(?). Both guns were kept "under the bed" by parents and were not really maintained.

Anything that you can tell me about them would be appreciated.

http://s1127.photobucket.com/albums/l628/2parkers2/Parkers/

[Rick Losey]

The muzzleloader may be by a British maker named Parker or may be a Belgium knockoff - you can tell which by looking at the proof marks on the underside of the barrels - samples of the different countries marks can be found at http://www.phoenixinvestmentarms.com/archives/Proofmarks.pdf

the other gun is a Parker Trojan - as a small bore - might be worth fixing up assuming the barrel are solid

[George Lander]

Richard: Your Parker Brothers 20 bore is a TROJAN GRADE (OV in a diamond) The top rib should be marked: "PARKER BROS. MAKERS, MERIDAN, CT U.S.A. TROJAN STEEL" The Trojan was the entry level field grade Parker and is somewhat rare in 20 bore. Your gun was made in 1913. It would be well worth the expense to have it completely refinished IMO. Let us know where you are located & perhaps one of us can suggest someone to do the job.

Best Regards, George

[Robin Lewis]

Your link works. Thanks for the pictures.

The second gun is a Parker Bros. Trojan and looks like a nice gun but it needs oiled. It looks like it may have some light rust on top of what looks be strong case colors; but its hard to tell how strong the case is from the picture. A gun like that, with all its case color, is a real find and you shouldn't do anything to it that would remove the color!

Clean it with a gun cleaner such as Hoppies #9 and then put some light gun oil on a cloth and apply a very light protective coating to protect it from further rust. Don't try to remove the rust but simply oil it to stop it from getting worse.

If the case color is indeed strong, I would take it to a "competent" gunsmith that knows Parkers and get advice from them on how to proceed.

It looks like a nice gun.

[Richard M Anderson]

Thanks for the information. I am in Richmond, VA, so if you know of a reputable gunsmith around here, please let me know and I will have him take a look at it.

The gun does have some light rust as it was kept under a bed for years and was not oiled. It has probably been about 40 years since it was last fired and had only light use prior to that.

I am not certain what "case color" is. Is that a coloring that the steel picks up during the hardening process?

[Robin Lewis]

Yes, case color is the result of the heat process used to harden metal. It is easy to remove case color just through normal use of the gun. That is why its a sought after attribute when purchasing a Parker, so few Parkers have original case color today because Parkers were enjoyed in the game fields and shooting ranges and the case color was worn off.

If it has a lot of case color, look for a gunsmith that not only fixes Parkers but one that is also knowledgeable in restoration too. "Maybe" a good restoration man knows some secret that can bring it back to it original glory; but I am just guessing as this is way outside my knowledge base. It can't hurt to ask even if it can't be done, one never knows maybe it can? It also may be cost more than it would be worth.