Advice needed on coaching a Parker 12 gauge
 

I just inherited my great grandfather’s 12 gauge Parker shotgun. As best I can tell the serial number of the gun shows it was manufactured in 1901 and it is made of Vulcan steel. It was missing some screws and I took it to a gunsmith who repaired it, but there is a dent in the barrel several inches down that the gunsmith says make the barrel unsafe to shoot as is, so his recommendation station is to stagecoach the gun and cut the barrel off at some point below the dent. My questions are 1) am I better off leaving the gun as is in its original condition but unshootable, or 2) what barrel length should I have the gun shortened to that would make it a great Parker coach gun? Is the value of the gun completely ruined if the gun is coached even though it’s more fun and functional? I have attached a few pics. Thanks for any advice!

DONT CUT THE BARRELS !!! take it to a smith that know side by sides
scott

Do not cut the barrels, they can be fixed by a good side X side gunsmith!!

Most dents can be lifted and the work can be made nearly invisible.

By all means - don’t cut those barrels. Your great-grandfather would never forgive you.

Find a gunsmith who knows and has experience on classic sxs guns. IMO your guy gave you bad advice.

Cutting the barrels on that gun would reduce its value from $1200 to $400 tops.




.

If your gunsmith put that screw in the trigger guard I would find a different gunsmith !Please show the dent and also did he put a screw on the right side of the receiver . if so please show in a picture .

Romney,
I bet if you give the general area where you live the members in here may know of a gunsmith near you that could look at your gun. good luck

Please show us a picture of the dent.





.

Romney,
you would be amazed at the dents that can be raised, and many have. And as someone else said, find a new smith. A picture of the dent would help, and your location to recommend someone that might be close by. I have raised numerous dents with my Hosford tool. Most you can't see.

As others here have said. Please get the gun to a qualified gunsmith who knows Parkers. After looking over the pictures you posted. I see several items that need to be addressed besides the dent in the barrels. By the looks of things the gun has been disassembled sometime in the past & several screws have either been lost or replaced by incorrect screws & that's only what can be seen externally, who knows what might have been done internally. One of the main issues I would have looked at is the fit of the stock to the action, if I'm seeing things correctly you may be missing both of the tang screws that secure the stock to the action or they may just be loose and need to be fit up correctly. The one thing your smith got right was to not shoot the gun until the proper repairs have been completed.

All of these issues can probably be addressed to bring your grandfathers gun back to the condition he would be proud of, but it will the take time, financial commitment & a qualified gunsmith who knows Parkers to do so.

Good luck & let us know how things go with this one.

Thanks for the Advice!
 

All, thank you very much for your great input and advice. I will move forward with finding a different gunsmith that really knows side by sides in an effort to try and get the dent fixed and avoid coaching the gun. I live in the greater Provo/Salt Lake City, UT area - if anybody knows a good side by side gunsmith anywhere in this area that they recommend I could reach out to, that would be much appreciated!