My grandfather's shotgun

[Chad smith]

I have a shotgun that my grandfather left me in his recentpassing.he was 94. The shotgun was given to his father by his law partner when my grandfather was born.
Any help would be appreciated and a possible value.

[Dean H Hanson]

Please provide a picture of the barrel flats. The serial # is not available in the PGIS book.

[Chad smith]

119133 . Is the number stamped in like 3 different places on the gun

[Dean H Hanson]

I can see the #, its the barrel flats and rear lug that will help determine what you have.

[Dave Noreen]

Your gun was made in 1903. The gun is a Quality VH, the entry-level Parker Bros. shotgun at that time. From the 1901 catalog that introduced the option of automatic ejectors, which your gun does not have.

134337

Note that price of $50 is the "List Price." The actual Net Price was $37.50.

If your gun is a 12-gauge, the 12-gauge VH-/VHE-Quality is the most common Parker Bros. shotgun made with some 51901 made. This is not to say they are not great guns for hunting and shooting, but they don't draw a lot of dollars unless in exceptionally high original condition or sport a lot of the options offered later in production.

[Chad smith]

Thank you for the info the shotgun is a 16ga and probably wasn't shot more than 25 times or so according to my grandfather. Any suggestions on preserving the gun. Or possible value to a collector

[Dave Noreen]

It takes a lot more than 25 shots to produce the amount wear shown on the standing breech. More in the thousands. The pictures show virtually no remaining case colors on the frame, and the barrel blue is very worn. Wipe it down with a good product such as Ballistol, Eezox, etc. and don't store it in a gun case.

[Daniel Carter]

Many times on this forum i have seen requests such as yours, sometimes weekly. A Parker gun is not a ticket to riches. Only a very few almost pristine guns have " collector value". Most are shooters and very good for that purpose. No one can put a value on your gun with out having it in hand.
Many people have looked at mine and after asking what it is respond with '' that must be worth a fortune '' and when told no about a thousand look at me with skepticism. Look on Guns international and see what you find i tell them.
No a Parker for the most part is a great value.

[Chris Pope]

This shotgun will have a HUGE value as a family heirloom to someone in future generations of your family. I have my great grandfathers deer rifle and consider it to be one of our prized family posessions that will never be sold but rather continue to be passed down through the generations of our family. Please please do not sell that shotgun. Find a member of your family that is responsible and has an interest in firearms. Gift it or will it to them, just make sure you write down the Parker's story. If you are struggling financially perhaps you could sell it to them. Just place a condition on it that it is to stay in the family.
Can you imagine if someone still had your great grandfather's Ford Model T Runabout and it was in driveable condition. Wouldn't you want to be able to sit in the front seat that he sat in and grip the wheel that he had gripped a hundred years ago? Sorry if this sounds preachy here but you have something that will be of great value to a future member of your family or extended family. You are very lucky to have this. Best to you.

[Jerry Harlow]

Since it was your "grandfather's gun" it would be worth the few dollars to have the stock shield engraved with his name, so it will be clear to a future generation as to whom it belonged. At some time if you keep it it may be worth cleaning it up a bit for the next generation, say starting with barrel rebluing, stock refinish, etc. You can't hurt it or just pass it on as is.

[Steve McCarty]

My grandfather's Remy Model 11 was given to me and then stolen in a burglary. My dad's Knickerbocker survived the theft and I still own and sometimes shoot it. It's a 20. My dad shot it for the remainder of his life. He had it gussied up once in the 50s. I never saw my dad miss a shot when shooting that little 20. Not once! You can have my house and my cars, but I'm keeping that little shotgun.

[todd allen]

My paternal grandfather was a gun guy. Had a collection back before collecting became a thing.
All lost due to my parents divorce, and miscalculations and other long stories. Thank you mom.
My maternal grandpa also had a couple of shotguns, but divested all but a single shot .410, which hangs on my office wall. I would never part with that little 20 dollar klunker for money.
I'm trying real hard to not be judgemental here, but I am puzzled a little bit by people who need to put a monetary value on family heirlooms, unless for the purposes of insurance.
My paternal grandpa captured two armed bank robbers in Perris California back in the 1930s with a single shot trap door .45/70 after disabling their car with the one chambered round.
How much is that rifle worth would I ask. NEVER!

[Dave Noreen]

There is a huge difference between the mind set of the folks who regularly post here and the general population. To most of the general population that old Parker shotgun left by whomever is just an object to monetize.

[Kevin McCormack]

My great uncle Charlie who lived in Philly had a brother Frank who lived here in suburban MD; one of Frank's closest friends was an ex-Canadian Mounted Policeman who pursued, cornered and captured a desperado who had killed another Mountie with a M 1911 Colt .38 Super. When the ex-CMP died he left the Super to Frank. When in our early teens, my father would take my brother and I over to visit old Frank periodically, and we always found a way in conversation to have Frank show us the gun again. There was always something sinister yet beautiful to me about the gun; knowing it had taken the life of a lawman but remaining in what I remember today would be referred to as a 90-95% gun. When Frank died he left the gun to his only son, also a lawman in the MP. Telling their histories is another way to preserve the heritage of the men and women who made and used them in the romantic as well as the violent past.