I need help with my Parker
 

Hello and good morning.

I am new to the Parker forum and just yesterday I bought 12 ga Parker Bros VH.
I am trying to figure out little bit more about the shotgun.
I hope someone here can help me or direct to right area.
This is all I have for now.
Serial number: 153374
PATD Mar 26, 1878
Parker brothers, makers, Meriden, conn. Vulcan steel
No safety feature on the shotgun.
I would like to know if I can use the weapon for dove hunting and if I can use game load Winchester 2-3/4 inch, 1 Oz, shot 8
Thank you in advance for your help

There are surviving records on 153374 to support a research letter. If the gun truly does not have a safety at all there might be some interesting information on the person who ordered it and possibly why it was ordered that way.





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Thank you Dean for your quick reply. Can I request the research letter online or the only option is via mail?
Will the research paper tell me if I can use the type of shells that mentioned in my original message?

If the chambers and bores haven't been messed with and the chambers are 2 9/16" or 2 5/8" or of course 2 3/4", I would think so. I have a 1898 DH 12 with Titanic Steel barrels with 2 9/16" chambers and I shoot moderate 2 3/4" loads in it all the time.

There are those who will say this is bad advice. I would certainly highly recommend you check wall thickness and chamber length first.





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Incidentally, you can order the research letter online by going to our HOME page and click on the Research Letter tab. I might add that if you join the PGCA for $40 annually the research letter will cost you only $40. If you choose not to join the PGCA the research letter costs $100.





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Welcome. Congratulations on an interesting gun. Post some pictures when you can.

No one can tell you over the internet what ammunition may or may not be safe in a given gun. That requires a qualified double gun smith with the proper tools and expertise.

That serial number is circa 1910. At that time, the heaviest 12-gauge loads being offered by our North American ammunition manufacturers was 3 1/2-drams of bulk smokeless powder --

Attachment 107657

or 28 grains of dense smokeless powder (such as Infallible or Ballistite) --

Attachment 107658

pushing 1 1/4-ounce of shot. Those 12-gauge loads could be had in 2 3/4-inch or longer shells.

Some DuPont powder booklets from the 1920s/30s show these loads had pressures above modern day SAAMI specs for 2 3/4-inch 12-gauge shells.

Nobody can tell you, over the internet, if your gun is sound to shoot. let alone what shells to use in it.

Thank you all for the valuable information. I will have to take it to a gunsmith first before I do anything with the shotgun. I hope I hear good news

If the MBW (minimum barrel wall thickness) is .250 or better.... 7/8 oz is plenty for doves.... and all woodlands for that matter. RST shells would be appropriate. If you can get them.

.250? quarter inch?