force needed when sliding safety to off...

[Tom Brown]

Regarding the top safety tang on 1902 Parker DH. Safety is very hard to slide forward/off position, but once forced forward then it can be slid on or off with ease. This is noticeable after firing, in this case using snap caps. Have taken receiver apart and cleaned safety and accompanying jacket which goes through stock. Lightly polished mating surfaces. Also freshened up the flat safety spring/inside surfaces of the rectangular hole. Cleaned/lightly oiled cocking slide and accompanying parts. Now everything is back together but still stiff when sliding safety to off. Any thoughts are appreciated. Thanks in advance. T.

[B. Dudley]

Reset rod is likely tight in the hole in the wood. Or gummed up. Remove it and clean it and if still sticky, drill hole out just a hair.

[Dean Romig]

Or if you over tightened the bottom tang screw.... in the floor plate behind the triggers.





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[edgarspencer]

If I'm following you, if it's stiff to push forward, after each time the gun is opened, or even just pushing the top lever to the right, it is, as Brian says, the reset rod. It could have surface rust, or the wood may have swollen around it.

[B. Dudley]

Originally Posted by Dean Romig

Or if you over tightened the bottom tang screw.... in the floor plate behind the triggers.

This will usually not create issues with the safety mechanism. The tangs would have to be pulled so much to create any issues. And with he wood in place, this would not be possible.

[Dean Romig]

Sorry Brian but... In engaging the safety, the safety lever (N) slides onto and off the tops of the trigger blades (8) or sears at a very close tolerance. If the upper and lower tangs are pulled closer together with that screw thereby virtually eliminating any tolerance and actually bringing into tight contact the safety lever (N) and the sears or trigger blades (8) binding will occur. **see pg 123 of TPS for illustrations and an explanation of the operation of the safety mechanism.) The screw I refer to is the rearmost connection between the upper and lower tangs of the hammerless action.
I have done it accidentally and seen it done on other Parkers.

Additionally, the stock wood between the upper and lower tang preventing them from being brought together is rendered moot for the fact that 100 year old wood will generally have dried and shrunk to the extent that the tangs can be easily drawn together by over tightening the screw.



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[edgarspencer]

Dean describes a binding of the actual rocker lever which connects to the slide button, but were that the situation in the OP's gun, the button would be stiff, if not entirely bound up ALL the time.
The problem he is having is that the button is very stiff to push forward (which is also pushing the round rod forward, inside the hole in the stock) but then moves freely back and forth, because the offending rod is now "out of the way".
If the tang screw is over tightened, as Dean is describing, the safety button is either stuck because the rod is tight upon the sears, or if in the off position, will not go fully on, because it is hitting the edge of the sear.

[Dean Romig]

I agree Edgar - I was simply defending my earlier statement though I know the safety binding going both off and on is not what the OP describes in his opening post.





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[B. Dudley]

Many guns are not toleranced quite that tightly in the safety. Many times you will observe the triggers move up when the safety is clicked off and back down when clicked on. Sometimes this amount can be quite a bit. That would be far more than the tangs can be squeezed together be merely over tightening a screw in a sound stock.

[Dean Romig]

Certainly different guns will have very slight differences in these and other areas.





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