VH That wiggles on the hinge

[William Maynard]

I have a 1924 VH that I purchased for what I think is a fair price. The gun is tight when it is closed on the breach. When the gun is open it has a slight wiggle? Is this normal. If not, is this something a gunsmith can fix? Thanks.....

[Bruce Day]

Still acceptable. When it gets loose on the face, have it rejointed.

[William Maynard]

Thank you Sir for the reply. Could you please tell me what rejointing is? How it is done. Thanks

[Bill Murphy]

There are many ways to rejoint a gun. The simplest is to solder a very thin shim to the hook of the barrel lug and file the shim until the gun will close.

[William Maynard]

Thanks Bruce,
You have been of great help. This is also a great website. Lots of information. I have hunted with family before I even had my NRA. At the age of 12, by CT law I got my NRA and my first side by side, it was a old 1949 Stevens 16 GA which I still have to this day I am now 40. I only hunt with vintage firearms and now own my first Parker.

[Bruce Day]

We have many members in Conn. who know their Parkers and shoot a lot. Join them at a shoot sometime where they can look your Parker over and tell you more.

It was Bill Murphy who told you what rejointing is. Bill knows his mechanics.

[Larry Frey]

Hi William,
Bruce is right, we do get together and shoot our Parkers quite often. I personally don't shoot much this time of the year as it's tough enough to find enough time to keep the dog happy and the freezer full of venison at the same time. You should plan on shooting with us in May at Addieville, you will get to meet quiet a few PGCA members as well as other double gun shooters.

[William Maynard]

Many Thanks to Bill Murphy for his information. Just to note I ran a search online and they had an interesting video on U-tube of rejoining a old Parker. Here is link; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69LeO9bYKdI Once on the site they also have other videos of removing a dent, honing, etc. The Parker Shoot in Addieville, R.I. Is there a flier or annoucement when this event is scheduled?

[Dave Suponski]

William,Check our events catagory on this site.

[Bill Murphy]

Beware of the Larry Potterfield video. He makes it sound a bit simpler than it is. He has you adding metal to the hook, which is OK. However, he has you dress the hook and the face of the barrels to get the gun to close. Hold on here, the barrel face does not need to be dressed, it is devoid of metal rather than having excess metal. Larry is thinking with his file, not his brain. You add metal to the hook and then dress the hook until the gun closes and is tight. Potterfield is a blacksmith, not a gunsmith. Be careful.

[William Maynard]

Thanks Bill for the Caution, I just looked at the video just to get an idea of the process. I would never attempt to do this on my own. I am curious if you do any gunsmithing. You seem to have alot of knowledge on gun repair?

[William Maynard]

Update, just to note that I contacted Turnbull Restoration and a slight wiggle while the gun is open is very common. Now, to truly check for excess wear, remove the forearm and then try to wiggle the barrels. Also my Vh is actually a VHE.
Bill.........

[Brad Bachelder]

William, wiggle at the hinge is not a major concern unless it affects closing of the action. I have seen cases where this sideplay can cause the dollshead extension to loosen, or cause uneven wear on the barrels at the reciever. This is easy to spot by wear marks from closing. If the play is excessive, we fixture a set of lugs that are undersize. We then carefully compress the reciever until it is tight on the fixture lugs. At this point the original lugs will close hard, requiring stoning and sanding to a perfect fit. This will eliminate 100 % of the wiggle. Again I don't recomend this if the barrels are tight on face and there is no uneven wear.

Brad

[William Maynard]

Thanks Brad for that information. The gun is tight on the face and only wiggles slightly on the hinge. Do you work on firearms, if so do you have a wbsite or contact info? Thanks...

[Brad Bachelder]

Yes Bill it is Bachelder mastergunmakers.com

Brad