1882 Parker

[Mike Short]

I have had this gun for close to 30 years. A friend gave it to me for doing some work for his 98 year old mother. I ran across this forum and thought it would be a good place to learn something about this The bore on both barrels actually looks really good. No pitting and completely smooth and shiny. The S/N on the barrel , frame and fore stock all match. According to the S/N search it was made in 1882. The S/N is 25308. It looks to be a number 1 frame in 12 gauge. Letters JS are stamped twice under the 1 on the barrel. The other markings are PAT'D APRIL 11 1876 T in a circle with 524 under it and slightly higher to the right a r and smaller font 12 again slightly higher and to the right of the 3. The frame has the S/N and PAT'D APRIL 11 1876, SEPT 3 1873 AND MAR 16 1875. The top rib has PARKER BROS MAKERS, MERIDEN CONN TWIST. The barrel measures 27-1/2" from one end to the other. One of the hammer screws appears to have been changed. Everything else seems to me to be correct for this gun - BUT I do not know what I am looking at.

[OH Osthaus]

what you have is a basic model - grade 0 - twist barrelled gun which left the factory with 30" barrels - so, they have been trimmed a bit

my biggest concern with the signs of wear on the outside would be the shiny bores, it was almost impossible to use these that much and not have some corrosion in the barrels from the old mercury based primers of the late 1800's

so- if you plan to shoot it, have the barrels checked by someone who knows what they are doing - the wall thickness needs to be verified

[Mike Short]

Originally Posted by Rick Losey

what you have is a basic model - grade 0 - twist barrelled gun which left the factory with 30" barrels - so, they have been trimmed a bit

my biggest concern with the signs of wear on the outside would be the shiny bores, it was almost impossible to use these that much and not have some corrosion in the barrels from the old mercury based primers of the late 1800's

so- if you plan to shoot it, have the barrels checked by someone who knows what they are doing - the wall thickness needs to be verified

Thank you sir. I thought it was a grade 0 but I could not find any markings and I wanted to be sure. I assume since the barrel has been trimmed back as I suspected it has no collector value.

[Dean Romig]

That’s correct Mike, but it still may be a perfectly usable shooter.





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[OH Osthaus]

the vast majority of these old guns today are shooters IMHO

collector's value lies in pristine condition and/or rarity

ok - well that and gunbroker listing hyperbole

[Mike Short]

The rib on the end of the barrels is a little loose at the front edge and I thought an easy fix might be to trim off a couple of inches and make it a 24 or 26 inch barrel. I just wanted to make sure I was not about to ruin a nice old shotgun. Thank you for your input.

[OH Osthaus]

well - at the current point- you would likely still have some choke - take any more and its gone

and if the rib continues to work loose - you may end up nibbling it back to a nub

but, relaying a whole rib is not cheap

i still think you need to have the gun evaluated by a pro

cutting back a gun you already cannot shoot safely would not do any good, if its safe, and you have nothing in it- see what a proper fix would take

[Mike Short]

Originally Posted by Rick Losey

well - at the current point- you would likely still have some choke - take any more and its gone

and if the rib continues to work loose - you may end up nibbling it back to a nub

but, relaying a whole rib is not cheap

i still think you need to have the gun evaluated by a pro

cutting back a gun you already cannot shoot safely would not do any good, if its safe, and you have nothing in it- see what a proper fix would take

I appreciate you helping with this. Is there anyone around Indianapolis anyone can recommend to take a look at this? I would like to have someone with more experience than me take a look at it and see if it is safe and repairable.

[Dean Romig]

Bachelder Master Gunmaker in Grand Rapids, MI






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