Thanks for the replies from Harry, George and Bindlestiff! I especially want to say thanks for the recommendation on how to best clean my Parker; I definitely want to do it the proper way so as not to detract from the gun. I had no idea this was a VHE gun...I read/researched a lot so far but obviously I missed that! Of course, once I actually fire it...! Funny comment about picking the shells off the ground, Harry. The serial number fo my gun is 212649 (see pic). I measured the barrel length and I think it was 28" (my memory isn't always the greatest). Can't wait to shooot it when I get home. I took pics of the gun and loaded them onto my laptop the day before I deployed---my piqued interest in guns is due to my wife wanting to take firearm/self defense training, so I bought her a pistol and she determined she LOVES guns! Needless to say, I've always loved guns, but never grew up in an environment that enjoyed firearms for recreation. I have a small collection of guns, mostly of a military heritage; but now that my wife is on board with going to the gun range, "our" collection has surged recently, and also led to me researching the other two hand-me-down firearms. This has been quite fun! Before i deployed, My wife Dawn and I took concealed carry training, took two one-on-two formal handgun training classes, and then took a formal course called "Pistols II" which builds on basic handgun skills. We've been shooting handguns a good half-dozen times at the range, and I've shot (and cleaned) all the handguns in my collection now. When I return, however, I want to start pulling out my long guns and shoot (and clean) all of those! That will include the Parker!
