parker gun part swapping

[Dean Romig]

Thanks for that information Bruce.

[Bruce Day]

Dean, as further trivia and perhaps not of interest to most, is that Fajen/Bishop/ bought and Wenig /Gemmes still buy their Juglas nigra blanks from St Joe Walnut in St Joseph MO, which also sold local northern Missouri and Iowa walnut blanks to Parker Bros. Just as in the Meridan days, there are some wonderful pieces of air dried highly figured stump walnut that come from this region.

I believe it likely that many of if not most of the utilitarian V grade type stocks we see as replacements came as rough cut, inletted stocks from Fajen/Bishops. They did very well during the 50's and 60's with sporter stocks for all the war surplus 1903 Springfields being sold....remember the NRA ads for surplus 03's, what were they $20? Bill would know. There were also 30 Cal Carbine stocks when they were surplused out. My dad bought a Spanish American War era Krag with a Bishop stock and hunted deer when we lived in SoDak.


They made a lot of replacement stocks for M. 12's and those beavertail forends to replace the corn cob forends. The Parker replacement stocks I've seen had the deep angled thumb grooves like the replacement M 12 stocks. While its easy to tell that these are not original Parker stocks, they were certainly utilitarian and not costly , and I think they might have preserved many Parkers for use today that might have been discarded and lost because of broken stocks, high drop, or other features that owners found undesireable.

[Vincent Pascucci]

Guys, I never thought I'd start so much conversation. Just proof in the comments from some of you earlier about how much fun I'll have as a member (just lazy so far about signing up).

On the topic of regulation, one thing I noted was comments that the barrels should be set for the shot to cross streams at say 50 yards. if that's the case, then given that the centerlines on the muzzles of the 12 gage are about 1.25 inch (I admit that's eyeball accuracy but, as my father always says, it's close enough for the girls we go with) and if my math is right, then for the centerlines to meet at 50 yards, they'd only be canted in 0.025 deg towards each other. Seems hard to believe such accuracy in manufacture could have been attained in pre CNC machined days. And, I'm not sure how much it would have helped. Given that at 50 yards the pattern is many inches, if my two streams were exactly parallel, they'd still have probably 90% or better overlap.

Looking at the issue of the bead height above the barrel and how moving it back would affect elevation, it's tough to say. One would have to know what the original intent of the the set up was - e.g. was the bead set so that a line from the top to the back of the rib would precisely parallel the bore centerline, or was it slightly below so that sighting would place the bore extended center line above the aim point to compensate for drop at some point. I suspect the latter since assuming muzzle velocity of 1000 fps, drop would be about 5 or 6 inches at 50 yards.

Again, back to some trig, setting up the aim line to be 6 inches below the bore centerline at 50 yards requires about 0.2 deg difference between the two. That 0.2 deg difference would mean the top of the bead would have to be about 0.105 inch lower than the rear sighting point of the rib. Moving in 2 inches closer means it would have to be 0.098 inches lower than the rear sight point instead, or about 0.007" difference. Doesn't sound like much, but it is about a 7% change which, if the original sighting was to compensate for 6 inches of drop, this would change the point of impact by around 0.5". For the Sunday trap shooter or farmer out hunting, probably no big deal. But for the top end competitors, maybe one fewer hits out of 400. That could be important.

All that said, I think it takes means two things. First, as someone else said, take it out and shoot it to see if it's on target or not (though as I noted, I don't intended shooting the gun). Second it means after reading this some of you will be advising me to reconsider joining.

[TARNATION !!!]

Jent: I'm still learning. Can you explain regulating barrels? What is screwed up when barrels are cut? Is there a length that can be cut with no effect or is even a short length removed problematic? If a barrel set has been cut, can it be re-regulated and what would be involved?
Thanks
Jack

[TARNATION !!!]

Jent multi-tasking at the moment pgca and on phone with mom & daughter. should really say I'm listening while the ladies talk. could take a while if more than another half hour, i won't interrupt your sleep and call tomorrow at a time that works for you
jack

[Old and Reliable]

Welcome to the PGCA Forum Vincent- if you care to join the PGCA, IMO- it will be the best $40 you'll spend this year- the quarterly Parker Pages is well worth that- and as a paid member you can access the swap and also for sale sections of the Forum.

I have read all the posts- all good answers- I can't speak for cut down barrels, as I have never owned any double so altered (at least YET) but a re-assembled Parker 12 bore, whether ejector or extractor gun, is not all that rare.

If we were talking about a very high grade Parker with such "swapped out components", of course that factor would affect the collector value- but on the "meat and potatoes" Parkers- the 12 gauges mainly, VH(E) up through possible DH(E) that you want for either SC or field bird hunting, there is no problem with a mis-matched gun if it functions and fits you, again, IMO.

Mr. Turnbull was a guest at the Vintagers this past Sept (according to the fine write-up in Parker Pages) and he gave seminars on the proper way to field strip a Parker for cleaning, etc. He and the DelGrego family are certainly fine folks to entrust your Parker(s) to, whether a Trojan grade or an AAHE-and all points in between.

I can't speak on barrel regulation, none of my side-by-sides in my "working battery" have ever had choke or chamber re-work- BUT I am mainly a pass shooter, and like my hero the late T. Nash Buckingham, I use 12 gauges 99% of the time- and loner barrels and tighter chokes- works for me, may not for you. I like to see a bird crumple in the air, feathers hanging in the wind-before it drops dead as a graveyard headstone--I get that effect (and save my Lab a lot of cripple chasing I hope) with a snugger choked 12 bore-

I did find that for SC (and fine for quail and grouse I'd guess) 12 LC Smith Ideal with 26" barrels and choked Imp. Cyl. and Mod. (it came with the yellow factory tag matching the serial number- chokes were specified and it was made in 1945--gives me an edge (and I need all of them I can beg, borrow or steal) on sporting clays in the side-by-side events- BUT I am way far more serious about real birds (crows and barn pigeons) than I could ever get about clays- something about "teaching an old dog new tricks" I'd wager-

Anyway, Happy Holidays and please treat yourself to a annual membership in the PGCA- you won't regret it--

[Bill Murphy]

I don't agree with my friend, Jent. Every cut off Parker I have owned, and I have owned a few, shot just fine. A cylinder bored gun is a short range gun anyway and an inch or two off of center is no big deal. The only way to determine whether a cut off gun shoots to point of aim is to shoot it, not to make generalizations.