Recently given 1920 Parker Trojan

[Novahunter]

Good morning everyone,

My uncle gave me a parker trojan shotgun that was willed to him. As far as I know, the shotgun has spent he last 30 years in my uncle's safe. Prior to that, I believe the gentleman that left it to my uncle was the original owner. The original owner was an avid outdoorsman and hunter for decades.

I've read up on some of the introductory info on the forum, and that's been helpful. Mechanically, the shotgun seems to be in very good working order. It locks up tight, triggers and ejectors seem to be in good working order (from my amateur inspection). There is a slight wiggle/flex in my palm around the trigger guard when I open the breech. On the right side, it looks like a screw is protruding out more that it should be. The bores are dirty/dusty but look good.

From what I've been told, it was the original owners primary bird and rabbit gun for the better part of 70 years. The stock shows alot of use. All the original finish is worn off. There is some surface rust on the barrels due to the finish being warn off, but I don't believe any rust has severely compromised the shotgun.

My questions are:
1. Is the buttpad original or is this most likely a cheap replacement?
2. How do I determine the choke of each barrel?
3. Given it's a Trojan, and was heavily used, is there much collectors value?
4. I'd like to preserve and protect the shotgun as much as possible. To that end, is re-finishing the metal and wood an option? How much, ballpark cost, would it cost to re-finish by a professional?
5. Is there a gunsmith in Virginia that could examine the shotgun?
6. Would shooting it semi-regularly be ok, or is that not recommended?
7. What else should I be asking or need to know?

Thank you!
Ryan

[John Knobelsdorf II]

Ryan: You can look here on the PGCA Homepage for a lot of wise information that touches on your questions. https://parkerguns.org/ Look for “Parker FAQs”

Congratulations on receiving a quality firearm.

Any Parker Brothers shotgun (in safe shooting condition) is going to be a fine game getter.

The pad may not be cheap. But unless a very special order, it is likely a replacement and a replacement that has some age and antiquity of its own.

Assuming the chokes are not altered, you can expect them to be modified and full. The standard configuration for the Trojan grade. There are drop in gauges that can give you an estimate. Gunsmiths invest in the tools that can give you a more accurate reading on the Parker Gun chokes. The only way to really know what your chokes are doing for any given gun and load is to actually shoot at paper and then count the pellets.

If this were mine, I would get this to the best quality gunsmith I could who has experience working on the Parker gun. The alignment of the screw head slots is solid evidence that someone else has already been in there and didn’t quite know how to put it back together to the same way they found it. The protruding screw you refer to was probably misfit at the same time. Not fatal mistakes but cosmetics well worth correcting.

You don’t mention the gauge, I’ll assume it’s a 12 gauge.

Can you tell us the serial number, or post a better picture so we can make out the first three digits?

And the barrel length is …? How about top view pictures of the end of the barrels?

[Novahunter]

Serial number is 1884XX. Looks like it was made in 1920 based on the published serial number list.

What screwhead slot alignment do you mean? I was given the shotgun in 3 pieces and I just fiddled with it until it all snapped into place.

Are there any recommended gunsmiths in Northern Virginia?

[Big D]

Reverse the two screws in the floorplate, and see if they align straight north/south

[Novahunter]

Measured the barrels. They are both 29 and 15/16ths in long. Added a few pics. It is 12 gauge. 2 3/4in shells will drop in and the guns will close on them.

The serial number is 188414.

Appreciate the info everyone has given thus far.

Thanks,
Ryan

[Mark Britton]

Hey Nova you have come to the right place. As for value it was your Uncles gun .Priceless! Don't shoot the gun until it has been evaluated by a competent gun smith. Do we have a gunsmith in VA ? Yes you and I are in luck there ! Gunther Ptommer Rocky Mount VA 540 484 5555 is one of the best and has been my go to guy for 20 years. Warring a little hard to understand on the phone because of his accent . But ask him over again ! Cant say enough about how knowable and reasonable priced he is.He is a great guy and will treat you fair.