I need help with my Parker

[Dean Romig]

There are surviving records on 153374 to support a research letter. If the gun truly does not have a safety at all there might be some interesting information on the person who ordered it and possibly why it was ordered that way.





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[Emile Aoun]

Thank you Dean for your quick reply. Can I request the research letter online or the only option is via mail?
Will the research paper tell me if I can use the type of shells that mentioned in my original message?

[Researcher]

Welcome. Congratulations on an interesting gun. Post some pictures when you can.

No one can tell you over the internet what ammunition may or may not be safe in a given gun. That requires a qualified double gun smith with the proper tools and expertise.

That serial number is circa 1910. At that time, the heaviest 12-gauge loads being offered by our North American ammunition manufacturers was 3 1/2-drams of bulk smokeless powder --

ARROW 12-gauge, 2 3-4 inch, 3 1-2 drams E.C., 1 1-4 ounce.jpg

or 28 grains of dense smokeless powder (such as Infallible or Ballistite) --

RECORD 12-ga 28-grains Ballistite.jpg

pushing 1 1/4-ounce of shot. Those 12-gauge loads could be had in 2 3/4-inch or longer shells.

Some DuPont powder booklets from the 1920s/30s show these loads had pressures above modern day SAAMI specs for 2 3/4-inch 12-gauge shells.