Factory Abnormalities
 

In the process of reblacking the 30" original length barrels on a 12 gauge VHE, I noticed that the rib matting upper right of the sighting bead is absent. Definitely not filed off or polished away, just never struck at the factory. Anyone have any other Parker factory abnormalities to share?
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This is a very heavy 2-frame 12-gauge GH-grade (Quality 2), yet the watertable is stamped E which should be a 10-gauge?!?

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I take ot that gun is a 3 frame Dave?

There is something I have not noticed before. The last three no's of the serial no are stamped into the bottom plate. I will have to look at my guns and see if mine are stamped that way.

that is actually the cocking slide you are looking at there. That is normal for that part to be stamped with the numbers.

I have seen a lot of the early 10 ga's hammerless were on a 2 frames, ( I think maybe they didn't make any 3 frame hammerless receivers yet, so they made the 10s on the 2 frames while the 3 frames were being made ???)so it could have been a 10 ga to start or a 2 barrel set or sent back to be made 12 ga. my 2 frame 30 inch,10 ga is a one of the 1 st 50 hammerless 10's made, weight at 8 lbs 12 ozs
scott

I have the barrels from 57043 which are 10 gauge, 2-frame, 30-inch Damascus with a pre-struck weight of 5lbs., 11oz.
I have fit these barrels to my 2-frame DH 12 gauge which was originally made with 30-inch Titanic Steel barrels. I have also fitted a set of 30-inch Damascus 12 gauge barrels to it and I'm currently working on fitting a set of 26-inch Damascus 12 gauge open-choke barrels to it as well.

I guess it'll be a gun for every season and every reason. I'm really just doing this for the fun of it - not because I think it will ever be anything special.





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The "E" on that Grade 2 gun that Researcher shows us represents the fact that it was made as a 10 gauge (or 8 gauge) gun rather than the 12 gauge, which the barrels are, and smaller which were designated as G grade guns. The letter grade of these guns was never intended to indicate the frame size of the gun.

There is the possibility that the person who stamped the grade number and letter code of this particular gun erred on the letter code, but there is also the chance that it was originally intended to be made as a 10 gauge.

Dave, did you get a research letter on this gun?






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Interesting Dean, I have the barrels from 57172 which are 10 gauge, 2-frame, 32" Damascus that went back to the factory at some point for conversion to ejectors. I will have to check them again for the pre-struck weight. One of these days I will order a letter on it.

The gun is somewhat of a "FrankenParker" as it is made up from 3-4 different serial numbers. The receiver is a P grade 140xxx serial number and the trigger guard and butt stock are completely different numbers. Only the barrels, forend iron and forend wood match each other. My grandfather owned a hardware store/gun shop in Detroit until the 1930s and believe it was likely put together there from parts guns.

My #55348 is a 12 ga that was rebarreled by Parker in Vulcan Steel. It was originally a 10 ga. It's a #2 frame.

Technically it's an E Grade 12 ga....

Saw a VHE sn'd in the 237XXX range one time that had "Parker" engraved before the break between the receiver and forend iron on the bottom of the receiver, no rib inscription at all, and "Parker Bros." engraved on only one side (forget if it was left or right) of the receiver. Go figure!

Xxx

56213 letters as a heavy 32-inch barrel 12-gauge. It did get a second set of Vulcan Steel barrels, probably in the late teens or early 1920s, 32-inch 20-gauge but Mark and Chuck have never found any record of them. :crying:

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Thanks for the response Dave. So the puzzle remains unsolved.





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Yeah!! And, I'm still wondering what that 153 means on the left barrel flat of the 20-gauge barrels?