Help me understand this...

[Andrew Sacco]

New to Parkers but a shotgun hunter for 45 years. Couple things I'm confused about. I always assumed that you cannot hunt with damascus barrels (let alone shoot them with modern loads) but I see on here a lot of folks do. Is there a way to know if an old gun is safe? I assume a competent smith? Also, I've had several Elsies and they just don't fit. Do folks with these old Parkers just "make em fit" and deal with it or do they have less drop (as a generalization) than some other old American guns? Finally, why would one desire a hammer gun over a hammerless? Nostalgia? Do they present a totally different experience and are they reliable in bad weather for hunting? No, I've never handled one, sadly :(

[CraigThompson]

Why would someone prefer a blonde over a brunette over a red head .

Pretty much the same thing when asking why someone likes hunting with a top lever hammer or a lifter hammer or Damascus/twist barrels .

Ask yourself why you want a SxS rather than an O/U or semi auto or a corn shucker .

:bigbye:


Oh yeah and I shoot the heck out of Damascus and twist barreled guns with smokeless powder loads . :whistle:

[CraigThompson]

And yes I conform to whatever dimensions the stock may be within reason .

[todd allen]

My belief is that the soundness/condition of the barrels is more important than whether they are Damascus or fluid steel. I think that good Damascus barrels are even stronger than fluid steel of the same era. I would not shoot many of the commercially available loads in any side by side, no matter what the age of the gun.
As far as gun fit; you need to know your dimensions, and look for your fit the in the classics. Good dimensions are out there, you just have to find them.
Hammer guns are an acquired taste. Once you acquire the taste, Katy bar the door! Hammer guns are a lot of fun!
A word of caution. If you're gonna get into hammer guns, watch out for the Under Lifter.
In my opinion, the finest of the hammer guns.

[Mike Franzen]

Welcome to the PGCA Andy and thank you for becoming a member. We all grew up knowing damascus guns would blow apart if shot with smokeless powder. Then one day a guy named Sherman Bell decided to find out for himself whether or not it was true. His research and experimentation is fully documented in the Double Gun Journal. It shifted everyone’s paradigm who read it. As a result thousands of great old wall hangers came down off the mantle and began giving their owners much pleasure. I would highly recommend you get Sherman Bell’s articles and read about one of the most fascinating excursions into debunking an old myth. Come to the Southern Side by Side in April and I guarantee you will get to handle and shoot a damascus barreled, underlifter hammer gun if you want to.

[Ed Norman]

Andy,
Thanks for becoming a member of the parker forum. I recently purchased a gun with damascus barrels. Before I shoot it, I will take it to a gunsmith and have him check the entire barrel walls for thickness and he will let me know if its safe to shoot in his opinion. I know very little about old guns, so I am extra careful. The first old shotgun I purchased I took to a gunsmith and he showed me a repaired spot in the barrel which I could not see, and he could barely see. He said it was a good repair, that area of steel was only .015 thick, and the gunsmith did not recommend shooting it. I am glad I took that gun in first. I only shoot r.s.t. falcon lite shells in my oldest guns. Good luck,

[Andrew Sacco]

Wow thanks for all the quick responses. I devoured the Parker book by Johnson but frankly couldn't get past the gushing praise and glowing love and obvious bias and found it a tough read with the writing style. So that being said I got an "overview" and now need to figure out what a "lifter" is and go handle a hammerless. I have a friend who shoots old Bakers with hammers in a side by side league so I'll have to call him. He said they're like single malt scotch...once you acquire the taste they're addicting. I appreciate all the help, I'll have to find those articles because frankly shooting a gun over 100 years old (safely) has a certain appeal to me.

[King Brown]

Andy, for a while Johnson's conscientious efforts were all we had, and we were grateful for it. I share your opinion about his book. At the time, it was informative to me.

[Andrew Sacco]

Andy, for a while Johnson's conscientious efforts were all we had, and we were grateful for it. I share your opinion about his book. At the time, it was informative to me.

I can appreciate it and do realize it was written some time ago King. Can anyone recommend a better read?

[Austin J Hawthorne Jr.]

The Parker Story is the BIBLE of Parker knowledge. There are often used copies available on this website for reasonable money considering the information contained therein.

[Bill Murphy]

Ed Muderlak published books that a more affordable than "The Parker Story" and address your questions a bit more to the point than any other books. The one that comes to mind is "Parker Guns____"

[Harry Collins]

This is an 1881 Lifter Parker 10 gauge with Twist Steel barrels. I shoot it regularly with nitro powders. Note the button in front of the trigger guard bow. When pushed up the gun opens. I wish all parkers had retained this method of opening.

[todd allen]

This is an 1881 Lifter Parker 10 gauge with Twist Steel barrels. I shoot it regularly with nitro powders. Note the button in front of the trigger guard bow. When pushed up the gun opens. I wish all parkers had retained this method of opening.

I'm looking for the right words. Is Parker Porn too strong?

[Victor Wasylyna]

This is an 1881 Lifter ... I wish all parkers had retained this method of opening.

Amen!

-Victor

[CraigThompson]

Ed Muderlak published books that a more affordable than "The Parker Story" and address your questions a bit more to the point than any other books. The one that comes to mind is "Parker Guns____"

I got both the Mudder books off Amazon a week or two before Xmas . Haven’t really absorbed them yet .

[Mike Franzen]

This is an 1881 Lifter Parker 10 gauge with Twist Steel barrels. I shoot it regularly with nitro powders. Note the button in front of the trigger guard bow. When pushed up the gun opens. I wish all parkers had retained this method of opening.

Harry you just had to show that gun didn’t you. You know how I lust for her. I have tried everything I know to get that beauty away from you including offering myself for your adoption. Gents if you have never laid eyes on this gun in person you are a lucky man because once seen - never forgotten. Victor you would be worse smitten than me.

[Andrew Sacco]

That's gorgeous. Since I haven't handled one, the lifter mechanism looks cumbersome and tough to use. I imagine that's what I said to myself when I saw a photo of a Leica M2 many years ago. Never took a second look. Then someone handed one to me. Game over, I own one now. Do NOT hand me that gun! I'm going to try to get to the SxS events at Hausmann's and Rock Mountain this year. Both within 60 minutes of my house. I would assume I'd meet someone from this board at those events??

[todd allen]

The Lifter is probably the least cumbersome systems for opening a shotgun. Trust me on this. On upland birds, I like to walk up on a point with hammers cocked, action open. On the flush, simply closing the action gives me two shots pronto! Anyone who has done much upland hunting with hammer guns knows about top lever/right hammer interference. Of course the fishtail top lever was one solution, the Underlifter was the other.
The move from trigger to action release is so natural, you will wonder why they ever went to a top lever.

[Brett Hoop]

That's gorgeous. Since I haven't handled one, the lifter mechanism looks cumbersome and tough to use. I imagine that's what I said to myself when I saw a photo of a Leica M2 many years ago. Never took a second look. Then someone handed one to me. Game over, I own one now. Do NOT hand me that gun! I'm going to try to get to the SxS events at Hausmann's and Rock Mountain this year. Both within 60 minutes of my house. I would assume I'd meet someone from this board at those events??

Andy

In short yes. Either place throw a rock and you are likely to hit someone that posts on this board. Warning, once you expose yourself to this environment the slope of the grade may require ropes. Tips, befriend yourself to the dapper gentleman driving the JD Gator. The guy hollering Grace, follow him. He's going to either stumble on to a super 28ga., or a circle of Parker people.
Don't bet a 28ga. round with the guy who names his dogs things like Parker and Fox.

[Rick Losey]

[QUOTE=Andrew Sacco;290643 I imagine that's what I said to myself when I saw a photo of a Leica M2 many years ago. Never took a second look. Then someone handed one to me. Game over, I own one now.[/QUOTE]


yup, same thing

[Andrew Sacco]

The Lifter is probably the least cumbersome systems for opening a shotgun. Trust me on this. On upland birds, I like to walk up on a point with hammers cocked, action open. On the flush, simply closing the action gives me two shots pronto! Anyone who has done much upland hunting with hammer guns knows about top lever/right hammer interference. Of course the fishtail top lever was one solution, the Underlifter was the other.
The move from trigger to action release is so natural, you will wonder why they ever went to a top lever.

I'm trying to picture this. I have a hard enough time with the gun CLOSED to hit a damn bird, let alone open. Then again I hunt over labs so am always catching up to them it seems. I am not the most graceful :eek:

[Rick Losey]

I'm trying to picture this. I have a hard enough time with the gun CLOSED to hit a damn bird, let alone open. Then again I hunt over labs so am always catching up to them it seems. I am not the most graceful :eek:

i love hunting upland birds with hammer guns, no need IMHO to carry a gun with rebounding hammers with the action open. With a pointing dog, cock the hammers as you pass the dog, with a flusher - carry the gun barrels up and thumb on the hammers so you can cock it as you bring it to bear.