Approx. 8 Parkers, several Winchesters, 2 Perazzis, an absolutely stunning H&H Royal Side Lock Ejector, built in 1900, three Beretta ALs, one being a dedicated clays gun, and a few other miscellaneous guns. Ithaca, Daly, etc. Oh, and a very early LC Smith.
Sad to say I have never owned a Lefever.

Hopefully this admission won’t get me banned from the board. I only have one Parker, a Trojan 20, that I use for all my upland hunting. For waterfowl I use a Benelli SBE.

Besides Parkers I have Fox, JP Sauer, Ithaca, Browning, Winchester, Remington, and have owned other brands over time. A little variety never hurt anyone.

Parker, Fox, Winchester, Remington, Kreighoff, CSMC, Ruger, S&W, High Standard

Since joining the PGCA I haven’t wanted to buy any other make of shotgun.... with two exceptions. One was a 5 lbs 20 gauge Ithaca double that was so cheap my money hand just unconsciously reached in my pocket and pulled out the lettuce. I’ve never shot it but figured it might be nice to carry in the field when I’m 90. The other was a Lefever 16 gauge that I thought I needed. Shortly after, I realized I would never hunt with the piece. I sold it for a real good deal. Only lost $200. For me when you add it all up nothing else compares to the Parker gun.

I have 4 parkers- 2 DHs and 2 CHEs. I also have my Superposed 12 gauge pigeon and my dad's 20 gauge A5 and 12 gauge model 12.

I'm no more a one "gun" man than I am a one gamebird man. Doves, ducks, quail ....... all deserve allegiance. Same with my doubles. But, this new Parker DHE has been christened "Melania"....... after all, she is the first lady of my current doubles.

SRH

Celebrated opening day of duck season with the L C Smith Long Range

Reggie:

Same sentiments here.

Also, this and other recent posts have shown me that we can have folks on here that have alluded previously to having but modest collections, been self-effacing about their stature as collectors, but by my standards have an enviable number of fine guns.

I only have six shotguns now. For reasons of "downsizing" I have decided to limit my “inventory” to what can be contained where the guns are locked up. This, combined with my late-in-life predilection for using vintage side-by-sides for both clays and game, accounts for my having sold all the repeaters I have ever owned (not really many), and retaining the doubles, while opening up some space to accommodate a new gun or two.

This leaves me at present with four legacy Parkers and two more that I have acquired on my own. They are:

Trojan 12-gauge; 2-frame; 30-inch – my father’s favorite (for Ducks and Pheasants) that he bought from a patient of his

12-gauge VH; 2-frame; 30-inch -- bought from his friend and colleague -- a transitory aberration for that confirmed Model 12 man

12-gauge DHE; 1 ½-frame; 28-inch --bought from a hunting and fishing buddy who owned a sporting goods store

16-gauge VH; 1-frame; 28-inch -- bought from another buddy who had a nose for good deals in guns

12-gauge GH; 1 ½-frame; 28-inch -- bought by me so I can carry it and fall down in the woods and not feel like I had marred one of “Dad’s guns” (he died 27 years ago; but still….)

16-gauge VH; 0-frame; 26-inch -- bought by me, again for my use on terrain where the footing is bad

I have bid on doubles of other makes, both American and British, but have not had the requisite confidence nor resolve with those. Why so?

Well, I see it as missing some advantages when I cast about beyond my Parkerdom frame-of-reference. Either it’s lacking the same level of available guns (nearly ¼ million Parkers manufactured); or the bibliography (four hard-cover published works) or it's due to the manifold, on-going and readily-accessed resources of the PGCA, in comparison with the otherwise-worthy alternatives.

1st bird taken on the wing, a passing mallard, age 16, a borrowed Trojan 12, pulled both triggers by mistake, knocked me over, bird fell too, no damage to the gun. 2nd bird, a cock pheasant, over our English setter, used Dad's LC Smith Ideal Grade 12 -- I still have and treasure that gun. Then somehow 50 years went by and the gun cabinet filled to overflowing with a variety guns and many fond memories. Only one Parker though -- just purchased it this year -- a nice 16 ga Damascus 0 frame GH. It was my go to upland bird gun this season until recently. My latest obsession is hunting with and shooting black powder out of a 9.2 lb 30" Damascus 10 gauge A grade H&R 1882. I love 'em all -- can't see myself settling down any time soon.

Ron, have we seen pictures of your H&R A Grade? They are wonderful guns and we don't see enough of them.

Bill -- this thread (http://parkerguns.org/forums/showthr...ton+Richardson) is about the gun that belonged to my great great grandfather. I also wrote an article about that gun for DGJ which I believe Daniel and Joanna will be publishing in the next issue (Vol 31, Issue 4).

In addition to that one I bought 2 more. A 12 and a 10 gauge. Since these guns are not marked (non were) as to the grade you have to go by the amount of engraving and checkering & quality of the walnut. My great grandfather's is without doubt an A grade. I think the 10 gauge is too but it lacks some of the artistry, especially on the fences. It does however have very similar checkering. The 12 doesn't have either but it does have the fancy Damascus which only the A and B grades had. So I'm thinking the 10 gauge is an A grade, the 12 gauge a B grade, and my great grand father's an extra fancy A grade. The DGJ article has a ton of information about that gun and my theory about where it came from.

These are a few snap shots of the 10 & 12 (the 10 gauge has the straight grip) -- these two guns are consecutively serial numbered. Compare them to the gun pictured in the thread and you will see the difference in the grades.

The other interesting thing about two 12 gauge guns is that they both have the more open choke in the left barrel and the right one is tight. The 10 gauge is choked the "normal" way -- right barrel open , left barrel tight. There is a lot more we don't know about these guns than do know.

Well, it starts with the first Parker bought by Dad for me in a Farmville, Va. hardware store when I was 14, which I still have. I think he paid $45 for it! And I still shoot it once in awhile. After that have added 3 DHs, 3 GH, one a 16 ga GHE, one 16Ga O frame P, Two more 12 Ga Ps, 3 16Ga. VH, one 12 ga hammer, one 12 Ga D grade hammer gun, an assortment (4) of Foxes 12s and 16s, 4 LC Smith including a 20 Ga. FW, a sweet Belgium 16ga made for a Boston dealer, a Ithaca SKB Mod 100 12, a Browning BPR 12 g w/three barrels, an Ithaca 16 ga Mod 37 that I shot my first grouse with at 12.
But in the end the Parkers are the favorite of all.

Keavin, What a great collection! Just curious, as a native Virginian once having relatives in Farmville, are you from the area? Do you recall the name of the hardware store?

Kevin,
Bad news you have the Shotgun Disease, "Just One More"! Its almost never curable but just some much fun finding that next "One"!

Well for me mostly Parkers, German double rifle, couple Winchesters, Hellis 410 hammer gun, William Atkinson 28 hammer gun, Shilo Sharps 45-70, Original 1874 Mid range Sharps 40-70, At present I only have 4 hammerless Parkers, Most interesting Parker AA Hammer gun and a grade 3 with Bernard barrels and gold oval in the grip as you would normally see in higher grades, Looking for a grade 3 16 gauge, fun ain't it! Gary

Not much in life is more fun than searching for the next gun you just have to have.

I guess I could add a few Prussian Lindners, one in the mail, a few big guns, an assortment of single traps, a gaggle of Model 12s and 42s, a mix of Lefevers and Foxes, and a couple pair of Berettas and Krieghoffs for clay targets when I want to lose money at a greater rate than I do with the pigeon guns.