Parker Trojan Model

[Researcher]

When the When the A.H. Fox Gun Co.’s Sterlingworth came out in 1910 it had a net selling price of $25. The price stayed at $25 into 1916, then climbed quickly to $55 by 1919. War time inflation. A.H. Fox Gun Co. reduced the price to $48 in 1922 and again to $36.50 in 1926. Workmanship of course declined. Parker Bros. introduced their Trojan Grade at $25.50 in 1912, but jumped to $27.50 for 1913. The Trojan’s price climbed like the Sterlingworth to $55. Parker Bros. kept the price and the quality of the Trojan high and sold about 33000 total. Fox began cutting the price of the Sterlingworth and sold well over 100000.

Fox offered a greater selection of barrel lengths on the Sterlingworth and the extra cost options of ejectors, twin ivory sights, a recoil pad, from 1914 onwards a Fox-Kautzky Single Selective Trigger, and from 1936 onwards a beavertail forearm.

Twenty-five dollars was the price point a lot of the companies seemed to shoot for. Hunter Arms Co., 00-Grade L.C. Smith had a net price of $25. Remington Arms Co.'s K-grade had a net price of $25 until they saw the light and moved forward with their John M. Browning designed Remington Autoloading Shotgun and their John D. Pedersen designed Remington Repeating Shotgun. Lefever Arms Co.'s Durston Special had a net price of $25.

[Tom Flanigan]

Brian.....I have no documentation except for Peter Johnson mentioning it in his book. A lot of what Johnson wrote is not totally correct. But he interviewed Charlie Parker and he might have misinterpreted things or just got them wrong. I thought he was wrong about the plain black finish also. But many years ago a bar owner showed me his Parker that his father bought new from the factory in Meriden. The gun was little used and still had all of the original finish. The barrels were plain black and rather dull. The frame had the same black finish. I know a refinished gun when I see one and this gun did not appear to be refinished in any way and the owner said it had never been touched. I could be wrong, but after seeing that gun and one other, I became convinced that at least a few of the very earliest Trojans had a plain black finish. They might have been prototypes but I don't know. Peter Johnson didn't invent his notion of plain black finished early Trojans. He might have heard that from Charlie Parker. It's a mystery.

[B. Dudley]

Well, it being in Johnson’s book is just as good as there being no documentation.

And how many guns do we see today in families that are 2-3 generations down the line that are completely wrong though the owners refute that they are original and not refinished.

The only two Trojan grade guns that I have ever seen that were factory original blued were both prototypes. One built by hayes in 1928 for a proposed redesign and the other was the Trojan Skeet model intended to be offered by remington. Both hang in the Remington Museum.

[Tom Flanigan]

I don't know for sure one way or the other. But I do know refinished Parkers and neither of those two guns appeared to be refinished. The finish was the same on the barrels as on the frame and it was somewhat dull. The gun owned by the Connecticut bar owner had checkering that was not worn or recut and the stock finish was the typical Parker shellac and oil. I believe I would have known if the checkering had been recut or the stock refinished. I have been restoring Parkers since I was 16 years old (52 years) and so I'm confident in my ability to spot a restored gun no matter how well done. But, as I said, I could be wrong. It's possible but I would be very surprised. In any event, its all a mystery to me. I wish there was something definitive one way or the other.

[Tom Flanigan]

A quick word about Peter Johnson and his book Parker, America’s Finest Shotgun…….I bought the book a couple of years after it came out. I saw it on the shelf of a gun store and was enthralled that a book about Parkers had been written. I loved reading it because he said many things about the Parker that my grandfather had been telling me since I was old enough to know what they were. Johnson was an enthusiast and not a researcher. But his work was the first and he had access to Charlie Parker. I still enjoy reading the book today. It did spark a resurgence in interest of vintage American shotguns, most notably the Parker. I can forgive him for what we now know were mistakes. He was the first to write a book about Parkers long before the others and subsequent research. He and his book are to be commended. I will always hold Peter Johnson in high esteem.

[King Brown]

Bless Mr. Johnson. He was among the first to get Parkers into print. Not a definitive source but at the time he was valuable for my needs.

[Tom Flanigan]

Originally Posted by King Brown

Bless Mr. Johnson. He was among the first to get Parkers into print. Not a definitive source but at the time he was valuable for my needs.

I believe I was 10 years old when I spotted the book in a gun store. Too young to hunt but I was very interested in Parkers and hunting. I had a subscription to the three popular sporting magazines of that day. I had never seen a grade higher than DHE and the pictures of the higher grades in the book enthralled me. I actually wore that book out and the pages started coming out so I bought another copy years later. I am on my third copy of that book.

[Richard Flanders]

Charles. you can always just copy/paste the selected text into Word, one reply at a time then save it as a word document and print it when you have all the info you want.

[Bill Murphy]

Give me a little time and I will be selling a few of those rare and valuable black frame Trojans. I think about $2200 would be a fair price for a 12 gauge.

[Tom Flanigan]

Originally Posted by Bill Murphy

Give me a little time and I will be selling a few of those rare and valuable black frame Trojans. I think about $2200 would be a fair price for a 12 gauge.

I know you are kidding Bill but have you ever come across a plain black finish Trojan, that you don't believe was refinished. Or is it just me and Peter Johnson?