new find

[Dean Romig]

I would do nothing at all to the barrel length or those patches. By doing so you might be encouraging a subsequent owner to attempt firing that gun - something which must never be done with a gun in that condition.

[Bill Murphy]

To be absolutely clear about the value of your gun, the charm and value of the gun rests heavily on the condition of the muzzles and in the patches on the barrels. It is not often that a gun like this comes on the market and the obviously heavy use and neglect are its main selling points. Don't mess it up.

[George Lander]

Johnny: You have received good advice from all who responded. Leave the Old Girl AS-IS. Hang it on the wall and enjoy it for what it is, a very, very early Parker. I have SN 0229. Join PGCA and register it under "Parkers Found".

Best Regards, George

[Jim Kucaba]

Johnny ... Other PGCA members have given you great advice ... I collect low serial number Parkers like yours and own the #71, the #90 guns plus quite a few guns with three and four digit serial numbers ... I'm sorry to say that your gun has almost no monetary value ... Collectors like myself routinely buy guns like yours at cheap prices to salvage for usable parts ... So, short of selling the gun for low bucks, the best thing to do is give your old gal a bath in Murphy's Oil Soap and warm water, use a hair dryer to fully evaporate the residual water, give the whole gun a light coat of Formby's or Pledge Furniture Polish, hang it above your fireplace, and enjoy owning a piece of "Americana."

Best Regards ... Jim Kucaba ... AriZOOna Cactus Patch ... Email: JimKucaba@aol.com

[Bill Murphy]

You're right, Bruce. I would love to own that gun. My loaner for birds is a 13 1/2 pound NH Grade 34" ten gauge. #65 would be my loaner for waterfowl.

[George Lander]

I think it's a doggone shame that some here want to belittle Johnny's find. He is obviously new to Parkers and only wanted some information on his find. Not all of us can afford to collect pristine specimens or high dollar small gauges. I'll bet the first Parker acquired by the critics here was not much better than Johnny's. If we treat each new person who finds our forum this shabbily it won't be long until we have no new blood at all. Jim Kucuba gave the best advice of all.

Just My Humble Opinion......George

[Autumn Daze]

Just trying to be honest and informative George.I think the advice I gave was just that.

[George Lander]

Dave: My comments were not directed at your post. You too gave Johnny good advice. Johnny filled in another gap in the history of the early Parkers.

Best Regards, George