[quote=Dave Noreen;15535]
Trojan vs Sterlingworth -- Opinions being like a------s and everyone has one, I will risk venturing mine.
As to workmanship, I'd say that when the Sterlingworth came out in 1910 as a $25 gun its workmanship was really quite good. The Trojan when it came out a couple of years later at $27.50 was also of good quality. After WW-I the prices went up steeply and by 1919 the Sterlingworth had a list price of $55. Fox then cut the price to $48 in 1922 then to $36.50 in 1926 and of course workmanship and wood quality suffered. While Parker did eliminate the rib extension on the Trojan overall quality stayed high and so did the price with a price of $51.50 in 1927 and $55 by 1929.
A Fox unless everything is just right can sometimes be hard to open because of firing pin points sticking in primers. Parkers with rebounding hammers don't have this fault. Trojans in 12-gauge are built on the #2 frame and tend to be heavy. It is fairly easy to find 30-inch 12-gauge Sterlingworths right at 7 pounds and shorter barrels a bit under. Similarly I believe small bore Sterlingworths tend to run lighter than Trojans. Sterlingworths were offered in 26-, 28-, 30-, and 32-inch barrels in all three gauges while Trojans had a more limited selection of barrel lengths -- 30-, 28, and 26- inch in 12-gauge and only 28- and 26-inch in the small bores. There should also be many more Sterlingworths out there to choose from as Fox made about 111,000 in 12-gauge, 28,000 in 16-gauge and 21,000 in 20-gauge, as to about 33,000 total Trojans by the Brothers P. Also, Sterlingworths were available with ejectors. Sterlingworths were offered with single triggers from 1914 on, while the single trigger was only offered on the Trojan right at the end of production. They are not often seen on either of these entry-level guns.[
Thanks Dave. Maybe some day I'll have a Aeolian harp, for now, have to settle for a few Martin HD acoustics. I didn't know there were more Sterlingworths made than Parker Trojans, now, I do. A good friend has a later series Trojan (1938) 20 bore with 28 barrels and a single non-selective trigger. grouse and woodcock tremble when he and his GSP enter the coverts in late Oct--as well they should.
Perhaps cost factors caused Parker's deletion of the doll's head extension on the Trojan. My 20 Fox was made it Utica as marked on the barrels, but the wood, checkering and workmanship was like (in my eyes anyway) to a friend's Phila. Sterlingworth 16 bore- weight and balance too. Very nice guns indeed. McIntosh mentioned the issue of non-rebounding hammers re: Fox guns-a question of "timing" perhaps??
