View Single Post
Parker Chokes
Unread 01-10-2011, 09:38 AM   #4
Member
Austin W Hogan
PGCA Invincible
Life Member

Member Info
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 676
Thanks: 0
Thanked 408 Times in 197 Posts

Default Parker Chokes

Parker guns were "choked to deliver" if the customer requested a particular choke; the customer requests were usually noted as "as close as possible" or "open". The "default pattern" for guns made "on spec" for large orders was F & F and then M & F in the 20th century.
Prior to s/n 70000 the most frequent bore diameter is .750 inch ( plus .010) in 12 ga and the most frequent choke is .032. Note that a twelve ga shell is .810 OD with .030 walls on the paper tube; .810 - .060 = .750, perfect alignment of shell and bore.
A change in bore diameter at around 70000 is quoted in TPS. Dave Suponski measured the internal dimensions of an unfinished barrel and determined that after s/n 70000 a single shaped reamer was used to bore twelve ga barrels. It bored a straight section of about .730 that tapered to .695 at the muzzle. The bores were finished to .730 - .735, and the section near the muzzle was reamed to deliver the desired choke. Note that .735 - .695 is .040, the usual constriction of a full choke. Mark Conrad found that at the time fluid steel began to dominate Parker production at s/n 90000 the Patterning proceedure, and perhaps other things changed in the barrel shop.
The attached sketch shows the interior profiles of some Parker "competition" guns that I measured in preparation for measuring the "Super Fox" at Julia's for the DGJ article. Note that the .005 in/in taper of the chamber reduces the paper case mouth to .740 inside diameter, and that the .740 bore is again a match. The "Super Fox" is chambered and bored similarly.
The Parker forcing cones are 2 - 3 inches long, not quite as long as the Super Fox.
The plotted diameter of the muzzle section of the barrel shows the "OGEE" choke pattern described by Oscar Gaddy, and shown in a drawing in TPS. This was apparently ground into the reamer. Note that the final chokes plotted smooth out the OGEE pattern. The gun with the parabolic profile was marked "retarget before shipping" in the order book; this work was apparently necessary to produce the desired constriction.
Did King/Geary's barrel shop cut these chambers bores and chokes? We will never know. However, these cuts were made from the breech, not from the muzzle as done by most outside shops and gunsmiths.

Best, Austin
Attached Images
File Type: jpg CHOKE PROFILEweb.jpg (20.8 KB, 95 views)

Last edited by Austin W Hogan; 01-10-2011 at 09:42 AM.. Reason: added "and bored"
Austin W Hogan is offline   Reply With Quote
The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to Austin W Hogan For Your Post: