Book learnin"

[Fred Lowe]

Well, for the last year or so I've poured over current discussions, and lots and lots of back threads. I've followed general discussions, hammer guns, Repros, restorations, and foto Fridays, ......and much more. I've sent in my membership dues and am looking forward to the Parker Pages....and the for sale section.


The screen saver on my home computer can't wash out the "moon glow" emblem of the PGCA

I've read, and laughed out loud at some of the conversations. And been saddened to see the loss of some of the Parker community members.

My wife has told me she's sure that I've taken on an "emotional online friend":eek:

I'm thinking that it's time to roll back a bit and start reading some of the books for a bit more of a solid foundation.
Is there a sensible place to start with the books? I've looked up "The Parker Story" and "The Old Reliable", "Shooting Flying", and "Parker: America's Finest Shotgun". There are more. It's going to be easy to drop a bundle on the home library!

Is there a sequence that makes any sense to start with? Are there any to pass on altogether, and which are the "can't do withouts"? Any better places to find them than Amazon, etc?

[Robin Lewis]

My vote would be to start with a copy of The Parker Story, both volumes and try to digest that. It is the most comprehensive book on the subject.

[George Lander]

Fred: I'd start with Peter Johnson's "Parker, America's Finest Shotgun" & work up from there. The last & probably the best is , as Robin suggested, "The Parker Story" 2 Volumes with a lot of really good ones in between. Try to ge all of Ed Muderlak's books.

Best Regards, George

[Dave Noreen]

Only a very serious book collector would need to have Johnson or either of the Baer books. I'd suggest starting with Ed Muderlak's Parker the Old Reliable, and if that doesn't satisfy your needs move on to the magnum opus The Parker Story.

[Dean Romig]

I agree with Researcher with the exception that if you want to start at the beginning, with the first published book devoted exclusively to Parker guns then moving up chronologically through the subsequent books published exclusively on Parker guns, you should start with Johnson's, then Baer's, then Muderlak's "Parker Gun, The Old Reliable", then "The Parker Story". By doing it this way you will gain an appreciation of the progress in Parker knowledge most of have experienced (with the exception the authors of these fine books, and "Researcher" Dave Noreen and other collectors who painstakingly did their own exhaustive research) and are continuing to experience. "The Parker Story" probably contains just about all of 'knowledge' that Johnson and Baer imparted through their books so you can skip those two if you wish. There has been quite an awful lot of accurate information uncovered since "The Parker Story" was published including Muderlak's work and the articles in the "Parker Pages" so, the "Parker" knowledge base is a living thing and we are all eager students like yourself.

[David Holes]

Part of the parker learning experience would be starting with Johnson and ending with parker pages. Or go to the meat and potatoes and just skip to parker pages.

[Bruce Day]

I have all the Parker books and with the exception of the Johnson book, got them near contemporaneous with their publication. The Johnson book is interesting but incomplete and has factual errors. I have the Baer books in signed deluxe edition with NY showroom portfolio. I have the Muderlak Old Reliable in signed cased deluxe edition. Both the Baer and Muderlak books are egocentric....what the Parker means to them and their views about the guns.

My recommendation is far and away to obtain The Parker Story in both volumes and to obtain the CD of the Parker Pages that we offer. Anybody who intends to be serious about Parkers should have TPS, most of the questions we have seen posted here are answered in TPS. The other Parker books are interesting historically, but I can't recall the last time, if ever, that I picked up any book other than TPS to find the answer to a question.

In order of publication, they are Johnson, Baer, Muderlak and the Price /Mullins TPS.

[ED J, MORGAN]

Since
the orig. poster mentioned cost I would agree with Bruce. Get the Parker Story first. Then go on to others. Regards, Ed

[Jean Swanson]

Fred : "Quail 1"--since you enjoy the forum and the PGCA members so well, may I suggest you join as a member of the organization . You will then receive quarterly the Parker Pages , an extremely well written and informative Journal concerning the members and the PARKER gun .It is $40.00 well invested !!! Allan Swanson

[Bill Murphy]

Muderlak's Parker Guns, Shooting Flying and the American Experience is as good a book, if not better than his Parker Guns, The Old Reliable. It is also very inexpensive. The Baer books are available in Volume 1 and Volume 11, or a combined edition. It is more fun to have the two volumes. The combined edition is inexpensive, the others less so. The Johnson book is usually very inexpensive. Double Gun Journal sells blem sets of The Parker Story $100 off regular price. No one I know of can find the blemishes. It is a sales tactic that saves you lots of money.

[Austin W Hogan]

Peter Johnson obtained most of his information from mail interviews with former Parker employees. Time may have faded some memories, but the information is first hand, and no longer recoverable. Johnson also researched some unusual sources, including customs records in the Library of Congess.

Johnson's phrase " rough tubes of minimum duty" and his story of metal shards in the bunker where Parker Bros pre proofed barrels probably provide more information on the reason Parker barrels differed in bore and shape from other manufacturers than any other source.

