Me to :)

To answer Paul Harm's question of different ways to open chokes there are several. Sunnen hone (many find the finish unacceptable), Brownells offers an adjustable reamer set up similar to Porterfields, high quality expansion reamers aided by ingenuity can produce good results, Clymer offered excellent choke reamers that fed from the breech and were driven from the muzzle ( they cost $175 each 25 years ago and you needed 3-4 per gage), for those with lathes or mills excellent results can be attained but set ups are time cosuming, and finally a barrel boring machine ( I don't know of any U.S. gunsmith with one). For those you who object to anyone opening the chokes on their Parkers, I noticed Dean had the chokes altered by a very well respected gunsmith on the 28 gage he is offering on this forum.

I can't even imagine how these little guys would have looked if I had left the chokes at XF/XF.... Each of these woodcock were shot at less than 20 yards. Abe Chaber, the CT smith who did the work is certainly one of the very best. David Trevallion praises Abe's work about every time I talk with him about American gunsmiths. Abe is German-trained and Dave is London-trained (Purdey).

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Naw, someone switched the subject, which is ok by me. You could start a thread on shot size. #5s for me .

I guess my question, or point was, unless you go through the time for setting up a lathe the bar with bushings is the way most gunsmiths would do it. It just seemed like many of us were critical of doing it that way. Larry was doing it right. There is still polishing work to do and he didn't show that.

Do we realize how many barrel sets Parker gunmakers trashed when the boring and choking didn't go right?? Do we have that option today? I stand by my description of barrel borers today.

I don't know what that tells us....

The guy with the thinnest tread on his tires did the most driving...?

The guy with the most empties in the rear cargo pocket of his shooting vest at the end of the day shot more shells?

The guy who never made a mistake probably never tried anything?





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When Tom Roster was writing a column for the American Shotgunner way back when, I wrote (yes pen and paper) asking his opinion on how to open a choke on a gun without removing metal. This was in the early eighties I was shooting a 26" VHE that was M/F. He said to simply cut the petals off a wad then use a fiber wad under the shot column to make up for the missing petals. It worked much better than spreader loads as there was still a good center density. Now a days I can't get enough choke. Funny how your perspective changes as you age.

It was an attempt at an analogy. You will solve the choke question right after you get a consensus on the best shot size for pheasants.
Both are legitimate discussions, btw.

Oh, and humor. Let's strive to always keep a sense of it.

Ok Bill, why don't you tell us of how many barrels have been butchered. That's like saying all guns should be banned because a couple of people misused them. No one should re-choke their gun because someone else did a bad job. Come on, I know you're smarter than that. What about the guys who sent their guns back into the Parker company and ask them to make them shoot straight and change the chokes. Are they also wrong. Or was it ok as long as Parker was the only one who did it ? There were many qualified gunsmiths back then who could also do it. Or maybe the gunsmiths of today just aren't qualified. Let's just agree to disagree.

quaifying shooter-grade
 

I see that one faction in the altering-of-chokes debate argues that there is little harm in opening chokes if the gun falls short of being high-grade or high-condition, ergo, is not a “collectable”.

Well, all things considered, I guess I collect guns that aren’t “collectible”.

I will never own an A-Grade; and high-condition or benchmark examples will forever be out of my price-range. Qualitatively and quantitatively, any Parker buys I make won’t register perceptibly in the gun market.

However, even if the vintage gun under my consideration is used, patinated, worn, pinned, or had a pad put on, I still regard surviving mechanical originality to be of primary importance.

I understand that this topic is for some of our fraternity tiresome in it’s interminability; but it is after all central to all fields of collecting.

At least...for us....there will always be photos... [for mutual enjoyment, undisputed admiration and fellowship].

A reamer will generally follow the hole that’s already there (i.e., path of least resistance). The key is to ensure the reamer’s inserted from the breech, and that the extension bar is supported by bushings, yet not rigid up-close to the cutting action so’s the reamer can float & follow the pre-existing hole (choke). Bear in mind however, that the geometry of the chokes lead-in taper (or ogee) will suffer material loss, unless of course, a proper reamer is ground for the task. A little careful polishing to blend the ogee/taper into the new choke would probably suffice though. Now, of course, if the chokes poi was off to begin with..the above technique is of litte use..that’s when it’s time for the lathe or the boring machine.

..an ounce of #5’s in each barrel seems to be good for pheasants in my guns.

To Dean’s comment in an earlier post - someone who’s never royally screwed something up, has never done a damn thing in any sort of shop whatsoever. Fact.

I've never"opened" a choke on a classic gun, per se, but I have Briley'ed a couple.
Including a Model 21, and an old H&H Royal SLE. My buddy, and hunting partner is going to send a Parker to Briley's, to give him a little more versatility.
Personally, I have more feelings about modifying an original Parker, than either of the other two, but in retrospect I wish I had left the H&H alone. I'm a tight choke guy, and the Holland was just too open for what I do. (Mostly desert quail)
The fact is, you lay the money down, you own the gun. You can do with it as you please.