Restored CHE
 

Does anyone have an idea how I might track down who did the restoration on this CHE ? It is a 30" 12 bore built in 1902 and has Titanic Steel Barrels.

What a SHAZAAM piece of wood!!

Yup, quite a piece of English Walnut. A blank like that today would cost well into four figures. It would be hard to determine who did the damaging refinish. It seems like the case hardening heat warped the floorplate. Hopefully, other parts fit OK and everything works. Definitely a showy gun with vivid colors and great wood. I have been told that there are people out there who can fix a bad floorplate mortise.

Yikes! :shock::shock:

It seems like the case hardening heat warped the floorplate.

Help educate me.......what was there in the photo that shows a warped floorplate ?

First photo Joe, you can see the edge of the floor plate, it may be that it's not seated .

:eek: Possibly Ed1?

bill i would have never picked up that floor plate you have a very keen eye for details... charlie

That is quite a piece of wood that was put on that gun, I don't think I've seen that quality of wood on any Parker, and I know that had to be costly. The cyanide case colors really make the gun pop.

Here is a C grade smallbore I have that is from about the same year, but its not near as distinctive as yours. Mine is worn and it has those type of damascus barrels that a Parker writer called wallhangers and said devalued the gun. Anyway, its what I have and I kind of like it, as I am sure you are quite proud of yours. Enjoy the gun and have fun with it. Always interesting to see these refinished guns.

I understand C grade guns are going to be the display gun for the PGCA annual meeting in Louisville, Kentucky. I have a few old C grades to bring but all are in at least somewhat worn condition.

Mr. Souther, to your original question of who worked on your gun.

I am only guessing, but there were a couple shops that did cyanide process case colors, among them the Color Case Company in Ohio and DelGrego Gunsmiths in Ilion, NY. The DelGrego's did the preparation work and then sent the work out to another small shop in Ilion.

As for the stock work, I have no idea. There are a number of stockists, and even the DelGrego's sent that work out to friends in the trade. I do not know if it is DelGrego work, but the gun is sufficiently distinctive such that you could send them photos and I would think they would remember the gun if they did any of the work.

I use the DelGrego's for some mechanical work and greatly respect their abilities.

Thanks Bruce........does DelGrego have an email address ?

I know the restoration hurts the value but I now have a gun that fits me and I am not afraid to shoot.

He does, but I've forgotten it. Lawrence Del Grego at 315 894 8754.

As to "hurt value", not necessarily. It would depend on the condition the gun was in before refinishing. Some posters here have forgotten that at the Julia auction two years ago, there were a few high grade guns that were determined to be high original condition by experts such as significant Parker collectors and consultants such as LaRue and Dillon. Restoration gunsmith Doug Turnbull identified some of those guns as having been redone by him and that was disclosed at auction. The guns sold in the same range as they had been estimated to sell for before the Turnbull disclosure. So for those guns in that instance, restoration properly and flawlessly done did not hurt gavel price and placed those guns at par with original high condition guns.

The devil is in the details for restorations.

Enjoy your gun and have fun with it.

Bruce

Larry DelGrego
1757 Barringer Road
Ilion,NY 13357

I believe that Ohio Case Color Co. does bone charcoal case coloring.Maybe they do cyanide too?

That's what I thought too. Eric

I have heard that Ohio Case Color Co. is out of business--and has been for a couple of years now, something about the proprietor having health issues. Is this erroneous info?

They NEVER did case case colors that duplicated Parker colors. I called a few years ago about a project and was told that they could not reproduce Parker colors.

Jay,I agree and I think that their colors were a little too vivid. But on the other hand I have seen a few of their case color jobs that have aged and they look pretty nice. Better than quite a few other attempts I have witnessed.

I agree with Jay and Dave too. The Case Color Company of Ohio better replicated colors we generally see on original Marlin and some Winchester lever-action rifles.

I'm not convinced that this CHE has been refinished with cyanide coloring, looks to my eyes to be those bone charcoal case colors that come out of John Gillette's shop, Classic Guns, Inc. Here's a link to a few more pics of this gun:
http://www.shotgunworld.com/bbs/view...?f=71&t=250591

So this CH gun is cyanide colored. What traits in the finish leads you to that conclusion? Maybe we are confusing Ohio Case Color with Classic Guns, John Gillette's company. John is actively in business as far as I know. OOPS, Wild Skies, I was writing while you were pushing the send button. Great minds think alike.

