DHE 12 ga. ?

[Ruff Hunter]

Winplumber, you're right. I grabbed a G grade that wasn't buried in the safe with the rest of the Parkers and stared at the top rib under a bright light. The line on the edges of the sighting rib is so faint that I could barely see it, but it is there. I could not see it at all under the rib matting. I'd never noticed it before on any of my Parkers or any of the photographed Parkers that I've stared at over the years. The seam on this gun's rib stands out in stark contrast and caught my eye immediately. Perhaps its a result of the rebluing? But I've seen plenty of reblued Parkers that didn't show the seam so clearly, so...
Since the heir asked, what's the consensus on the fair market value of this 12 gauge D grade with reblued barrels and extractors....maybe in that $2,500-$3,000 range in today's economy?

[J.B. Books]

Jent the third picture down on the original post shows the rib inscription, Titanic Steel.

[winplumber]

Book has it right Ti3 I dont think anyone with us can answer why / how the barrels were redone

[Dean Romig]

Steve, has a vent hole been drilled in the bottom rib just forward of the forend lug?

[Steve Galehouse]

Chilled-

No no vent hole that is obvious. The bottom rib looks continuous.

Steve

[Dean Romig]

That's a good thing in my opinion.

[winplumber]

Chilled - ?

[Steve Galehouse]

Chilled-

What does lack of a vent hole indicate?

Steve

[Dean Romig]

It usually indicates that a great deal of care was taken not to alter the gun from its original state. Parker Bros. did not drill a vent hole when they "rebrowned" a set of barrels and I think it detracts from an otherwise nice Parker.

[Ruff Hunter]

Everything I've read has uniformly stated that when rust bluing a set of barrels, a vent hole in the bottom rib is essential because during the repetitive boiling process, the air trapped between the top and bottom ribs expands when heated to 212 degrees and the resulting pressure can pop a rib loose. But I've also noted that original condition Parkers don't have a vent hole like most other brands of vintage doubles, and wondered how Parker managed to rust blue its barrels, which presumably had to be done after both the top and bottom ribs were soldered in place.

Is it simply not true that a vent hole in the bottom rib is necessary for rebluing Parker barrels? Has anyone here ever tried to rust blue a set of Parker barrels without a vent hole and had the rib pop loose during the boiling process?