parker trojan

[Autumn Daze]

Tom, That is the first time I ever heard of a broken hammer on a hammerless gun. Where did it break? At the tip? I have dry fired my gun's but not allot I use snap cap's..but that is just me. Parker sales literature states that their guns can be dry fired without concern. But steel does weaken with age.

[Old and Reliable]

The hammers are forged and the firing pins (strikers) are part of the forging that is then machined to the finished part. Tom, you mentioned you found the problem, do I assume you have a replacement hammer for your Trojan then? Dave is right about metal fatigue- and also snap caps-

I use A-zoom snap caps as the dummy primers are spring loaded, and give the firing pins something to contact. IMO- snapping down to relieve stored tension on the springs- especially V springs as on my LC Smiths is important.

But I have several pre-WW11 Model 12's and a M70- all have been shot a great deal, and I do NOT dry fire to take tension off those coil springs when stored in the Browning Gun Safe. One advantage to a coil spring, if contained, if a slight fracture occurs on either end, it will still function. Break a V-spring as from a sidelock doublegun, and you now have two pieces of potential shim stock- from alloy steel-

I use Rem Oil aerosol, but also prefer the clear oil that is used to lubricate the internal pistons of air powered nail guns--for grease I use Lubriplate (lightly) applied with either a toothpick or Q-Tip--

Welding fractured sears and springs is a waste of time- and material- and TIG is not a cheap process. You can re-weld a fracture (depending on location and function of the area of the hammer that broke of course) with TIG, but you should first take a DHP test to determine hardness, and you must anneal before welding, post weld anneal by packing the part in ground charcoal and wrapped in asbestos sacking- then reharden to factory hardness specs. Cheaper to buy a replacement intact hammer-possibly!!