Irregardless of the case colors and the fact it's not checkered with the mullered borders for the asking price I'd of bought just because of the wood!I'm NOT a 12ga guy but would have bought that gun.

Look at the wood to metal fit in the pictures on the shotgunworld.com link. Maybe the stockmaker will come forward and identify himself.

If a person feels that the case colors are too bright, they can be toned down. Some folks like them bright. On the other hand, a couple of us spent a few hours one evening with Flitz and a polishing cloth on a buddy's gun and that reduced them a lot.

Its a gun you will enjoy showing off and shooting. Good luck with it.

I sent photos to Classic Guns but I have not heard back yet. I would just like to know what it looked like before the restoration. The engraving is still sharp and the wood too metal fit is good.

Here are other photos:

I think that may be Claro walnut like was used in the Repros. Any wood identification experts?

I would say that it is an outstanding piece of quarter sawn Juglans Regia, aka English walnut.

I agree with Mr Skies, I'm not convinced its a cyanide job. Attached is a DelGrego (letter, box, invoice, etc.) cyanide gun photo which shows the classic "Tiger Strip" pattern.

Classic Guns thinks it is their case colors. I sent them photos earlier today. I purchased the gun earlier in the week and have not yet received it.

Dave Fuller, I think you are right. Its more likely bright charcoal color case.

I think this is number four, ie, Bruce and I agree. This gun may turn out to be a real prize. Maybe the floorplate mortise is a trick of the camera.

Joe ; Bruce is giving great advice using Flitz to tone down the colors ,if that is what you desire ,but a word of caution here ,They come off very fast and may turn a charcoal gray underneath , a very light hand here is necessary ,you do a lot very quickly ! I had a 28 Ga. VHE that was so striped with cyanide colors ,it made you dizzy to look at it and the Flitz worked very well upon Bruces advice. but the colors remove very fast and turned a mottled blue gray ,the gun looks great ,I was just suprised how little polishing it took to remove the glare ! Best ; Russ

Someone wanted to see the other side of the stock

Fantastic!! It looks like the neck feathers of a Golden Pheasant....

or some kind of butterscotch hard candy.

Nice gun you have Joe
 

[quote=joe souther;37134]I sent photos to Classic Guns but I have not heard back yet. I would just like to know what it looked like before the restoration. The engraving is still sharp and the wood too metal fit is good.

Here are other photos:[/The first foto- showing the bottom of the receiver- if you look closely at the left barrel side you can see a slight gap in the trigger plate fit to the receiver, and that the machine screw slot has a slight "wiggle". Possible this happened in the restoration- just as heat follows cold in movement, heat input in ferrous metals will always flow from the thicker mass to the thinner edges- tricky bit of business here. Didn't the late Dr. Gaddy also do re-case hardening on Parkers in his lab??:cool:

Yes he did but his colors were more like the subdued original Parker Bros. colors and not at all like some of the 'over the top' colors so many refinishers and restorers we see today.

This CHE was delivered to me today and it is better than the photos. The colors are very subdued and not nearly as bright as they appear in the photo. The floorplate fits flush...I think the photo just made a reflection that looked like an edge. Overall incredibly happy. The wood is fabulous and the wood to metal fit is perfect as well as the checkering. It appears to be unfired since restoration. Now I need a nice leather case. Where do you get an ivory bead that resembles the original ? Joe

Certainly an attractive gun.

Ivory beads :
custom made Scott Doris 815 922 4534
Lyman beads wwww.brownells.com

Leather Cases
a variety of vintage leg of mutton cases and new and used trunk cases are available from anywhere from $200 to $700. What do you want and how much do you want to spend? Some of the cheaper ones are just that....cheap, but sometimes you can find one that is not falling apart for less.

Here are some photos in natural light...alot different from the photo lamps....

I found a very nice LOM case at an Antique store. The ends had been replaced and nicely done. After applying some leather cleaner it came out very nice. The cost $15:)

I found an Orvis LOM case at the same store that had some water streaking on it for $30. A PGCA member bought hat one.

They are just like Parkers in that there where you find them.