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Damascus Barrels

Good Morning Gents,

I have a question or two about Damascus Barrels on Parker Shotguns. How many different grades or styles of Damascus were available? Could the different grades be put on any gun , or were the grades of barrels specific to a particular grade of gun? I have seen what appeared to me to be higher grade barrels on like grade guns. Possibly the pattern just came out better on some sets than others? The sets that I would deem as higher grade had a very uniform pattern and a small “star” between the Iron and steel laminations. I have also seen some sets that show an obvious splice where there is an abrupt change in the flow of the pattern. Is this something that should have been rejected prior to assembling the barrels .What is the latest Damascus barreled gun recorded? Lastly who made the barrel blanks for Parker?
Thanks in advance to your reply,
Fritz

There is much about Parkers barrels in The Parker Story, and found by searching "damascus barrels" on this website.

Fritz,

Anything was possible... Bruce provide sound advice to invest in and read the Parker Story. "Blemished" copies are available from The Double Gun Journal for a bit less than $200.

Many types of Damascus were available from Parker. Since those were all handmade all of a certain type will not be identical.

Twist (technically not Damascus) barrels were used on lower grade guns.

Fine Damascus barrels were used on higher grade guns but not always.

Several types (to the Damascus experts) were used on Grade 2 - 3 and perhaps higher.

Bernard Damascus barrels were used on Grade 4, “C”.

I have an EH with distinctive snake skin looking Damascus patterns. My other EH's of the same period have more communally found patterns.

I also have Damascus on Grade 2 and 3 guns and also in LC Smiths that include a change in pattern and perhaps two billets (http://www.picturetrail.com/sfx/album/view/16082038 ) were hammer welded together. Those barrels are interesting and to me, a little more valuable than a barrel with uninterrupted pattern. Too each his own... Those splices or changes in patterns would not be evident until the barrels were finished.

What we will unfortunately will not find on Parkers is my favorite, the Chain Damascus pattern as shown on my moniker. That is from a photo of an LC Smith 10 Gauge.

One could write a book on this subject but my lawn mower is calling me so I won't attempt that today :)

Mark

Pieper, Bernard, etc were exporters.
Multiple splices were common on Grade 2 ( 2 and 3 Croille) barrels.
Croille numbers increased as Grades increased .
I've shown many photos of Chain, Bernard 1 and 2, Croilles 2,3, 4, 5 , American Bunting, Herringbone, Laminated, Stars and Stripes, Liege 1 and 2, Terrell Gun ( repeating name in barrels), and more.
I've posted photos of damascus barrel samples in making.

There are in fact whole books on the subject. And the Double Gun Journal has for the last ten years run Sherman Bell's Finding Out For Myself articles about documenting the strength of damascus barrels ( sample ruptured at 29,000psi).

The last known Parker with damascus barrels was 1927, see the PP's. Post 1925 they are stamped "Overload Proved", but all PArker barrels well before then were overload proved, just not stamped.

Here's the Terrell Parker. People usually find the repeating name interesting.

Thanks Bruce,
I have read Mr Bell's article on the strength of damascus barrels and found it to be enlightening and good proof that Damascus is not a time tomb ticking away...untill!!

I will keep my eyes open for a copy the Parker Story.

Fritz

Do what I did many years ago. I put on a heavy coat, chaps, boots, welders gloves, motorcycle helmet with visor, summer, sweating, holding the gun at arms length and pulling the trigger.......and it just went pop. So I pulled the other trigger, pop, and the fellows at the range were laughing, so I took all that stuff off and shot a couple rounds of trap and had fun. Damascus barrels have a subtly different feel to them, just more solid.

So I don't sweat it anymore, literally and figuratively.

Bruce,
Great reply... I am still holding my stomach....Thank goodness for your pionereering efforts!!... Please find me a nice dhe damascus so I can sleep at night
Fritz

I may be able to do just that.

Its Sherman Bell who had the pioneering efforts. He didn't believe what all the gun experts were telling him. They were supposed to unravel like a spring, then it was explode like shrapnel, then they were blackpowder only, then low pressure only, then we heard blackpowder was lower pressure spiked than smokeless, then we heard that damascus could only be shot for so many years then before rupturing, there were more old wives tales than at a DAR Convention.