While later works provide some very solid information, Johnson's book provided the insight to looking for that information. You will gain more facts reading more recent publications; but Johnson will provide the background essential to interpreting those facts.

We were very fortunate to have been able to talk to Peter, and to have reviewed his book prior to his death.

Best, Austin



Best, Austin

[Larry Frey]

I've sent in my membership dues and am looking forward to the Parker Pages....and the for sale section.

Is there a sequence that makes any sense to start with? Are there any to pass on altogether, and which are the "can't do withouts"? Any better places to find them than Amazon, etc?

Fred,
As a new member of the PGCA, welcome. One benefit to you as a PGCA member is that The Double Gun Journal is offering slightly blemished two volume sets of TPS for $100.00 off the regular price. I have all the books and TPS in my opinion has the most usable information but the book I look at the most would be the Parker Gun Identification and Serialization book by Blue Book Publications.

[Robin Lewis]

Thank you Austin, well said! Peter's book is fun to re-read, even if we know more about the topic today and can find a few occasional flaws in his book. It remains the foundation for the our research even today.

[Bruce Day]

That's very true, and Johnson is important in an historical context. Also interesting to read the Baer books and to understand his lavish praise of certain Parkers and Hollywood guns he had a hand in re-selling. Its also interesting to read of his praise of "upgrades" from certain shops he was friendly with and admonitions against guns from other gunsmiths. Whenever I re-read the Muderlak go to where the guns are discussions of his visits with Herschel Chaddick, I can't help but remember Hershel's amusing first person accounts of those conversations, as told to me in several visits to Terrell, Texas. I would have liked to have been a mouse in the corner.....at least for a few minutes.

These and many more, the undisclosed upgrades, all the Parker never dids we always heard about, all the strange turns of some of the collector guns, all that and more has made the collecting of desireable Parkers so much more than just guns and as juicy as any soap opera or dime detective novel. The Parker Serialization and Identification Book and The Parker Story have, in my opinion, been the most instrumental in focusing the light of truth in Parkers.

[Dave Suponski]

Fred, I have the second and third printings of Johnson's books for sale here on the site.

[Robert Delk]

I have been interested in Parkers ever since you could have bought an "A1 for 1500 to 3500 and D's were bringing 175 and up.I talked to Chadick when her first started running ads to buy guns and I also had a long phone conversation with the guy down south who had all the "original" high grade guns ,including an A1 .410.I He assured me the gun was all original.All this talk with these experts left me wondering "what the ----! as noone told the same story. We are lucky that some researchers without an axe to grind searched for the truth and collaborated with other honest and forthcoming with their hard earned knowledge.

[Bruce Day]

Some of those guys were making original guns on a daily basis. You are just way too picky with the meaning of original.

Some of those fellows used to publicly state that the rise of the PGCA and the infernal Serialization Book and nit picky TPS ruined the business of Parker sales for them. I should have collected all the outrageous statements I have heard about Parkers through the years. Would have been a fun top ten list.

[Robert Delk]

Never thought of it that way.I was friends with Jim Austin in the 70's and he had some great stories about Parkers and Parker dealers too.I suppose the chance to make some serious money will always bring out the worst in some people.Lots of good guns turned into not so good guns back in those days. Like to think that is not the case so much today.

[Bill Murphy]

I still have the gun list from the "Georgia Investment Company" that Robert Delk alludes to. Oddly, it includes serial numbers for all the guns they offered, including the A1 Special .410. They had no idea that by 1997, the records would be opened. Bruce is very generous in his praise, but strangely leaves out the PGCA and the 1997 and 1998 PGCA Research Project. Robert, Jim Austin had a story a minute. Sharing a goose pit with him for entire days still didn't dry him out. He is an entertaining person, a lot of fun to be with.

[Robert Delk]

In 1977 Jim came to Iowa with a car full of fine guns,including one I still dream about:CHE 28 guage with 24" barrels and original A&F case. Bill Sisney ended up with it at the Rochester,Minnesota gun show.We owe the early collectors and dealers a great deal even though they may have erred and/or slipped a bit ethically. I had no money but I was fortunate enough to have an inquiring mind and no fear when it came to calling up someone on the phone when I wanted to clarify something.The CHE trap gun in Baer's book is one of Jim's guns and I took the picture not knowing it would end up published. Gun had quite a story behind it too.

[Bill Murphy]

Yup, Mr. Sisney offered a real wealth of collector guns to the open market. Of course, forty years from now, people will be talking about the guys who are selling nice stuff today. We're talking about HC already, and he's only been gone for a few months.

[Fred Lowe]

I appreciate all of the responses.
Yesterday ran long as we got a flat on a looong washboard road returning from chukar hunting.
I'm looking forward to the for sale section once my membership is approved.
I hope the background check isn't too rigorous. Limited amount of blue blood in the line!