New Parker and New Member

[Ron Satterfield]

Hello from Kansas City,
I bought my first Parker yesterday and have some concerns/questions.Her SN is 25039 which shows she was made in 1882.Frame size is 2.She came with a solid steel butt plate with a toe.Is that a replacement plate?She should have the Dog Head butt plate I am thinking.All The SN match throughout.I was concerned because of no checkering on the grip that it had a replacement stock but the SN just to the rear of the triggers matches.The grip cap is small and checkered.Original ???? The wood is not dinged up but I think someone years ago refinished the stock.Whatever they used lets no grain come through.She locks up tight and has a fine patina.The bores are perfect.No rust anywhere.Twist barrels.Overall,not a bad looking gun but could someone address my questions as to how much she has been monkeyed with?Thank you in advance. Ron

[David Holes]

Hello Ron, Without pictures it is hard to say but your description makes the gun sound in original condition. Dave

[charlie cleveland]

you gave a good discription but a picture would make it a lot easier to discribe....welcome to the wonderful world of parkers you will never regret buyiny that parker...these fellows will answer your question.... charlie

[Ron Satterfield]

Thanks -- I will get some pics for you to see.

[Ron Satterfield]

As before I will get some pics for you to examine.Daughter getting married this week-end-hectic.I was giving my new friend a little rub down tonight.I did find two small rust spots on one trigger and triggerguard.However,I also found that she still has some case color.It really comes thru in the right light.I also found when rubbing her butt plate a matching SN on the inside heel.Did Parker put SN inside the butt plate in 1882? Also,did they fit the guns maunfatured that year with a steel butt plate?This is getting curiouser and curiouser.Thanks for any input.Ron

[Dean Romig]

Congratulations on your daughter being married. Certainly brings on a flood of mixed feelings - I know it did for me with both of my daughters.

Sooo... it's going to be a shotgun wedding, eh? Remember, if it is to be a formal wedding you'll have to spray-paint your Parker white.

Can't say as I've seen the serial number stamped there but others may have.

[Ron Satterfield]

It is going to formal.I pick up my tux today.The wedding is going to be on Mt.Oread in Lawrence,Kansas on the KU campus(how did a Missouri Tiger raise a Jayhawk)?Those Kansans still remember William Quanrell so a Missouri guy with a shotgun might look REAL bad.The Boader War still lives.Thanks for the comment-it was a good way to start my day.

[Bill Murphy]

Your plain steel buttplate is commonly seen on Parker guns of that era. It is probably original. Early lowest grade Parkers often came with uncheckered wood, confirmed in early catalog references. See The Parker Story.

[Drew Hause]

Ron: click on 'Members List' and send a PM to Bruce Day. 5 minutes with him will likely answer most of your questions.

And for those uninterested in 'fly over' country and where the War Between the States actually began :rolleyes: Pro-slavery Missourians and 'Free Staters' (later called Jayhawks) from the Kansas-Nebraska Territory started killing each other in 1856.

Quantrill's Sack of Lawrence August 21, 1863.
http://www.civilwarhistory.com/quantrill/quantrill.htm
http://www.kancoll.org/books/cordley_massacre/quantrel.raid.html

http://pic20.picturetrail.com:80/VOL1373/6511424/20611291/335919124.jpg

"The Tragic Prelude" by John Steuart Curry in the Capital Building, Topeka
http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/johnbrown/brownhome.html

http://pic20.picturetrail.com:80/VOL1373/6511424/20611291/335770701.jpg

[Bruce Day]

Hello Ron Satterfield,
We have some active PGCA members around here who know PArkers. I'm no expert but I have picked up a little knowledge over the years. I urge you to buy The Parker Story, which is the bible for Parker enthusiasts and will answer almost all your questions and heighten your interest.
The hammer Parkers are neat and still very usable today.
I'm in south Kansas City and have ties to KU and Lawrence. If you shoot your Parker at any of the clubs around here, they know what a PArker is.

[Linn Matthews]

Always a good idea to have a gunsmith that is familiar with Parkers give it a going over. The shiny bores sound good but could also have been honed to remove pits--you need to have an idea of the wall thickness of the bores before your fire it up.

[Ron Satterfield]

I appreciate the input.Thank you very much.
Ron

[Chuck Bishop]

My 1876 underlifter had the serial number on the backside of the metal buttplate and on the wood underneath in chalk.