"The Original Long Range Shotgun"

[Drew Hause]

The Super Fox HE was introduced 1923, the same year as the Smith Long Range. One Smith Long Range was produced in 1921 and an Eagle grade Long Range in 1922.



Came across this (poor) image from the 1894-1895 Montgomery Ward & Co. catalog listing The Parker Long Range



The Parker Bros. 1929 Catalog again mentioned the Parker Long Range
"Magnum, Super, and variously named guns about which so much is now being written are not a new development in the gun makers' art. For the past twenty years Parker Brothers have made guns to handle heavy charges of powder and shot, giving good patterns at long range. Recent improvements in powder and by shell manufacturers have served to make the Parker Long Range gun even more effective, so that today the Parker built and bored to secure the full power of modern loads with which one may confidently expect to bring down game at distances a few years ago considered impossible, is up to date but not new. Parker Long Range guns are built to guard the user against abnormal recoil. The weight of the barrels is so distributed that the gun handles the heaviest loads with comfort. The purchaser of a Parker Long Range can rest assured that he will receive a gun, easy to handle, sufficiently heavy and properly bored to shoot the heaviest loads for the killing of wild fowl at extreme ranges."

Was there any mention of a Parker Long Range in advertisements or catalogs between 1894 and 1929??

BTW the Jeffery "Long Range" was listed in the 1904-1914 catalogs

[OH Osthaus]

thanks Drew

My Super shipped in 1923 - .047 chokes

my longrange Smith was made in 1925 - .042 chokes

but my 3 frame 12 ga Parker was made in 1902
it has 32" heavy barrels with .038 chokes- only a little more open than the others
I can't believe that was made for anything other than waterfowl

I would like to see (heck- i'd like to have or at least shoot) a Parker that letters as a "long range"

[Drew Hause]

Thanks Rick.
That raises another interesting question; has anyone received a letter documenting a "Parker Long Range", and what DOM?

[Richard Flanders]

I hereby declare that my 1883 vintage, tight-choked, 32" twist bbld 12ga hammer gun to most definitely be a "Long Range' gun, which means that these slackers were late to the party. My gun kills ducks further out than any gun I have ever owned. Sorry Drew but that's the best I can do....

[B. Dudley]

Much like the late hammer guns and early hammerless guns that wore "trap gun" buttplates.

[double barrel]

The long range smith guns are mostly marked with 3" chambers, is that the case with the Parker Bros and others?
Ken

[OH Osthaus]

the chambers on that particular Parker of mine measure 2 3/4 with a Galazan chamber guage

[charlie cleveland]

only thing i see about the long range lc smith is thatit has 3 inch chambers the choke is the same as 2 other lc smiths that i have with 2 3/4 inch chambers...the frames are just like the regular guns.i beleive all they done to my long range is just bored the chamber to 3 in ....charlie

[Drew Hause]

Smith LRWF marketing verbiage in 1923 "A distinctive L.C. Smith method of choking adds 15 to 20 yards to ordinary shotgun range...specially bored to a longer, tapering choke..."

Starting in 1907, Hunter Arms catalogs included the following statement:
"All Smith Guns are bored full choke unless otherwise ordered. We bore all our guns according to our Multiplied Choke Bore System, which has made the Smith Gun famous the world over for long-distance, close-shooting and hard-hitting qualities."

I am not aware of ANY factory LRWF that has anything but the standard bore dimensions; .730" without tapering to the choke constriction of about 3 inches in length; slightly more than the standard constriction over about 1 1/2" with a 1" parallel at the muzzle.

[charlie cleveland]

drew the chokes in my long range are no farther than 2 inches..but it will put a 92 percent pattern on the 30 inch circle at 40 yards....i wish that i could find a wild fowl gun to go with the long range...i really like any gun that haslong range capabiltseswould love th have a fox long range or a parker 3 inch gun... charlie