New Parker Owner Questions

[Britton_Fraser]

Hello everyone, I recently inherited a Parker VH Grade that my father had sitting in a closet. It has been untouched since he bought it in New Hampshire about 30 years ago and I was wondering how to go about cleaning it in a way that won't ruin the value of it. There is some rust forming on the barrels, and on the first inch or so of the inside of the bore; the rest of the bore looks shiny when I put a light through it. It seems to be in usable condition, it is tight fitting and works properly when I dry fire it with snapcaps. For my other rifles I usually use Break-Free CLP for cleaning and lubricating, but idk if that is ideal for such an old gun. Finally, the bluing on the end of the barrels is wearing off, would it be best to leave it as is or get it reblued? Here are some quick pictures of it I took with my phone. My brother has a SLR camera that I hope to have access to soon for better pics if needed. Thanks in advance! photo (11).jpg

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[Britton_Fraser]

Some more pics

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[Mark Callanan]

Because your dad left it to you I would have it redone to some extent
At least the barrels
I think the family ties is important
At least to me they would be
In the end you may have more into it then what its is worth
But to me worth and value are 2 different things…..

[Pa SxS]

Hello Britton,

The first and most important thing is to take care of the rust to prevent further damage. I'd get some fine bronze wool, wrap it on a bronze 12ga brush and with plenty of gun oil, scrub the rust away in the bores. You can also use the bronze wool and oil on the barrels without harming the blueing. What caused the spotting I don't know, possibly blood splatters. You can use any gun oil such as Break-Free CLP or similar oil to wipe on the metal.

The rest of the gun, assuming in good mechanical condition, is shootable as is. If it were mine, I'd have the barrels reblued by someone who is familiar with vintage barrel blueing. I'd leave the rest of the gun as is.

[Bill Murphy]

Your gun is a scarce and valuable #1 frame, 26", fluid steel Parker. Do everything by the book and you will be rewarded. Tell us where you are located and we will tell you whom to take it to for attention. Don't touch your screws. They are wonderful and will take hundreds of dollars to fix if you molest them.

[Britton_Fraser]

Originally Posted by Bill Murphy

Your gun is a scarce and valuable #1 frame, 26", fluid steel Parker. Do everything by the book and you will be rewarded. Tell us where you are located and we will tell you whom to take it to for attention. Don't touch your screws. They are wonderful and will take hundreds of dollars to fix if you molest them.

Uhhh, this is interesting.... I thought it was a standard VH grade.... could you elaborate as I am new to this?

[Britton_Fraser]

I am in CT by the way.

[Dean Romig]

We have several knowledgable Parker Collectors in CT.

[Pa SxS]

I don't think a 1 frame VH 12ga is scarce. More scarce than a 2 frame or 1 1/2 frame but there are a lot of them out there. It's a nice gun.

[Britton_Fraser]

Originally Posted by Dean Romig

We have several knowledgable Parker Collectors in CT.

I would be interested in contacting them. I am new to the area of vintage shotguns, but I do know that restoring antiques can be very hit or miss in terms of keeping value.

I should add that I am not interested in selling this (unless it is somehow worth a stupidly large amount, which I doubt) but do want to restore it and possibly use it to hunt a bit without ruining its value. Basically I want it to be a nice heirloom.