Like all membership organizations, and it doesn't matter if it's the AAA or AMA or your bowling league, membership is grown ONE person at a time through a relationship. I notice a lot of forum associates post just to get a price. One idea is to have someone act as a "liaison" to non members and offer to speak to them on the phone about any questions. Another is to form our own database of SOLD PRICES such as Excellence Magazine does for Porsches'. The only ones who can access that database are members. I'm not sure that would be difficult to do.

Being a young bloke in this collecting world - if anyone is wanting to get rid of their Parker 12 gauges I offer a low cost service for disposal, just send them to me.


But its a lot of what people have already said I think. The 12 gauge is the most common gauge and few my age want a double barrel, and even fewer want a SXS, and even fewer still want a vintage one.

The anti-thesis to this - I personally enjoy the 12 gauge guns and the few collectors my age I know do as well, purely because we can afford them. Saving up for a 16 or even a 20 is a financial undertaking even in the lowest grades. Mind you the economy is what it is, then you have a family to support, then your other hobbies, trying to buy a first home, etc. At least we can get in the game with 12's

If you think the price of a vintage Parker 12ga is low now it will be a lot lower if and when the US follows the UK and enacts a complete ban on the use of lead shot.

Sometimes I think having a collection of vintage doubles is like playing a game of musical chairs, there may not be seat when the music stops if you own too many.

Is that being proposed?

In my humble opinion if you have the disposable income for this hobby a ban on lead shot would just fuel the fire by allowing you to afford higher grades for less money. Considering I collect for the nostalgia and solely hunting and not to diversify my investment portfolio, 5-10 boxes of bismuth or similar a year won’t dissuade me.

It probably will effectively negate anyone new from entering the game, unless they grow up into it, but I don’t think it’s going to cause a mass exit of the hobby.

Of course, if you’re shooting a round of 100 every weekend your opinion will be different.

In any event, it’s speculation at this point, and out of my control. What is in my control is enjoying these guns and choosing to accept the risk that may or may not come, considering there is an existing solution.

It became the law of the land in California on July 1st. It was banned for waterfowling 35+ years ago and it has been banned on some federal and state lands as well.

I would say it's coming eventually, just a question of when.

Over the course of a year I shoot thousands of lead shells at clay pigeons and crows. Bismuth is not an affordable alternative/existing solution and steel remains the most economical non tox shot which is not friendly to vintage guns.

Seriously who is going to pay $50 or more for the shells to shoot a 25 target round of trap, skeet or five stand? Because two dollars a shell is about the cost of reloading bismuth at today's prices.

I'll say it again. Have waterfowl populations done better or worse since they mandated non toxic waterfowl loads?

That argument won't change the trajectory of saving the planet.

You may have overlooked my statement regarding what you do with the guns and how you get enjoyment from them. I can swallow the 2 dollar a shot pill for my purposes, and if no one else can for theirs, well I guess that just works out for me then.