"Business must have been good for Parker." is a bit of a fallacy. From reading thousands of pages of Parker orders, I have found out a few facts that should be thrown into the mix. First, various levels of marketing sucked off profits at a great rate, leaving Parker with a small percentage of the final selling price. Second, their discounts for volume wholesale sales were astronomical. Third, Parker routinely took back guns that their wholesale and retail partners could not sell. Fourth, their comp guns, some of which were high dollar examples, were of dubious value to their marketing efforts.

Thanks Bill, sounds like you have done some sound research...... how about a detailed Parker Pages article? I'm sure it would be of interest to all of us! It's a great topic and I for one would like to hear more.

I have the impression that Charles senior was indulging his sons and his own appreciation for fine shotguns. I doubt the Gun Works contributed much to Parker Industries bottom line.