Well then my Parker Grade 2 top lever 10 gauge with the extra Belgian made fluid steel barrels is perfect as it has 3 1/2” chambers and the gun weighs almost exactly 10 1/2 pounds .

Seems like sage advice to me. I have no intention of beating the gun or my shoulder up with such heavy loads.

Pete,

What a wonderful gun! Having the context of who used it and what it was used for makes it so much more special.

I’ve shot graylags on the isle of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides. One of the most beautiful landscapes I’ve encountered. I can imagine being hunkered down behind a sand dune looking out over the windy Atlantic with that great gun in my hands!!

FWIW last week I tried some factory loaded buckshot and slugs in my grade 2 hammer with the Begian barrels on and it would open your eyes to say the least :rotf:

Took it to the trap field today for a functionality test, works at it should. Scott Kittredge measured the chokes, .045 in the right barrel and .048 in the left. My 1894 Remington 10 bore is about the same constriction. I will pattern it another day but I am guessing it will be around 90% at 40 yards like the Remmy.

‘Tis a pretty thing, fer sure!

I have a Best Grade 8 gauge single by W&C Scott that is chambered for 3-1/2 inch shells and weighs 9-3/4 pounds. It is, I believe, a "Light Waterfowl" model. I have seen only one reference to that term.

Maybe hunters were just tougher in those days.

Of the four Parker 8’s I’ve had in my possession the lightest was about 14 pounds and the heaviest was exactly 16 pounds . So yeah I’d say it’s a “light” gun , I’ve got 10’s that are heavier .

I was tougher in that regard 30+ years ago when I regularly hunted waterfowl with a 9.5 pound Browning BPS 10 gauge magnum. That much recoil and those days are behind me.

Very nice gun Pete. I have always wanted to purchase a Scottish 12 gauge.