Pics of my first Parker

B. Dudley · 02-18-2021, 06:33 PM

Ok. Thank you for confirming.

Generally speaking it is not uncommon for a forend to have a good deal more wear than the grip when it comes to checkering and finish as well. But in this case the difference is too great.

The case with your gun is that the buttstock is a replacement. But... it is a factory replacement. From maybe the mid to late 1920s or ‘30s. Yes, evident by the newer appearance of the checkering. But also by the checkering pattern itself. The rounded bottom of the grip pattern was used during that later period. Also the style of the comb and the rest of the grip is of that later period. I have seen a number of guns like this in the past. Usually on these you will also find a large “R” stamped under the trigger guard bow along with the serial and grade stamps. But that is not a guarantee, just an observation I have seen on many of these types of guns with factory replaced stocks. And if it has the “dog bone” reinforcement in the front of the head, the. It would be from the Remington era. The PGCA letter may or may not mention the return for repair. It depends on if there are records or not.

Now, the cheek checkering MAY be “original” to that factory replacement stock. It is in the right style for factory checkered cheeks. And it is in line with looking of the same age as the wrist checkering. But, without records confirming that it was a special request on the replacement stock, it will always be suspect. And it would be a special order request. Plenty of other examples of this have been seen on other guns and supported by letters.

Now, the finish on the stock and the forend have certainly been added to over the years and the whole gun has seen a good amount of use. But with some cleanup it could be made to be more presentable.

I personally always like these guns with factory replacement stocks, I used to own one very much like it. It means an old gun that has newer wood that would be much more sound and strong since it has less use on it. And it is still factory work.