Changing choke

[Dean Romig]

Parker Brothers barrel making, chamber and forcing cone cutting, boring and choke cutting are all discussed in depth by Bill Furnish, Richard Hoover, Austin Hogan and others in early issues of Parker Pages.

The "Parker Pages Digital Archive" is indispensable in researching such topics. I have spent a couple of hours this afternoon re-reading a few of the articles by these authors who were consummate researchers on the subject of shotgun boring.

A short reading list in the Digital Archive would be ...

"History of Shotgun Chokes" by Richard Hoover and Bill Furnish, Parker Pages Vol. 3, Issue 4 July/Aug 1996

"Steel Archaeology" Parker Pages Vol. 3, Issue 5 July/Aug. 1996



Incidentally, the word "honing" gives me the chills.... "Cutting" and "polishing" are more appropriate terms for the boring and choke cutting processes Parker Brothers used.





.

"Parker Bores and Chambers" by Austin Hogan Parker Pages Vol. 18, Issue 4 Pg 30.

[Bill Murphy]

Anyone who has spent time on the doublegunshop.com website or any other shotgun website has come to the conclusion that barrel butchers are barrel butchers and opening or modifying chokes is a crapshoot and you are better off doing it yourself or not doing it at all. The best solution to opening chokes is to load spreaders or buy them. I am in my sixtieth year of buying double guns, shooting skeet, both Olympic and NSSA, trap, pigeons, sporting clays and wild birds, and, somehow, I have avoided ever modifying a choke, or even a chamber. Just my take on it.

[Gerald McPherson]

Thanks everyone for your input and the chokes will be left as is. All I plan to do with gun is dove hunt and I already have two Parkers that are great for doves. I may just try to sell this one. When we measured the chokes I was surprised they were so tight. A drop in gauge showed they were both about imp/mod. Also I plan on doing some pattern tests that may tell a different story. I have a mod/full that shoots like a imp/mod so we will see. Thanks again. Gerald

[Bill Murphy]

A choke change on two barrels, shipping, and insurance would buy you a nice shooter grade double gun.

[Phil C]

Shipped a set of barrels for double German gun this week for a friend.
Less than $20 each way for priority mail and $150 for the barrel rechoke.
Some joker tried to choke them himself I guess. Anyway less than $200 total. I have a gun indurance polcy so I do not buy extra insurance.

[Craig Budgeon]

For those of you that still want to alter your chokes on your shotguns, I found this video on google by typing in MidwayUSA shotgun choke reaming. The video is less than 2 minutes and shows an acceptable method to alter chokes. If someone wants to alter your chokes with an expansion reamer from the muzzle end, remember that, that method is only slightly better than using a hacksaw to alter your chokes.

[Kensal Rise]

You can also try do-it-yourself dentistry, novice shark photography, or an attempt at the land speed record in your Escalade.

But leave the choke alterations to a professional. Please...

[todd allen]

I've said this before, but I believe open chokes help a poor shooter, and hurt a good shooter. And conversely, tight chokes help a good shooter and hurt a poor shooter.

[Craig Budgeon]

John Campbell thank you for your post in reference to mine. You only have made a couple of mistakes in comprehending mine. At no time did I suggest that the reader should attempt choke enlargement on there own. Since the original poster asked for a person to duplicate Parker chokes and I know of no one nor did the rest of the contributors I thought the tape would show what is available. MidwayUSA may not be professional enough for you but they are for me and I suspect others that read this forum. My remarks about not reaming from the muzzle comes from my experience of seeing a 20 Ga. Specialty grade L.C. have its chokes destroyed as they were bellmouthed and off center of the bores which produced uneven and larger patterns than desired. John I await your next post. Perhaps it will have some substance.

[mobirdhunter]

Boy, if you don't have a dog in the hunt, these discussions are worth the price of admission! Learning with facts is one thing, with strong held opinions, quite another. I really appreciate the passion on issues like this.

Thanks!