Serial Number....

[Roundsworth]

Bill's post above mentions a previous investigation into the status of my gun. I will request a letter in the hopes that some new Parker documents may have surfaced since then. Tomorrow I will finish disassembly and post photos. This has become an interesting thread! Thank you all for the positive feedback

[Roundsworth]

I completely disassembled the gun. I found no indication or remnants of a serial number in the stock. The inletting appears hand-hewn, not machine cut. Well done, nonetheless. This is my first hammerless gun breakdown, so I do not know what the inletting on a factory stock looks like.

The bottom/trigger plate has obviously been muscled out once or twice. I would bet that the aft end of it was used as a lever to break it loose from the frame. I did some careful tapping with an oak mallet and was able to get the plate to sit flush without force. I did not upset the integrity of the fit, though. It still fits tight as can be.

This is, by far, the dirtiest, driest and rustiest gun I have ever taken apart. Out of 150+ guns I have had in my possession, this is the worst! It appears as though all the original parts are there, judging by the serial numbers. There is one small crack in the stock that I can stabilize with Acraglas.

With all the parts off the frame, the barrels fit very snug with no side to side or forward and aft movement. She's on face!

[Dean Romig]

What is your opinion of the bending of the tangs and trigger guard re: who had done the work... Parker Bros or someone more heavy-handed?

[Roundsworth]

I would have to say, whoever did the conversion knew what they were doing. There is no evidence of improper tool usage to accomplish the task. It certainly appears to have been done professionally.

[Bill Zachow]

Dean/Bill, I got my "information" the same way Dean did. With my eyes. In its' time period, only Parker, or remotely, Purdeys, could have, and would have, built it.

[Roundsworth]

I started working on the trigger plate. When the lower tang was bent, the curve incorporated the two trigger slots. The right trigger was binding pretty bad. With some gentle taps on the trigger with a brass rod and mallet, I was able to recontour it so it would slide into the curved slot freely. I followed this with some very fine stoning on both triggers. I think this was the only malfunction with the conversion. I haven't tackled the safety mechanism yet, so I may be in for a challenge there, too!

[Hammer Gun]

I just can not believe any one bit Parker did this work, but of course I could be wrong. Never the less a GREAT! find. congrats Gary

[Bill Murphy]

Apparently, we left this thread to die without further pictures being posted which was promised by Mark. Mark never really opined about the matching of the bent trigger recesses and the less than perfect matching of the triggers to those recesses. Was it less than professional, in your opinion? It seems like anyone who could bend these tangs could make good work out of the trigger plate. I have had very well constucted crossover Parkers that were not built in the Parker factory. The British are very good at it and some Parkers were done there. This particular gun is not a Parker done conversion, in my opinion. None of the butt treatment, the grip size and geometry, nor the lack of numbering points to Parker Brothers participation. The BHE in The Parker Story is the only factory crossover gun I am personally aware of, even though there are others in the order books. The BHE is a neighbor of mine, I have inspected it in the past, and I have offered to buy it. Only personal inspection of a crossover gun can result in opinion about the skill of the builder.

[Roundsworth]

I went through my entire photo library and could not find the photos I took of the gun during assembly. Sorry. Guilty as charged.

[Double Lab]

Originally Posted by Mark Landskov

I went through my entire photo library and could not find the photos I took of the gun during assembly. Sorry. Guilty as charged.

That's OK Mark, neat gun.